Image: David Douglas Bunker, CC BY-SA 4.0 — via Wikimedia Commons
Bunker Touch Guitar
| Category | Strings (touch guitar) |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | USA |
| Classification | electric guitar |
| Wikipedia | en.wikipedia.org |
| Wikidata | Q65091136 |
Overview
The Bunker Touch Guitar is a double-necked stringed instrument designed by the American luthier David Douglas Bunker. It builds on the design language of his earlier Duo’Lectar and is intended for two-handed tapping rather than conventional plucking, allowing one player to perform bass and treble parts at the same time on two separate guitar-style necks.
Origin & History
Bunker began experimenting with tapping technique in the 1950s and continued to refine purpose-built touch instruments for several decades. The Bunker Touch Guitar represents the more developed, modern phase of that work: a refined twin-neck body with a tuned damping system, magnetic pickups optimised for tap response, and ergonomic positioning of the necks for sustained two-handed performance. Its lineage situates Bunker as one of the earliest figures in the touch-style tradition that later included the Chapman Stick and the Warr Guitar.
How It’s Played
The instrument is suspended vertically or near-vertical from a strap, presenting both fingerboards to the player’s hands. The left hand typically taps the bass neck while the right hand taps the guitar neck. Strings are sounded by hammering, pulling off, and sliding rather than picking. A built-in muting system prevents open strings from ringing sympathetically, so each note articulates cleanly. The result is a piano-like texture in which independent left- and right-hand voices can move with full polyphonic freedom.
Cultural Significance
Touch-style instruments occupy a small but devoted niche in modern music, valued by composer-performers who want full polyphonic control without the limitations of conventional guitar technique. Bunker’s contribution to this lineage was foundational and is recognised by historians of the form.
Related Instruments
- Duo’Lectar – Bunker’s earlier patented touch design
- – the most widely known modern tapping instrument
- – another modern touch-style instrument
- – the broader family
- Bass guitar – the second voice on the lower neck
Frequently Asked Questions
Who plays the Bunker Touch Guitar?
A small number of touch-style specialists, including members of Bunker’s own family who continue to develop the instrument.
Is it considered a guitar or a stick?
Functionally it is a touch-style instrument; structurally it retains two distinct guitar-shaped necks.
Image: Bunker Touch Guitar (double necks), photo by David Douglas Bunker, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons).