2024
AL#152 p.38
Gary Southwell
▪ Bog oak is the ultimate sinker wood. Giant oak trees sank into peat bogs thousands of years ago. Now they are being dug up, sawed into planks, and carefully dried. Innovative traditionalist Gary Southwell loves the stuff.
2024
AL#152 p.41
Kevin Aram
▪ All the native trees on the British Isles yield light-colored wood. And in the case of guitar-making materials, blondes dont have more fun. Thats why Kevin Aram was delighted to find that marinating oak for scores of centuries in an all-natural soup of organic chemicals will turn it black, and that nature already did all the work. He also visits a friend and his wonderful old Stennor bandsaw.
2024
AL#152 p.52
Devon Pessler Alyssa Fernandez Mark French
▪ A lot of people have a rough idea of how it would affect the sound of a flattop guitar to make the sides deeper, or to make the soundhole smaller. But now a college professor and two students have built the test apparatus and quantified the question. Read this article and see if you guessed right.
2024
AL#152 p.58
John Huffman
▪ If you are a guitar maker, Ill bet you know the thrill of adapting some cheap gizmo into a specialized tool for the lutherie trade. Huffman quickly jury-rigs an inexpensive fish scale into a useful jig for measuring individual string tension.
2024
AL#152 p.63
Federico Sheppard
▪ Action matters. It matters to the playability and to the sound. And the height of the strings off the soundboard is no accident on a fine guitar. Sheppard takes a very close look at eighty-nine extraordinary examples in one of the worlds great classical and flamenco guitar collections and gives us the deets. Mentions Shel Urlik.
2023
AL#150 p.65
David Franzen
▪ George Smith was one of that rare breed: A self-starter guitar maker before the American Lutherie Boom. Heres three fond remembrances by people who were glad to have known him well.
2024
AL#151 p.24
Tobias Braun
▪ How do you explain that the glue squeeze-out in some fine old guitars by Spanish masters drips the wrong way? Seems like that could only happen if the top was glued last, face-up. The key to the mystery may be an unusual century-old workboard from the shop of Santos Hernández. Tune in for the rest of the story. Mentions Jose Romanillos, Marian Harris Winspear, Jeffrey Elliott, Richard Brune, Alberto Martínez, Domingo Esteso, Enrique Garcia, Francisco Simplicio, Miguel Simplicio, Marcelo Barbero, Marcelo Barbero (Hijo), Arcangel Fernández Léonard Plattner, Faustino Conde, Mariano Conde, Julio Conde, Felipe Conde, Felipe Conde Crespo, Modesto Borreguero, Hernández y Aguado, José Ramírez III, Julián Gómez Ramírez, Manuel Ramírez, Antonio Torres, Robert Bouchet.
2024
AL#151 p.34
Joshua-Alexander French
▪ Imagine the fun of attending an intensive seminar where nine builders build fine classical guitars from scratch with an instructor whose strong background qualifies him to carry on the teaching work of Jose Romanillos. Now make the setting an authentic castle in Austria. With a gourmet restaurant. What a wonderful world. Mentions Tobias Braun, Jose Romanillos, Marian Harris Winspear, Santos Hernández, Alberto Martínez, Luise Walker, Miguel Llobet, Jeffrey Elliott.
2024
AL#151 p.64
Geoff Needham
▪ A cheap mail-order gizmo for measuring tire tread wear; a pair of nippers; a scrap of plexi; a bottle of superglue. Put them all together and youve got a sweet tool like the cool kids use. Mentions Chris Alsop.
2023
AL#150 p.64
Maria Gonzalez-Leon
▪ George Smith was one of that rare breed: A self-starter guitar maker before the American Lutherie Boom. Heres three fond remembrances by people who were glad to have known him well.
2023
AL#150 p.16
Mark French
▪ Richard R.E. Bruné was in the GALs very first cohort and was an author and convention presenter from the very beginning. Weve visited him a couple of times over the decades. His son Marshall was born into the business, and into the Guild. Together they run a large workshop and epicenter of classical guitar making, scholarship restoration, appreciation, and dealing.
2023
AL#149 p.50
Mark French Eddy Efendy
▪ Putting a tube in the port of a loudspeaker box changes the lower resonances. Makers of classical guitars have known about that for a century and a half. They call that tube a tornavoz. French and Efendy give us the math on how it works.
2023
AL#149 p.64
Graham McDonald
▪ Fourteen years ago, McDonald wrote up a survey of the steel string guitar making books that were available at that time. More books have appeared since then, so hes back with an update. Look up the earlier article in our Premium Online Content.
2023
AL#148 p.28
Mark French
▪ If you are like me, you probably think you know what the Helmholtz resonance of a flattop guitar is. And like me, you may be exactly wrong. Turns out it is the note that you don’t hear. Mentions Fender Acoustasonic Stratocaster, tornavoz.
2023
AL#148 p.44
James Buckland
▪ Beautiful books about the pre-classical guitar, with lush and informative photography, are being published in Europe. Dont worry; they include English text for the benefit of us new-worlders. Mentions Mauro Giuliani, Gennaro Fabricatore, Joseph Pons, Johann Stauffer, Rene Lacote, Wappengitarre.
2023
AL#148 p.58
Brent Benfield
▪ It’s an easy improvement over the traditional old-school 6-hole bridge, but you have to do it right. Brent shows you how. Mentions John Gilbert.
2023
AL#148 p.63
R.M. Mottola
▪ Legit scientist Graham Caldersmith was an early GAL member and a prolific author for us and other journals. Those articles have now been gathered and published in a book. Our reviewer talks about the book, and about Caldersmiths position in the lutherie literature.
2023
AL#148 p.65
John Calkin
▪ Our reviewer has seen a ton of instructional lutherie videos. And he likes this one.
2022
AL#146 p.71
Geoff Needham
▪ Use a lumberyard laser level to align guitar parts during construction.
2022
AL#147 p.7
George Taylor
▪ In the 1960s, Hart Huttig, a founder of the American Lutherie Boom, had a guitar-playing friend named Chico Taylor. Decades later, Chico’s son has sent us a photo and a remembrance.
2022
AL#147 p.8
Brian Yarosh Beau Hannam
▪ Beau Hannam came up in the productive and innovative shop of Australian luthier Gerard Gilet, then migrated to Colorado to found his own shop making guitars and ukuleles. Hes all over the Interwebs with his generous lutherie advice and his gorgeous instruments.
2022
AL#147 p.28
James Buckland
▪ Baroque guitars were 5-course instruments. That is, they had ten strings in five pairs. Then suddenly here comes the 19th century and guitars had six single strings. Yadda yadda, now its today and everything is normal. The real story is a lot more interesting than that and it actually involves a missing link; the 5-string guitar. Luthier, guitarist, and scholar Buckland lays it all out for us.
2022
AL#146 p.5
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Mentions Richard Schneider, Michael Kasha, and how to determine guitar value for appraisal and considerations for purchase. See letter same issue same title from Ted Moniak.
2022
AL#146 p.6
Flip Scipio
▪ Ten years ago, Flip Scipio attended the last of the summer seminars given by José Romanillos at his base in Sigüenza, Spain. Now, after the recent passing of the Maestro, this review is both informative and poignant.
2022
AL#146 p.34
January Williams
▪ Here’s a quick review of how the slack-key guitar got to be a thing. See GAL Plan #81
2022
AL#146 p.64 read this article
Federico Sheppard Kevin Aram Josep Melo Mónica Esparza
▪ Romanillos was a towering figure in the lutherie field during a long and productive career as a maker and scholar. He was also a generous mentor and friend to many guitar makers. Four of those makers share fond memories of him here. Many more will miss him.
2022
AL#146 p.2
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Gives updated info on guitar restoration materials that were mentioned by Elliott in AL#145.
2022
AL#146 p.5
Ted Moniak
▪ Mentions Richard Schneider, Michael Kasha, and how to determine guitar value for appraisal and considerations for purchase. See letter same issue same title from Jeffrey R. Elliott.
2022
AL#145 p.16
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Elliott is best known for his long career of making classical guitars of the highest quality, but he has also undertaken some major restorations of important historic instruments. Here he reviews three projects and shares thoughts about his approach. Mentions Jose Romanillos, Hermann Hauser Sr., Antonio de Torres, Francisco Tarrega, Francisco Gonzalez, Peter Radcliff.
2022
AL#145 p.38
Roger Haggstrom
▪ Haggstromm uses a commercially-available radiused sanding block, a few scraps of wood, and a handful of parts from the hardware store to make this simple jig. It that lets him quickly and quietly produce a fretboard with the radius and the relief accurately sanded in.
2021
AL#144 p.24
Federico Sheppard
▪ Federico Sheppard completes his uncompromising copy of FE08, the elaborate early opus of the master luthier Antonio Torres Jurado. Beautifully figured wood and excruciatingly detailed marquetry come together and receive a French polish finish. Mentions Jose Romanillos, Marian Romanillos, Eugene Clark, and Robert Ruck.
2021
AL#144 p.65
Kevin Aram
▪ Our reviewer Kevin Aram praises this gorgeous book which includes interviews with several luthiers about the methods and ideas of the great Spanish master builder.
2021
AL#144 p.4
Ron Berge
▪ Berge seeks plans for small classical guitars, suitable for kids. Readers suggest he look at commercially available student models and draw his own plans. Hope that was helpful.
2021
AL#144 p.4
Mark French
▪ Berge seeks plans for small classical guitars, suitable for kids. Readers suggest he look at commercially available student models and draw his own plans. Hope that was helpful.
2021
AL#144 p.4
R.M. Mottola
▪ Berge seeks plans for small classical guitars, suitable for kids. Readers suggest he look at commercially available student models and draw his own plans. Hope that was helpful.
2021
AL#144 p.5
Clifford Wilkes
▪ Details about the timelime of Sheppard’s construction of the replica of Torres’ FE08 are clarified somewhat.
2021
AL#144 p.5
Federico Sheppard
▪ Details about the timelime of Sheppard’s construction of the replica of Torres’ FE08 are clarified somewhat.
2021
AL#143 p.6
Federico Sheppard
▪ It is a story of mystery, dedication, and destiny. The wide-eyed young novitiate is mentored by oracles, sorcerers, and craftsmen until he finds his great quest and pursues it against all odds. To put it more plainly, but no more truthfully, it is the story of Federico Sheppard constructing a copy of FE08, the astonishingly elaborate early opus of the master luthier Antonio Torres Jurado. Mentions Nick Kukich, Ray Jacobs, Shel Urlik, Jose Romanillos, Richard Brune, Robert Ruck, Robert Lundberg, Abel Garcia Lopez, Nicolo Alessi.
2021
AL#143 p.22
Mark French Charles Fox
▪ In this article the fretboard is slotted, crowned, and glued to the neck. The neck is then shaped.
2021
AL#143 p.40
Leonardo Michelin-Salomon
▪ In AL#141 Leonardo showed us how he was building Romantic-era guitars at the craft school in Norway. This time he is taking a deep dive into building with local spruce. Although the trees are not big, the wood is very good. Mentions Gennaro Fabricatore, Johann Anton Stauffer, Josef Pagés, Coffee-Goguette.
2021
AL#143 p.60
R.M. Mottola
▪ Mottola gives short, not-too-technical summaries of two articles recently published online by Savart Journal. In the first, Mark French et al. take on the fraught task of “Comparing Subjective and Objective Data from a Pool of Classical Guitars.” In the second, Gabriele Caselli et al. present an “Analysis of Violin Combination Tones and their Contribution to Tartini’s Third Tone.”
2021
AL#143 p.62
Bryan Johanson
▪ Contains many colorized historic photos of the great virtuoso and an essay on his career, in addition to the complete full-color facsimilie of his autograph book with notes and translations.
2021
AL#143 p.2
Gila Eban
▪ Gila replies to Howard Stephens writing in AL#142. Mentions Tom Higgins, Alan Carruth, and Tom Knatt.
2021
AL#143 p.2
James Buckland
▪ Jim talks about meeting famous guitarists through his teacher Eli Kassner. Mentions John Williams, Leo Brouwer, and the Toronto Guitar Society.
2021
AL#142 p.6
Cyndy Burton Jose Romanillos R.E. Brune Jeffrey R. Elliott Kevin Aram Gary Southwell Simon Ambridge
▪ The great classical guitarist Julian Bream was well known for supporting and encouraging contemporary composers and promising young players. Less noticed by the public, but of special importance to luthiers, was Bream’s work with a handful of classical guitar makers from whom he commissioned the fine instruments that he played. In this article, those luthiers offer memories of their interactions with Julian Bream. Mentions Hermann Hauser Sr.
2021
AL#142 p.30
James Buckland
▪ The terz guitar was a smaller Romantic-era guitar, which played in a higher range and was written in a different key. Knowing this history helps us understand several otherwise-puzzling old instruments.
2021
AL#142 p.62
Monica Esparza
▪ A positive review of this elaborate, gorgeous, thorough, and expensive book by Josep Melo. Mentions Pepe Romero.
2020
AL#141 p.65
Chris Sobel
▪ Françoise and Daniel Sinier de Ridder, authors of The Spanish Guitar, will be familiar to American Lutherie readers from their ambitious restoration articles. Our reviewer loves this lavish and informative picture book.
2020
AL#141 p.70
Federico Sheppard
▪
2020
AL#141 p.26
Leonardo Michelin-Salomon
▪ A Uruguayan luthier enrolls in a craft school in Norway to study Romantic-era guitars built by Italian, German, and French makers two hundred years ago. He writes an article about his techniques and discoveries that is published in an American journal with readers in over forty countries. Yes, it’s a big beautiful lutherie world. We are all just leaves on one wide-spreading, figured-maple branch.
2020
AL#139 p.61 read this article
Ronald-Louis Fernandez
▪ Felix Manzanero was a classical guitar maker and collector in Madrid. He spent twelve years in the shop of Jose Ramirez II, starting at age fourteen. Felix was a friend of author Ron Fernandez’ father, and then a lifelong friend of Ron; they visited each other’s homes in Spain and California. Mentions Seiko Sesoko, Laurindo Almeida, Manitas de Plata, Sabicas, Segovia, Paracho, German Vazquez Rubio.
2020
AL#140 p.2
Stephen Marchione
▪ The braces in an archtop guitar are very similar to the bars in fiddles, and Marchione fits them with the same traditional techniques. The mating surface of the brace is roughed out with a chisel, then refined with a small plane, and perfected with files and scrapers. Chalk shows the whole truth of the fit. Believe the chalk.
2020
AL#140 p.48
Federico Sheppard Javier Campos-Tijeras
▪ Many of the fine hand-made guitars that are born in Ganada, Spain, spend a few weeks in the shop of Javier Campos Tijeras receiving a light, thin coating of shellac before they venture out into a cruel world of fingernails, cigarette smoke, and shaky guitar stands. Javi explains his process and holds nothing back about the specific materials and supplies he uses.
2020
AL#140 p.56
Geoff Needham
▪ Bamboo is kinda like wood, right? Ever wonder if you could make a guitar out of it? Nowadays it comes in large panels of edge-laminated strips that are about the right thickness. The author made two nice classical guitars with bamboo sides and backs, and gives the material a big thumbs-up for workability, appearance, and sound. Mentions Miguel Rodriguez and Domingo Esteso.
2020
AL#140 p.60 read this article
Juan-Oscar Azaret
▪ Pioneering guitar maker, guitar designer, acoustics researcher, and author Graham Caldersmith has passed away. If you knew him, perhaps from his attendance at GAL Conventions, read this affectionate remembrance. If you didn’t, read it to find out what we’ve lost. Mentions Carleen Hutchins, Jim Williams, Greg Smallman.
