The standard classical guitar has six strings, but extended versions of the instrument have existed alongside it for a long time. Among these, the 10-string guitar, sometimes called a decacorde, is the best known. It adds four extra bass strings below the usual six, giving the instrument a wider pitch range and a noticeably fuller, more resonant sound, even though its core tuning and playing technique stay close to a regular six-string guitar.
Narciso Yepes and the instrument's rise to prominence
The 10-string guitar owes much of its visibility to the Spanish guitarist Narciso Yepes, who championed the instrument on the concert stage in the second half of the twentieth century. Yepes wanted an instrument with a deeper bass register and more resonance than a six-string guitar could offer. The extra four strings are not only played directly; they also vibrate sympathetically with the other strings even when left unplayed, adding a halo of resonance that fills out the overall sound in a way a standard guitar cannot quite match.
How a 10-string guitar is tuned
Tuning starts from the familiar six-string tuning and adds four lower strings below it. Unlike the main six strings, there is no single fixed standard for how those extra strings are tuned. The exact pitches depend on the piece being played: a particular transcription or composition may call for a specific low note at a specific point in the bass line, so players retune the extra strings from piece to piece to match what the music actually needs. This makes the instrument considerably more flexible than a six-string guitar, but also more demanding to prepare for a given program.
Repertoire written and arranged for the extended range
Music for the 10-string guitar falls broadly into two categories. The first consists of transcriptions, often drawn from organ or harpsichord music, where the original composition uses a bass range wider than a six-string guitar can reach. The extra strings make it possible to play these transcriptions with the bass line intact, rather than compromising it or raising it to fit six strings. The second category is music written specifically with the extended range in mind, where a composer deliberately uses the lower strings as part of the piece's structure. Pieces of this kind do not translate well back onto a standard six-string guitar, since their bass lines rely on notes that simply are not available without the extra strings.
Who builds 10-string guitars today
The 10-string guitar remains a niche instrument rather than a mainstream product. It is not manufactured on anything like the scale of a standard six-string guitar; instead, individual luthiers build them to order for the small number of players who specifically want the extended range. Because demand is limited, building one well requires particular experience with neck width, bridge spacing, and string tension, since ten strings under tension place more structural demands on the body and neck than the usual six.
Related reading
To see how the 10-string guitar compares with other classical guitar types, visit our overview of guitar models. For a closer look at construction details across different guitar types, including extended range instruments, see our photo gallery.
