THE great Jimi Hendrix played it with his teeth, Joe Brown played it behind his head and Bert Weedon taught just about every embryo rock 'n' roller in the land to play it.

The guitar.

In the old days, when spotty teenagers were fed up with using a cricket bat or pinching their sister's tennis racket for a substitute, they went down to the local music store and bought a cheap acoustic guitar that was probably the worst thing in the world to learn on.

The fret board was as difficult to handle as a 10-ton truck and the noise it made didn't really equate with Jimmy Page at full bore.

Pretty soon they switched to an electric model with a mega-watt amplifier and it was usually at that point they fell out with next door.

Had they only persevered with the acoustic, having spent a bit more money and bought a better one, they could have avoided the aggro with the neighbours and taken their place on Worcester's burgeoning classical guitar scene.

In case you didn't realise, Worcester had a burgeoning classical guitar scene, then hasten along to The Great Hall of the Old Palace in Deansway at 7.30pm tomorrow when three ensembles of Worcester Classical Guitar Society perform a concert called Strings Together - Music for Classical Guitars.

It costs £5 admission and for that you can hear Worcester Youth Guitar Orchestra, Worcester Guitar Quartet and Worcester Classical Guitar Society Ensemble.

The umbrella organisation, the Classical Guitar Society, was set up 11 years ago to give local classical guitar players the opportunity to play together in ensembles of varying sizes, instead of fingering away on their own.

However, by that time the full Classical Guitar Orchestra, which numbers around 11 members, had already been established for 15 years and was doing well.

Not surprisingly, some of the leading lights behind the WCGS are music teachers, in particular Steve Bridgwater, who is 48 now, but had his first guitar when he was 10.

Unlike many of his contemporaries, having tried the electric guitar and pop as a teenager, he decided to concentrate on the acoustic version and classical music.

He now teaches guitar, both at home for private pupils and in various county schools.

"I suppose the advantage of classical is that you can play together in a group comprised entirely of guitars," Steve explained. "It just wouldn't sound right with electrical."

As well as being one half of the Worcester Guitar Duo - the other is Tim Roberts from Pershore - Steve also appears in the Worcester Guitar Quartet with Tim, Laura Templeton and Tim Phillips.

The Worcester Youth Guitar Orchestra is a relatively recent innovation, formed only three years ago, drawing together pupils of some of the music teachers.

There are 10 members, ranging in age from 10 to 17, who meet on the evening of the second Sunday of every month at Worcester Countryside Centre for workshops and group playing.

Their material is specially arranged and includes items like When I'm 64, Ain't Misbehavin' and several Steve Bridgwater compositions.

The full Guitar Orchestra meets immediately after the youngsters in the same room, performing classical works by composers such as J. S. Bach and Peter Warlock or possibly letting its combined hair down with a selection of self-written material.

"While the music may be 'classical', there is no reason for it to be continually sedate," Steve added. "We want people to have a good time."

Which, if I recall correctly, is the goal of guitar players everywhere.

Advance tickets for Strings Together - Music for Classical Guitars are available by calling 01905 422748 or pay on the door.