2020
AL#140 p.62
C.F. Casey
▪ Nearly twenty years ago, Casey made a detailed drawing of a 7-string Russian guitar which we published as GAL Instrument Plan #48. Recently, he was called on to make a replica of that instrument. Sure, he had the drawing, but he took a few liberties with the project. He tells us what he did, and why. The original guitar showed some Stauffer inspiration.
2019
AL#138 p.66
Bryan Johanson
▪ Orfeo Magazine represents a new idea in marketing. It is free online, or you can buy it as gorgeous coffee-table books of collected issues. Either way, it sure is pretty. Written and photographed by Alberto Martinez, Orfeo Magazine presents one man’s lavishly illustrated pilgrimages into the world of the classical guitar.
2020
AL#139 p.6
Federico Sheppard
▪ Here’s a lutherie carreer so wide-ranging, so full of amazing travels and fortuitous connections, that you might be thinking of Baron Munchausen or Forrest Gump. But this is a true adventure, and he left a lot of it out in order to pack the story into a 75-minute lecture. Must read to believe. From his 2017 GAL Convention lecture. Mentions Torres, Simplicio, Garcia, Leo Kottke, Bozo Podunavac, Ray Jacobs, John Fahey, Peter Lang, Norman Blake, Robert Larson, Agustin Barrios, Ray Whitely, Sanfeliu, Enno Voorhorst, Jeffrey Elliott, Cyndy Burton, Richard Brune, Jorge Morel, Pepe Romero, Shel Urlik, Romanillos, Dmitry Zhevlakov, Paracho, Abel Garcia, Antigua Casa Nunez, Cecilio Lopez, Fernando Sor, Francois de Fossa, Cite de la Musique, Santos Hernanadez, Domingo Esteso, Antonio Marin, Eugene Clark, Michael Partington.
2019
AL#137 p.4
Federico Sheppard Todd Cambio
▪ Federico has traveled the world to bring us news of excellent and unusual luthiers and their work. This time he journeyed from Green Bay, Wisconsin all the way to Madison, Wisconsin to meet a guy who keeps his work on the cutting edge of innovation by closely following the century-old work of American guitar factories, and Italian-American luthiers who worked in New York City before WWI. A word to the wise: Tulip poplar is not, and never shall be, banned by CITES or the Lacey Act. Mentions the Acosta family; John D’Angelico; Lydia Mendoza; Lonnie Johnson; Stella; Regal; Oscar Schmidt; Harmony; Lyon & Healy; Lead Belly; Favilla.
2019
AL#137 p.22
Cyndy Burton Joshia de-Jonge
▪ Joshia de Jonge was a sensation at the 1998 GAL Convention when, as a young female luthier, she brought a nicely-made and fine sounding instrument to the classical guitar listening session. It helped to have grown up in a guitar-making family. And now that she has left her parents’ home and shop, she is raising guitar-making sons. Mentions Geza Burghardt; Linda Manzer; Sergei de Jonge; Eric Sahlin.
2019
AL#137 p.26
Tim Olsen Joshia de-Jonge
▪ Here’s Joshia’s method of building an elevated neck with a sophisticated geometry to let the bridge height be constant across its width while the low strings have the necessary clearance over the frets. It is inspired by the work of Eric Sahlin.
2019
AL#137 p.62
Greg Maxwell
▪ Australian luthier Trevor Gore is the co-author of the two-volume book Contemporary Acoustic Guitar, Design and Build. Gore teaches a three-day seminar in which he demonstates his very specific and number-based method of measuring and controlling the resonant frequecies of guitars. Maxwell attended one such seminar, held at Robbie O’Brien’s shop, and gives a brief overview.
2019
AL#137 p.66
Juan-Oscar Azaret
▪ This new book is a thoroughly illustrated step-by-step method for making classical guitars, using mostly inexpensive small power tools. It also takes a luthier’s look at a dozen different instruments by well-known hand-makers. Yes, it is only in Spanish. But even if you do not read Spanish, our reviewer says you will probably still get a lot out of it. The author of the book, Luis Alberto Paredes Rodriguez, is a long-time Guild member, a GAL Convention presenter, and an AL author. He takes a close look at twelve different guitar designs, by Voboam; Stradivari; Grobert; Lacote; Panormo; Torres; Esteso; Hauser; Ramírez; Fleta; Schneider/Kasha; Romanillos; and Smallman. He goes so far as to build one of each.
2019
AL#136 p.4
Federico Sheppard
▪ Robert Ruck was one of the young self-starters who founded the American Lutherie Boom, and he remained a leading light in the movement until the end of his life. Federico Sheppard was an aquaintence and admirer who became closer to Ruck when they spent time together at Federico’s place on the Camino de Santiago in Spain one summer. In this article, Federico presents a photo tour of Ruck’s shop in Eugene Oregon and explains some of the tools and techniques we see. Mentions French polising with hardware-store shellac. Mentions Richard Brune.
2019
AL#136 p.20
Mark French
▪ We all know what “impedance” is, right? It’s that stuff… the force that… well, what is it really? Turns out it’s something like pushing a kid on a swing at the wrong time. And it has a lot to do with the resonances of acoustic instruments, which has a lot to do with how they sound. Anyway, in this largely math-free presentation, Professor Mark gives us the scoop.
2019
AL#136 p.22
January Williams
▪ Before there were cheap Spanish guitars from Asian factories, there were cheap Spanish guitars from hard-working Spanish luthiers using traditional methods. If there was an inexpensive classical guitar kicking around your house or dorm room before about 1965, it might very well have been a Tatay. The family business was in Valencia, Spain, but they had an outpost in New York where one of the brothers turned out instruments at an amazing pace.
2019
AL#136 p.28
January Williams
▪ There are Tatay guitars, and then there are Tatay guitars. They could be from Valencia or New York; from one of four generations of the family; from one maker or his brother, father, son, uncle, or cousin. This article helps you sort them out. Photos of representative guitars, and lots of photos of labels from the various eras.
2019
AL#136 p.36
Mike Gluyas Shaun Newman
▪ Although he had fallen in love with the classical guitar the first time he heard one as a teenager, Shaun Newman was already well along in a career as a language teacher when he first tried to make one. He was lucky enough to find a mentor in his corner of England, and he has been making and restoring an impressive variety of fine instruments for the last thirty years.
2019
AL#136 p.42
Massimo Maddaloni Lizabeth-Jane Hella Giacomo Parimbelli
▪ From the time that the violin was invented, Cremona was the world center for the highest quality string instrument making, until it gradually became known for lower-quality mass production of fiddles. After its dark age, Cremona has more recently seen a renaissance of its lutherie heritage. This article looks at an unusual guitar made by a Cremonese luthier in the 1930s and sees echoes of the old masters in its design. Mentions Stradivari, Panormo, Fibonacci spiral, Archimedean spiral, golden ratio.
2019
AL#136 p.66
Peter Tsiorba
▪ It’s called a book, but the format is a box of thirty-four folded sheets, each one a life-size photo poster of a famous guitar. Our reviewer takes a close look. Mentions Antonio Torres.
2018
AL#134 p.69
Luis-Alberto Paredes-Rodriguez
▪ Is it bad to cut into the lining when routing a binding channel? Paredes says no it’s actually a good thing. He shows how he does it, and says that in this he is a follower of the late Arthur Overholtzer.
2018
AL#135 p.38
Federico Sheppard
▪ In his youth, before Federico Sheppard found his calling as a luthier, he was a mere physician working for the Olympic Games. One day he heard a classical guitar being played on the radio of his car. It shook him to “his inner core being” as Lord Buckley would say, and changed the course of his life. And now he has finally made the pilrimage to Chile to visit the shop of the man who made that guitar, Rafael Mardones, and his son, Rafa Jr.
