Bruno Mars has a long list of talents on his resume, some of which include singer, songwriter, and producer. While he might be most known for his singing, he also dances and plays many musical instruments. Can Bruno Mars play guitar?
Bruno Mars, born Peter Gene Hernandez, learned to play guitar, drums, and piano at a young age. When he was 4 years old, he started performing on a regular basis with his family’s musical group.
Mars has stated that he was never formally trained to play the instruments, they were just always around him, and he came from a very musical family. He has incorporated all three instruments into his live stage act, in addition to singing and dancing.
Peter Gene Hernandez
Peter Gene Hernandez was born in Hawaii and received the nickname Bruno at a young age as he reminded his father of a wrestler with the same name. When he was 3 years old his uncle convinced him that he should perform as a young Elvis impersonator. A year later, young Bruno began performing with his family’s band, The Love Notes, five nights a week at the age of 4.
He continued to perform every night, while attending school during the day, up until he was 12 years old. At that time his parents divorced and The Love Notes stopped performing. He continued his interest in all things musical and moved to Los Angeles to pursue music as a career, after graduating high school at the age of 17.
It was after his arrival in Los Angeles that Bruno added the “Mars” to his stage name. He wanted to avoid being typecast as a Latin, Spanish singer, so he wanted to have something that was more generic. He was often told by girls that he was out of this world, so he figured he must be from Mars, and the moniker stuck.
History of Guitars
Guitars originated in Spain in the 16th century, though they were a little different then they are now. The original version was narrower and deeper than the modern version, and only had four strings. Before 1800, the guitar switched to the six strings it currently has.
In the 19th century, the body of the guitar underwent some changes, including increased sonority, which enables the pitch to sound louder, and multiple pitches sounding simultaneously.
The instrument first gained popularity in the 17th century with the decline of the lute. It received another gain in popularity in the 20th century when it became a concert instrument. These days the guitar is popular in several different musical genres and often will have instrumentals in songs, to highlight the instrument and skill of the player.
Notable Guitar Players
There have been several notable guitar players since the 1960s playing everything from rock and roll, jazz, blues and doo-wop. Chuck Berry was one Bruno Mars looked up to and wanted to emulate from a young age, even while he was doing Elvis Presley impersonations.
Some other notable guitar players of the past few decades include:
- Jimi Hendrix
- Eric Clapton
- George Harrison
- Slash
- B.B. King
- Keith Richards
- Eddie Van Halen
- Buddy Guy
- Jerry Garcia
- Joe Perry
- Frank Zappa
- Bob Dylan
This is definitely not an exhaustive list, and it could continue on for quite some time. Rolling Stone Magazine has a list of the top 100 guitar players, and even that is not an exhaustive list.
Benefits of Playing Guitar
There are several proven benefits to playing the guitar, and I’m sure that there are many others for those who can play multiple instruments like Bruno Mars. Multi-tasking, increased brain cognition, and better concentration have all been linked to guitar playing. As have several physical and mental benefits.
And, if anyone has seen Bruno Mars live in concert, one of the greatest benefits could be bringing such entertainment to others.