An ''escopetarra'' () is a

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

made from a modified firearm, used as a peace symbol. The name is a

portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

of the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

words ''escopeta'' (shotgun) and ''guitarra'' (guitar).

History

The ''escopetarra'' was invented by

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

n peace activist César López in 2003 at a gathering after the El Nogal Club bombing in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

, when he noticed a soldier holding a firearm like a guitar.Colombian musicians organise online
BBC News, 1 June 2006 The first ''escopetarra'' in 2003 was made from a

Winchester rifle Winchester rifle is a comprehensive term describing a series of lever action repeating rifles manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. Developed from the 1860 Henry rifle, Winchester rifles were among the earliest repeaters. Th ...

and a

Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of double- cutaway electric guitar designed between 1952 and 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporati ...

electric guitar. López initially had five ''escopetarras'' built by Colombian

luthier A luthier ( ; ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments. Etymology The word ' is originally French and comes from ''luth'', the French word for "lute". The term was originally used for makers of lutes, but it came to be ...

Alberto Paredes, four of which were given to Colombian musician

Juanes Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez (born 9 August 1972), known professionally as Juanes, is a Colombian musician who was a member of the Rock music, rock band Ekhymosis and is now a solo artist. Since releasing his solo debut album ''Fíjate B ...

, Argentine musician

Fito Páez Rodolfo Páez, popularly known as Fito Páez (; born 13 March 1963), is an Argentine rock and roll musician and filmmaker. He was member of the "Trova Rosarina" and is known as "The Troubadour of Argentine Rock", and is considered an important ...

, the

United Nations Development Program The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries Poverty reduction, eliminate poverty and achieve Sustainable development, sustainable economic growth and Human development (economics), hu ...

, and the city government of

, while one was kept for himself. Juanes later sold his ''escopetarra'' for US$17,000 at a

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

fundraiser held to benefit victims of

anti-personnel mine An anti-personnel mine or anti-personnel landmine (APL) is a form of land mine, mine designed for use against human, humans, as opposed to an anti-tank mine, which target vehicles. APLs are classified into: blast mines and fragmentation mines; ...

s, while the ''escopetarra'' given to the UN was exhibited at the June 2006 of the UN

Conference on Disarmament The Conference on Disarmament (CD) is a multilateral disarmament forum established by the international community to negotiate arms control and disarmament agreements based at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. The Conference meets annually in ...

. In 2006, López acquired an additional 12 decommissioned

AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the Avtomat Kalashnikova (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is an assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian small-arms designer Mikhail Kala ...

assault rifles from Colombia's peace commissioner's office, with plans to convert them into guitars and give them to high-profile musicians such as

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...

Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, best known as a founding member of the Rock music, rock band Santana (band), Santana. Born and raised in Mexico where he developed his musical background, he r ...

and

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

, as well as political figures such as the

Dalai Lama The Dalai Lama (, ; ) is the head of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. The term is part of the full title "Holiness Knowing Everything Vajradhara Dalai Lama" (圣识一切瓦齐尔达喇达赖喇嘛) given by Altan Khan, the first Shu ...

. However, a member of the Dalai Lama's staff rejected López's offer, citing the inappropriateness of giving a weapon as a gift; López has said he will try to explain his purpose more clearly. One was also given to Kenyan singer Eric Wainaina on the occasion of the

UNODC The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC; French: ''Office des Nations unies contre la drogue et le crime'') is a United Nations office that was established in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention by combining the ...

's 2008 International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, to honour his appointment as a UNODC Messenger of Non-Violence.

Related instruments

*During the 1980s, Pete Tosh of

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

group

The Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as the Wailers and prior to that the Wailing Rudeboys, the Wailing Wailers and the Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Rober ...

played a guitar built around an

M16 The M16 (officially Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of assault rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-round magazine. In 1964, th ...

assault rifle. Finnish

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

guitarist

Sami Lopakka Sami Lopakka (born 17 January 1975) is a Finnish guitarist and author. He was one of two guitarists for the metal band Sentenced until it disbanded (1989–2005). He was the band's main lyricist and was also considered to be the spokesman for t ...

plays a similar instrument, known as the Lopashnikov.Kursk Doom
/ref> *An

-Cello hybrid similar to an escopeterra was used as the concept art for the 2011 album ''

Symphony Soldier ''Symphony Soldier'' is the second studio album by American rock band the Cab. It was self-released by the band on August 23, 2011. The Cab first rose to prominence at the peak of the mid-2000s emo pop trend with their debut album '' Whisper W ...

'' by

the Cab The Cab is an American rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada. The band consists of lead vocalist Alexander DeLeon, keyboardist Alex T. Marshall and bassist Joey Thunder. Their debut studio album, '' Whisper War'', was released on April 29, 2008. T ...

References

{{reflist

External links

''Arte para coser la herida''
article at ''El Mundo'' (Colombian newspaper)
Colombia Dispatch 7: Turning Guns into Guitars
at Smithsonian

article at UNDOC Firearms Peace monuments and memorials

History

Related instruments

See also

References

External links