2018
AL#135 p.45
Juan-Oscar Azaret
▪ Tap on a guitar. Or listen to just the first fraction of a second as you pluck a note. Those tiny samples contain a wealth of information. Our brains already form an impression of the guitar’s sound, long before the first second has elapsed. Computers can reveal the math behind the music and help us understand and visualize what is happening. Good basic info about the FFT, that is, the Fast Fourier Transform, and how the information in a guitar tap can be viewed in the time domain or the frequency domain.
2018
AL#135 p.60 read this article
Federico Sheppard R.E. Brune Peter Oberg
▪ Good ol’ Bob Ruck was part of the dozen or two friends whose talent and commitment formed the basis for the American Lutherie Boom. He was always way ahead of the curve, and as they developed, his fine classical guitars provided inspiration for others of his generation. Three friends who knew him well share their appreciations. Article mentions Hart Huttig, J.R. Beall, John Shaw, Ervin Somogyi, Manuel Barrueco, Neil Ostberg, yoga, tai chi.
2018
AL#133 p.66
Juan-Oscar Azaret
▪ This big new book, written in Italian, is available in English. It’s got some math in it. (Insert your own joke here about still being in an incomprehensible language.) Our reviewer finds a lot of value in it, which he explains in some detail.
2018
AL#134 p.4
Monica Esparza
▪ There was a party in Spain when luthier, scholar, teacher, and author Jose Romanillos turned 85. Luthiers, musicians, dignitaries gathered to honor him. We get a close-up look through the eyes of his longtime admirer and student Monica Esparza.
2018
AL#134 p.6
Cyndy Burton
▪ Jose Romanillos has been an influential maker for the last fifty years, beginning with his fruitful collaboration with Julian Bream. Here we see a few photos that put his long career in perspective.
2018
AL#134 p.9
Monica Esparza Josep Melo Stefano Grondona Antigoni Goni
▪ Two guitarists and a luthier tell their stories of working with Romanillos.
2018
AL#134 p.34
Greg Byers
▪ So you made a classical guitar, and it sounds good. You want your next one to sound good, too. You want your output to be consistently good. How do you do that? After decades of lutherie experience, Byers has developed a method of recording the frequency responses of the soundboard at each major stage of construction. Does the tap-tone of the raw top set tell the whole story? No, but it can help you steer the project to a successful conclusion.
2018
AL#133 p.3
Greg Nelson
▪ The writer seeks the guitar that was built by John Natelson for the book Guitarmaking:Tradition and Technology.
2018
AL#133 p.3
Philippe Refig
▪ The writer talks with first-hand knowledge about Robert Bouchet’s earliest guitars.
2018
AL#133 p.6
Federico Sheppard
▪ There are luthiers way up in the tributaries of the Amazon River. They have wood galore, and they are teaching large numbers of local kids to make their own instruments. But they are short on good sharp tools and modern information. Our intrepid adventurer Federico Sheppard sets out to address that lack by bring in donated tools and holding master classes. He was multi-tasking; on the same trip he researched and commemorated the 1931 visit of Agustin Barrios to the remarkable Teatro Amazonas, which you might recognize from the Werner Herzog movie Fitzcaraldo. And he got in some fishing.
2018
AL#133 p.22
R.M. Mottola Mark French
▪ Mark French was a kid who took guitar lessons and paid the guy at the music store to change his strings. He went on to be an aerospace engineer, but with all that book learning he still did not know how guitars worked. Now he teaches college courses on guitar making and hangs out with captains of industry at Fender and Taylor.
2017
AL#132 p.5
Federico Sheppard
▪ Federico talks about the possibility of guitar building classes at his 1000-year-old church in Spain.
2017
AL#132 p.18
Kevin Aram
▪ Kevin Aram has long been one of the very top classical guitar makers in the United Kingdom. Here he takes us through his process of setting the action on a classical guitar and making sure the frets are shipshape and Bristol fashion.
2017
AL#132 p.44
Juan-Oscar Azaret Graham Caldersmith
▪ Graham Caldersmith’s articles in GAL publications go back a full thirty-five years, earlier than American Lutherie magazine itself. He’s located in a tiny town in the hinterlands of New South Wales, Australia. He uses his scientific training to develop innovative classical guitars, and has long been a leader in the effort to develop a family of guitars of different sizes and musical ranges. Our globetrotting reporter asks about his latest thoughts and methods, which include carbon-reinforced lattice bracing.
2017
AL#130 p.71
Thomas Bazzolo
▪ How did Thomas Humphrey brace his Millenium guitars?
2017
AL#131 p.6
Federico Sheppard Bernhard Kresse
▪ Bernhard Kresse lives and works in his hometown of Cologne, Germany. He’s one of those guitar-making self-starters who was lured away from college by the siren song of lutherie. He has come to specialize in restoration and new construction of Romantic-era guitars, and also makes a “modern” classical guitar based on their advanced features.
2017
AL#131 p.20
January Williams Peter Tsiorba
▪ Peter Tsiorba began his working life as a teenager making garments in a semi-legit Soviet cooperative. Today he’s a family man and a maker of classical guitars in the lutherie Mecca of Portland, Oregon.
2017
AL#130 p.22
David Freeman
▪ Freeman has made a number of guitars with varying combinations of off-center soundholes, graduated body depth, rolled-over edges, and adjustable side ports. He gives us his thoughts on how these design factors interact and how they advance his quest for a more erognomic steel string guitar.
2017
AL#129 p.56 read this article
Cyndy Burton Marc Silber Brian Burns Michael Gurian Jay Hargreaves R.E. Brune Jeffrey R. Elliott Federico Sheppard
▪ Eugene Clark (1934-2016) was one of the earliest and most influential pioneers of the American Lutherie Boom. Mentions Manuel Ramirez, Domingo Esteso, Santos Hernandez, Jon Lundberg, Freddie Mejia, David Rubio, Michael Gurian, David Santo, Lucien Barnes, Freddie Mejia, David Serva, Warren White, Manuel Velazquez, Manouk Papazian.
2017
AL#130 p.2
James Condino
▪ James Condino remembers his friend and mentor Eugene Clark.
2016
AL#128 p.70
Alain Bieber James Buckland
▪ What can you tell me about this old French guitar?
2016
AL#128 p.70
James Buckland
▪ What can you tell me about this old French guitar?
2017
AL#129 p.3
Ralf Grammel
▪ The author praises Elliott and the GAL.
2016
AL#127 p.34
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ In his interview, Elliott goes into some depth about the development of his classical guitar pattern. That decades-long evolution has produced his current sophisticated and successful design, which is presented here in detail. Of course we offer it as a full-scale two-sheet plan.
2016
AL#127 p.36
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ In an interview in AL127, Jeffrey Elliott goes into some depth about the development of his classical guitar pattern. That decades-long evolution has produced his current sophisticated and successful design, which is presented here in detail. Of course we offer it as a full-scale two-sheet plan.
2016
AL#127 p.38
Kevin Aram
▪ Conventional Wisdom says that rubbed-oil finishes are no good for guitars. Well, once again Conventional Wisdom is wearing a dunce cap, because Kevin Aram has made about 200 world-class classical guitars over the last twenty years using a finishing process that involves nothing but Liberon oil rubbed on with a rag. No sealer, no solvent, no compressor, no filters or exhaust fans. Heck, not even a brush. But it does require excellent surface preparation. He shows us exactly how to do it.
2016
AL#128 p.8
Alan Perlman
▪ Perlman runs though a restoration job on a Torres guitar, replacing a side and copying fancy purflings. Then he builds a replica of a Stahl Style 6 flattop. So when you are copying a century-old American guitar, how far do you go in the name of authenticity? Do you match the faded tones of the purfling, or use the nice bright colors that the Larson Brothers liked? Do you let the glue blobs roam free like they did, or get all tidy like a nervous modern maker? From his 2014 convention lecture.
