A hand-held hammer for playing a guitar includes a handle, an arm and a head. The head has a head longitudinal axis and a striking surface that is generally transverse to the longitudinal axis of the arm. The striking surface is curved and equal to or longer than the distance between the first and fourth string of a six-string guitar. The player holds the guitar, selects the string length by fretting one or more strings, grips the hammer by the handle and strikes the strings with the striking surface.