2016
AL#128 p.48
Cyndy Burton Jeffrey-R. Elliott Gabriel Fleta
▪ His grandfather Ignacio Fleta was a violin maker who started making guitars after repairing instruments by Torres, and his father Gabriel Sr. made guitars for decades as one of the legendary “hijos” of Ignacio who made guitars for Segovia, John Williams, and many others. Gabriel Fleta Jr. has been making guitars since the 1970s and has now inherited the family business. We visit his shop in Barcelona.
2016
AL#126 p.34
R.E. Brune
▪ In 1992, GAL stalwart R.E. Brune measured and photographed this instrument, which Segovia famously called “the greatest guitar of our epoch” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Technology has changed for the better since then, and we are delighted to present this new edition of the plan, featuring color printing and razor-sharp lines.
2016
AL#126 p.36
R.E. Brune
▪ In 1992, GAL stalwart R.E. Brune measured and photographed this instrument, which Segovia famously called “the greatest guitar of our epoch” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Technology has changed for the better since then, and we are delighted to present this new edition of the plan, featuring color printing and razor-sharp lines.
2016
AL#126 p.48
Robbie O’Brien Antonio Tessarin
▪ Robbie O’Brien keeps up a friendly lutherie competition with his old mentor Antonio Tessarin. Robbie is in Colorado and Antonio is in Brazil, but that’s no prob these days, what with the smartphones and the Interwebs and all that. In this article Antonio shows Robbie how he fixed a nasty smash on the edge of one of his own classical guitars. Sweet! What will Robbie do to one-up that?
2016
AL#126 p.62
Bryan Johanson
▪ The second edition of this important book is a considerable advance over the original.
2016
AL#125 p.34
R.E. Brune
▪ A detailed plan of a nice Santos flamenco guitar in the personal collection of R.E. Brune. A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2015
AL#124 p.38
Robbie O’Brien
▪ Robbie O’Brien gets around. Among his many lutherie related projects, he recently went to Spain to film an instructional video on making a flamenco guitar. He met up with some great folks over there and brought home lots of great lutherie info. Warning: This article contains brief mentions of food, dance, song, architecture, passion, history, beauty, and cultural richness. There’s a big, wonderful world out there.
2015
AL#124 p.23
Jacky Walraet Brian Garston
▪ Everybody loves rosewood. Sounds great, looks great. In fact, it looks so great that we might be “hearing” its lovely, familiar deep color. Would non-tropical woods also make good-sounding guitars? And would they “sound” different if we took off the blindfold? To answer these questions, the Leonardo Guitar Research Project built a matched set of fifteen guitars and compared them under controlled conditions.
2015
AL#123 p.16
D.-and-F. Sinier-de-Ridder
▪ This guitar, built in 1875, is the 2nd instrument made in the second epoch of Antonio de Torres, and was subjected to numerous botched repairs over the years. The authors undertake a thorough restoration to put the guitar in playing condition.
2014
AL#119 p.60
Manuel Velazquez Cyndy Burton Eugene Clark Armin Kelly Robert Ruck Jeffrey R. Elliott Paul Szmanda
▪ Manuel Velazquez made a lot of friends and fans in his exceptionally long career as a maker of fine classical guitars. Here are a few remembrances a few folks who admired his work and his life.
2014
AL#118 p.70
R.M. Mottola
▪ Mottola translates the arcane jargon of this article for us general readers.
2014
AL#118 p.71 read this article
Beverly Maher
▪ New-York-City guitar dealer Beverly Maher remembers her old friend and colleague Manuel Velazquez who recently passed away at age 97.
2014
AL#119 p.18
Federico Sheppard Abel-Garcia Lopez
▪ The town of Paracho is the center of guitar making in Mexico. As author Federico Sheppard says, they are known for making a lot of guitars, but not a lot of fine guitars. Well, here’s the guy who makes the good ones, like his father and grandfather before him. Take a close look at Abel’s workspace, tools, techniques, and family.
2013
AL#115 p.68
Monica Esparza
▪ Creating a mosaic rosette from an original illustration.
2013
AL#116 p.51
Mark Berry
▪ The culturally rich history of the Flamenco guitar up to it’s current influences and building methods.
2013
AL#115 p.36
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2013
AL#113 p.20
Tom Harper
▪ Harper reviews this DVD set in which Bogdanovich uses a broad repertoire of skills, high end power tools, and a mixture of tightly controlled and freeform processes. DVD set also reviewed in AL#108.
2012
AL#112 p.3
Larry Breslin
▪ Larry Breslin on his first exposure to the Flamenco guitar and building his first instrument.
2012
AL#112 p.3
Joe-D. Franklin
▪ Joe Franklin’s thoughts and investigations on the harmonic aesthetics of the classical guitar.
2012
AL#110 p.70
James Buckland
▪ Statistics on string tension for typical gut classical guitar strings.
2012
AL#109 p.71
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Reasons for using wound G classical strings.
2012
AL#110 p.3
Clifford Wilkes
▪ In reference to Salvador Ibanez guitar restoration article in AL#108.
2012
AL#109 p.66
Michael Grossman
▪ Securing classical guitar strings with a substitute for ball-ended nylon strings.
2011
AL#108 p.70 read this article
Mike Ashley Robert England R.E. Brune David Laplante Charles Vega
▪ Remembering Joseph Wallo (1921-2009) Internationally known maker of the finest in concert guitars.
2011
AL#108 p.35
John Monteleone
▪ Jimmy D’Aquisto’s unique exploration of the building of classical guitars.
2011
AL#108 p.36
James Condino
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2011
AL#108 p.62
John Calkin
▪ Bogdonavich’s ultra specific guitar building method is professionally chronicled in this handsomely packaged 10-dvd set.
2011
AL#108 p.66
Curtis Daily
▪ Typical combined string tension information for gut classical guitar strings.
2011
AL#107 p.3
Bill Rayner
▪ Further details on 6-course 12 string classical guitar exhibited at 2011 GAL convention.
2011
AL#105 p.66
John Calkin
▪ Cosmetic alteration to Jesse Winchester’s Alhambra classical guitar.
2011
AL#106 p.5
James Blilie
▪ Blilie talks about Simon’s letter in AL#105, but more importantly about the statistical analysis of data in R.M.Mottola’s article on testing side ports in AL#96.
2010
AL#103 p.36 ALA5 p.42
Don Pilarz
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2010
AL#103 p.41 ALA5 p.55
Federico Sheppard Nicolo Alessi
▪ Alessi crafts highly sought after tuning machines of artistic beauty and technical sophistication in Luino, Switzerland.
2010
AL#101 p.66 read this article
Walter Carter
▪ This book showcases Kellerman’s vast instrument collection, presented alphabetically by maker, and each accompanied by information on the model, acquisition, and sound of each instrument.
2009
AL#100 p.6 ALA5 p.60
Gary Southwell
▪ Southwell on using historical influences in contemporary work and design. From his 2006 GAL convention lecture.
2009
AL#100 p.20 ALA3 p.80
John Mello John Gilbert
▪ Gilbert, born in 1922, made his first guitar in 1965 while a tool designer at Hewlett-Packard. He has 120 guitars to his credit.
2009
AL#98 p.58 read this article
Graham McDonald
▪ The author rounds up a collection of acoustic guitar making manuals currently available to help us separate the wheat from the chaff. The serious student will no doubt end up with several of these books, but McDonald will help you decide which ones to buy first. Includes jacket photos of all the books discussed.
2009
AL#99 p.7 ALA4 p.52
David Freeman
▪ Some features of guitar construction make the instrument functional for normal humans and tuneful music making, and getting them wrong can/will destroy the guitars usefulness. Other features aren’t necessary but may make the instrument more comfortable to play or offer extended musical capabilities. Freeman addresses both aspects in this article taken from his 2008 GAL convention workshop. He’s not the least bit shy about reconfiguring the guitar’s shape or features to make musicians better and happier. Whether or not you wish to make such alterations, much of this stuff you better know if you wish to make musical instruments rather than guitar-shaped objects. With 5 photos, 3 charts, and a drawing.
2009
AL#98 p.36 ALA3 p.18
John Calkin James Buckland
▪ Buckland is a classical performer and teacher who also builds guitars, not and unheard of combination but a rare one. He is especially knowledgeable about guitar history and the little known Terz guitar, of which he is an authority. If that sounds dull you should also know that he started as a Canadian lefty who was initially inspired by Jimi Hendrix, among other rockers. He’s still a lefty, but now we have him in America. Canada has probably been sulking ever since. With 10 photos.
2009
AL#98 p.18 ALA3 p.58
Tim Olsen Cyndy Burton
▪ Burton has been tenacious in her pursuit of the classical guitar, traveling widely and learning from the likes of William Cumpiano, Eugene Clark, and Jeffrey Elliott, making a name for herself in what has largely been a man’s world. We’re all members of her fan club and rejoice at finally knowing more about her. With 17 photos.
2008
AL#96 p.54 ALA3 p.25
R.M. Mottola
▪ Do you believe that soundports on the side of a guitar make a difference to the sound perception of the guitarist? Do you believe they don’t? Either way, you should consider the facts presented in this article. It may change the way you build guitars, but it won’t give you more faith in the hearing of humans, even of professional musicians. With 1 photo and 3 charts.
2008
AL#96 p.58
David Golber
▪ The author got tired of hard-to-use commercial peg shapers, so he made a better one of his own. He describes it as a tool for actual human beings. With 6 photos and a drawing.
2008
AL#96 p.70
Greg Byers
▪ Figuring the placement of the nut and additional fret on extended range classical guitars with additional bass strings.
2009
AL#97 p.28
R.E. Brune Eugene Clark John Park Jeffrey R. Elliott
▪ This is a transcription of a 2006 GAL convention panel discussion. Put a tap plate on a classical guitar; now do you have a flamenco guitar? Differences between the two guitars have largely been accentuated by the modern need to specialize and categorize. But beyond that, this is a fascinating conversation between four of the leading builders in the field and you don’t have to be a maker of nylon strung guitars to enjoy the details they offer and their pleasure in each others company.
2008
AL#95 p.64 read this article
John Mello
▪ The reviewer finds this book to be “an impressive achievement, a logical first choice of the available stand-alone methods for classical guitar construction.”
2008
AL#96 p.6 ALA3 p.68
Robert Ruck Jeffrey-R. Elliott Manuel Velazquez Alfredo Velazquez
▪ Manuel Velazquez built his first guitar in 1929. Can you imagine that? His son Alfredo is carrying on the tradition, though Manuel has not retired. He has definite opinions about what woods make the best guitar and how they should be finished. He is a giant in the business and must be admired for his tenacity as much as his ability. And a fun interview to boot. Mentions Bobri, Andres Segovia, Torres, Santos Hernandez, and Hermann Hauser. With 36 photos.
2008
AL#94 p.64
R.M. Mottola
▪ The builder followed the work of Greg Smallman in this lattice-braced guitar, though he omitted the carbon fiber used in Smallman’s designs. He found the system to be so successful that he abandoned traditional brace patterns in subsequent guitars. With 4 photos.
2008
AL#95 p.8
Alain Bieber
▪ Amateur luthier Bieber and his professional mentor pursue a new direction in classical guitar bracing that spans 10 guitars over the course of the article. Although Greg Smallman is quoted as an inspiration, the Al-Tho designs look nothing like the lattice system we’ve become familiar with. Nor do they look like anything else seen to date. Very interesting stuff. With 11 photos, 2 diagrams, and 2 charts.
2008
AL#95 p.32 ALA5 p.76
Tobias Braun
▪ Braun took on the job of restoring a massively injured Spanish factory guitar made approximately in 1900. This is not only a close look at how such work is done, but an examination of how these guitars were made. It’s not a Torres, but it’s pretty cool. With 41 photos and 4 catalog page reproductions.
2008
AL#93 p.56 read this article
Mike Moger
▪ Three luthiers travel to war-ravaged Nicaragua to teach a class in guitar making. Why? It’s an effort to aid job diversity and economic growth to an area often reduced to subsistence farming for a living. With 6 photos.
2008
AL#93 p.64
Peter Vile
▪ The author gives us a quick look at his carbon fiber/balsa, lattice-braced guitars with wingless bridges, and what he achieved with them. He mentions Kasha/Schneider, Greg Smallman, Jurgen Meyer, and Gila Eban. With 3 photos and 6 sketches.
2008
AL#93 p.70 read this article
Tom Harper
▪ The reviewer much admires this book that attempts to supply the reader with an emotional appreciation of specific guitars made during the late 18th century to the mid-20th century.
2008
AL#94 p.18
Cyndy Burton Jim Forderer James Westbrook
▪ As presented in this interview, Jim Forderer and Jim Westbrook are both collectors of guitars of the 19th century, a time period which included the development of the classical guitar. But most of their examples are about the evolution of that instrument and not about the finished post-Torres species. They are unique individuals with strange and wonderful tastes in guitars. With 17 photos and a dendrochronological analysis of the top of a very early Martin guitar.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2008
AL#94 p.36 ALA3 p.52
Woodley White Paul Fischer
▪ Fischer has been building guitars for 50 years and has completed over 1000 instruments. He apprenticed as a harpsichord maker, then learned guitar making from David Rubio. As with any good interview, it quickly becomes apparent that who we are is more fascinating than what we do. With 15 photos.
2008
AL#93 p.10
Jonathon Peterson Robert Ruck
▪ Ruck has been one of the bright lights among American classical guitar makers for a long time, and this lengthy interview not only shows him to be a fascinating individual with an interesting history, but dwells at some length on the development of his guitars and the bracing patterns and other features he has evolved. Among his influences are Juan Mercadal, John Shaw, Hart Huttig, Neil Ostberg, and Manuel Barrueco. With 24 photos and a bracing diagram.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#91 p.69
R.E. Brune James Westbrook
▪ What does one do with a historical instrument that has been badly treated?, in this case a Cypress Spanish guitar made by Santos Hernandez in 1919, given a glossy paint job, then stripped and sanded in the 1970s.
2007
AL#92 p.5
Benz Tschannen
▪ Benz is doing some pretty sophisticated work with classical guitar tops stiffened with graphite threads and epoxy.
2007
AL#92 p.8 ALA5 p.30
Eugene Clark
▪ An American master of the classical guitar explains how he builds using the solera, a workboard with a radius scraped into the body area to provide a slightly arched top.Clark places a strong emphasis on proper layout and hand tools. With 25 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#91 p.6 read this article
Cyndy Burton
▪ Burton’s micro history of sideports (holes in the sides, in addition to the front soundhole) in stringed instruments serves as an introduction to the next three articles. Luthiers she mentions include John Monteleone, Robert Ruck, Alain Bieber, Gennero Fabricatore, Kenny Hill, Alan Carruth, Roger Thurman, and Augustino LoPrinzi. With 9 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#91 p.12 read this article
Robert Ruck
▪ Ruck has been adding sideports (holes in the sides, in addition to the front soundhole) to his classical and flamenco guitars for many years and is a strong advocate of their advantages. The incidents that led him to incorporate ports are very interesting. He mentions Roger Thurman and Augustino LoPrinzi. With 1 photo.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#90 p.8
David Hurd
▪ Hurd believes that the fastest way to great instruments is science, and it’s hard to argue with such a rational man. His jigs measure the deflection of top plates while under tension, and once he carves the top and braces to the numbers he wants he’s done. Period. Sort of makes intuition obsolete. This could also be math heavy if he didn’t offer an Internet spread sheet to ease the pain. With 7 photos and 7 figures/charts.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#90 p.32
Cyndy Burton Kenny Hill
▪ Hill is an amazing man who has been a classical performer, a harvester of his own tonewood, a teacher of prisoners, an entrepreneur who has opened guitar factories in three countries, and a really nice guy. And more! Truly a fascinating individual. With 9 photos.
2007
AL#90 p.46
Rodney Stedall Mervyn Davis
▪ Davis’ South African upbringing inspires a wonderful decorative sense in his instruments. He’s built a ton of different stuff but may end up best known for his wildly unique modular guitars called Smooth Talkers. With 16 photos.
2007
AL#90 p.66
C.F. Casey
▪ Looking for a classical guitar mute.
2007
AL#89 p.38
Federico Sheppard Dmitry Zhevlakov
▪ This is not only the story of a Russian luthier who also makes beautiful rosettes for other builders, but is another example of how the Internet has changed the world — in this case for better. With 9 photos.
2007
AL#89 p.42
Brent Benfield
▪ Lattice bracing in various forms seems here to stay. Norris’ construction method uses graphite fibers in epoxy, and is unique in that it allows the guitar to be strung before the body is officially closed, permitting tuning of the top while the braces are still completely accessible. With 18 photos and a diagram.
2006
AL#88 p.8 ALA3 p.90
Randy Reynolds
▪ Double-top guitars utilize a top made of two thin layers of spruce separated by a honey-comb material called Nomex. So few people have heard such guitars that the jury is still out (way out) concerning double-top benefits, but here’s how they are made and why. One thing seems sure—the guitar market is large enough to absorb every idea, so no facet of guitar evolution is likely to die out before its time. With 13 photos.
2006
AL#88 p.13 ALA3 p.96
Brian Burns
▪ This is a more scientific look at what the double-top might have to offer. With 2 photos.
2006
AL#88 p.63 read this article
Bryan Johanson
▪ No, it wasn’t the 20th century, silly. It was the 19th century in which the classical guitar grew up.The reviewer calls this book wonderful, informative, and generous. There is also a CD available of 19th century guitar music played on restored instruments of the time.
2006
AL#87 p.44
Tom Harper Rodney Stedall
▪ Stedall is a South African optometrist/luthier and coordinator of the Guild of South African Luthiers. Are you surprised that South Africa has a guitar scene? Well, these days it can happen anywhere. With 6 photos.
2006
AL#87 p.50
Fabio Ragghianti
▪ The author’s joint uses a simple spline. Steel-string guys may be skeptical but Ragghianti says it works fine on his archtops, too. With 9 photos.
2006
AL#86 p.66
Ellis McMullin
▪ Plans and design principles for making a half scale classical guitar.
2006
AL#86 p.69
George-A. Smith
▪ A templating system for cutting classic guitar pegheads.
2006
AL#87 p.6
Kenny Hill
▪ Hill has made guitars for eons, harvested his own wood, taught lutherie in a prison, and opened shops in Mexico and China. Not to mention that he’s a fine guitarist. The man has been around. This piece is part biography, part how-to, and all interesting. He’s led an interesting life, and he’s not that old. With 9 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2006
AL#85 p.37
Rodney Stedall
▪ Using the Spanish foot requires that the neck angle of a classical guitar be established before the back is glued to the instrument, which locks all the parts firmly (and hopefully permanently) together. Stedall’s method will further your understanding of this problem and help you achieve the results you seek. With 1 drawing and 1 photo of a jig used to stiffen the body while the ribs are sanded to receive the back.
2006
AL#85 p.38 ALA3 p.40
Woodley White Greg Byers
▪ Byers has been around for a long time. He has an intuitive idea of what sound he is seeking in his guitars and a clinical approach to finding it. That’s quite a combination, and he is quite an interesting fellow. With 7 photos.
2005
AL#84 p.3 BRB7 p.545
R.E. Brune
▪ Brune comments on the restoration of the Torres guitar covered in AL #83. Brune worked on this guitar previous to Elliott’s restoration, and he offers two more photos of the instrument.
2005
AL#84 p.6 BRB7 p.392
Greg Byers
▪ With tools you’ve probably already got in your shop you can make mosaic rosettes that look modern and yet somehow traditional. The techniques differ from the bricks and tiles made of old and are more akin to the processes of making fancy purflings. Cooler than anything, but not for the impatient among us. With 31 photos and a pair of diagrams.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2005
AL#84 p.18 BRB7 p.402
Mark Swanson Del Langejans
▪ Langejans is a resourceful guitar maker with a big-time clientele. Many of his designs are unique, as is his finishing material and some of the wood he uses. He has strong opinions about how to get started and survive in the business, which have apparently worked for him very well. With 9 photos.
2005
AL#84 p.28 BRB7 p.404
R.E. Brune
▪ This Meet the Maker article focuses on a Spanish luthier who has been in the business since 1949. With 30 photos of four guitars.
2005
AL#84 p.33 BRB7 p.410
Tom Blackshear
▪ One page of notes plus a 2-page spread of GAL full-size plan #53 of a Reyes flamenco guitar.
2005
AL#84 p.34 BRB7 p.411
Tom Blackshear
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2005
AL#83 p.18 BRB7 p.364
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Restoring famous instruments is a tricky business. If they are also old, well-played, and abused by poor storage facilities the work becomes a cross between knowledge, craft, and art. Elliott goes where few of us would care to travel, explaining every step of restoration as he goes. Perhaps as important is what he doesn’t do. The ethics of restoration is a foundation of the story. With 42 photos as well as a 2-page spread of GAL full-size plan #52.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2005
AL#83 p.32 BRB7 p.378
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2005
AL#83 p.42 read this article
Johannes Labusch Ermanno Chiavi
▪ Few harp guitars are nylon strung. Fewer still have frets under all the strings. The Chiavi-Miolin is unique, weird, and strangely beautiful. Its goal is to play piano and lute literature without leaving out notes. With 4 photos.
2005
AL#83 p.53 BRB7 p.533 read this article
Tom Harper
▪ This offering includes a pamphlet by R.E. Brune and Don Pilarz that includes 30 color photos of this guitar, a new full-size blueprint by Brune, a CD of music by Segovia, and a poster. The reviewer concludes that “as a builder of classical instruments I really can’t imagine passing up this compilation.” ‘Nuff said.
2005
AL#83 p.58 BRB7 p.453
Eugene Clark David Hurd Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Canting the bass side of the fretboard on classical guitars and resulting saddle and string compensation.
2005
AL#82 p.44 BRB7 p.350
Aaron Green
▪ As far as looks go, guitars with wooden tuning pegs are the cat’s patoot. Regarding long-term functioning, though… well, maybe you better read Green’s article. His method of installing hidden maple bushings in the headstock should put you way ahead of the game. With 21 photographs.
2005
AL#82 p.51
Ervin Somogyi
▪ So you’ve made a guitar but it’s not all you hoped for. You have the opportunity to discuss it with your peers and they all have a cure. Unhappily the methods of correction don’t jibe. Somogyi finally got a response he could live with. It saved his guitar and eventually turned into an unexpected sale. The whole trick is in lucking into the right guy to talk to.
2005
AL#82 p.56 BRB7 p.356
Philippe Refig
▪ This is a short description of a Hierros classical made in 1845 (no pictures) and of a Garcia from 1920 with 3 photos.
2004
AL#80 p.64 BRB7 p.495
Brent Benfield
▪ Taking the lead from Jose Romanillos in fitting bent sides into slots cut in the sides of the Spanish heel to join the neck to the body.
2004
AL#80 p.28 BRB7 p.254
Cyndy Burton Armin Kelly
▪ Meet the dealer? Well, when a dealer has such a strong influence in the lives of the luthiers he represents, why not? If you build, and if you want to sell through a dealer, you need to read this interview. Besides, Kelly’s enthusiasm is so infectious it will send you right back to your workbench. Boutique guitar builders and shops are relatively new to the steel string, but it has always been the way among classical guitar people. This is why. With 3 photos.
2004
AL#80 p.38 BRB7 p.262
Alain Bieber
▪ The author offers a nice history of guitars built with adjustable and/or removable necks and states a variety of reasons why we should build our guitars with this feature today. The benefits of adjustability are pretty irrefutable, and modern adjustable systems are easier to incorporate than the dovetail joint so commonly seen. The effect upon instrument tone seems to be minor or nonexistent. This is a very convincing article. With 10 photos and 5 diagrams. Mentions Fabricatore, Staufer, Scherzer, Lacote, others.
2004
AL#80 p.59 BRB7 p.526 read this article
Bryan Johanson
▪ The reviewer gushes about the detail and quality of research that went into the book, as well as the authors’ enthusiasm for their subjects.
2004
AL#80 p.61 BRB7 p.259
Robert Ruck
▪ Sound ports in guitar sides near the neck to help boost the sound for the player, especially the hard of hearing, and even the audience.
2004
AL#80 p.61 BRB7 p.349
R.E. Brune
▪ A highly valued classical guitar from the 60s that has developed a dish between the bridge and the sound hole.
2004
AL#79 p.5 read this article
Keith Watson
▪
2004
AL#79 p.6 BRB7 p.206
R.E. Brune
▪ In a sense Brune is laying down the law for successful classical guitar making. Much of it will be useful to any builder, and all of it is interesting because Brune is an interesting man who has his thoughts together. Not to mention that he’s a heck of a luthier with a deep background in the history of his craft. With 30 photos and 8 diagrams. Mentions Santos Hernandez, Marcelo Barbaro, Ignacio Fleta, Hermann Hauser, Sr.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2004
AL#78 p.20 BRB7 p.192
Cyndy Burton Lester DeVoe
▪ A maker of flamenco guitars discusses guitarists and instruments. A good interview can be as inspiring as a good how-to, and this is a good interview. Mentions Santos Hernandez, Sabicas, Paco de Lucia.
2003
AL#75 p.6 BRB7 p.86
Geza Burghardt Cyndy Burton
▪ Geza Burghhardt builds classical guitars on a workboard rather than a mold, but it isn’t just any old workboard. Its carefully jigged up for accuracy and guitar-to-guitar consistency and his jigs are nearly as pretty as his guitars. Well, to another luthier, anyhow. With 17 photos.
2003
AL#75 p.36 BRB7 p.95
C.F. Casey
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2003
AL#75 p.42 BRB7 p.76
Jonathon Peterson Dake Traphagen
▪ For those who really make an impact in lutherie complete immersion in the craft is the rule, not the exception. Long days, few breaks, and a lot of work. Traphagan is a good example. Floating to the top of the heap isn’t a simple matter. Still, one can get there while maintaining a sense of humor and a continuing appreciation for the mysteries of the craft, and Traphagan is also a good example of that, too. A really good interview with 10 photos and three diagrams of guitar tops.
2003
AL#74 p.6 BRB7 p.32
Philippe Refig
▪ Bouchet (1898-1986) was one of only a handful of guitar makers that kept the craft alive previous to the “lutherie boom” we are now enjoying. His small output belies the influence he had on the classical guitar. The author knew Bouchet and has written a charming, if too short, biography. With 1 photo.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2003
AL#73 p.62 BRB7 p.34
Pete Barthell
▪ As the title indicates, a nice fixture for finding the proper location of the classical guitar bridge. With 6 photos and a set of diagrams.
2003
AL#73 p.14 BRB6 p.368
Eugene Clark Jonathon Peterson
▪ Clark is one of the old American masters of lutherie. Building an original rosette in the Spanish tradition is way more complicated than routing a channel and poking in some abalone, as steel stringers are apt to do, but with Clark’s instruction you can do it. Includes 22 photos. Part 1 appeared in AL #71.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2002
AL#72 p.18 BRB6 p.400
Stephen Frith
▪ How would you like to learn guitar making in a Spanish castle? How about under the tutelage of Jose Romanillos? Cool, huh? Frith explains what it’s like. Any organization with a staff member named Big Pep has to be pretty far out. With 19 photos.
2002
AL#72 p.24 BRB6 p.404
Ken Goodwin Edward-Victor Dick
▪ A Canadian now living in Denver, Dick has a long and varied career as a builder, repairman, and teacher. He builds a wide array of instruments, including some fascinating sound sculptures. The 13 photos illustrate his versatility as a builder and artist.
2002
AL#71 p.8 BRB6 p.368
Eugene Clark Jonathon Peterson
▪ How deeply do you want to dive into the matter of making rosettes? Here Clark will submerge you until you gasp for air or make a fine rosette, whichever comes first. Designing the rosette and dying the sticks receive deepest treatment, though no words are spared when describing the cutting and sizing of the materials. Everything is here. With 33 photos. Part Two will appear in a future issue of AL.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2002
AL#70 p.16 BRB6 p.328
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Returning a historically important guitar to life is not only a painstaking project but also one that must be done with finesse and a respect for the instrument’s value as an historical document. This restoration took several months and much research and investigation, requiring the use of tools not normally associated with guitar repair. With 43 photos and a magazine-size version of GAL Plan #47 of the instrument under discussion.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2002
AL#70 p.34 BRB6 p.343
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2002
AL#70 p.40 BRB6 p.362
Alain Bieber
▪ Bieber’s classical guitars feature removable, adjustable necks and slight double cutaways to increase fretboard access. They also look quite remarkable. With 8 photos.
2001
AL#68 p.67 BRB6 p.327
Graham Caldersmith
▪ Making a classical baritone guitar so that the 6th string can be tuned to B.
2001
AL#68 p.28 BRB6 p.274
Cyndy Burton Tom Blackshear
▪ Blackshear has been building classical guitars since the ’50s. He has been strongly influenced by the work of Miguel Rodriguez. With 15 photos.
2001
AL#68 p.33 BRB6 p.310
Ronald-Louis Fernandez
▪ There are discrepancies in the Rodriguez family history that the author seeks to remedy.
2001
AL#68 p.36 BRB6 p.313
Tom Blackshear
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2001
AL#68 p.66 BRB6 p.326
Robert Steinegger David Freeman
▪ Info on the B-45-12, the best Gibson 12 string ever built, according to chapter 9 of Gibson’s fabulous flat-top guitars, by Whitford, Vinopal, and Erlewine.
2001
AL#66 p.20 BRB6 p.216
Greg Hanson Sebastian Stenzel
▪ Stenzel is a German who specializes in classical guitars. He shares much information about his guitars as well as some opinions that may surprise you. With 5 photos.
2001
AL#66 p.47 BRB6 p.198
Steve Newberry
▪ Tatay built guitars in the back room of a music store in WWII-era Manhattan. Newberry hung out then as a teenager. Not many of us have memories of our youth that are this cool. Alas. Or is it just that Newberry tells a really good tale? With 2 photos.
2001
AL#65 p.44 BRB6 p.200
Bruce Calder Sergio Huerta-Chavez
▪ Chavez is a builder of guitars and violins from Mexico who has managed to find markets in the US. Lutherie-life south of the border is probably different than you think, especially if Paracho has been your only touchstone. With 5 photos.
2001
AL#65 p.28 BRB6 p.174
Jonathon Peterson Eugene Clark
▪ Clark began his guitar building over 40 years ago, which makes him one of the true father figures of our craft. His life has been a crooked path, with interesting things at every jog in the road. You’ll like meeting him. With 12 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#64 p.6 BRB6 p.118
Jeffrey-R. Elliott Greg Byers Eugene Clark Gary Southwell
▪ Four note-worthy builders of the classical guitar talk about their influences, their building philosophies, and some of the their construction techniques in a panel discussion that should inspire anyone interested in the instrument. With 26 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#64 p.64 BRB6 p.57
Jay Hargreaves
▪ Patents and use of Kasha/Schneider design.
2001
AL#65 p.5 BRB6 p.204 read this article
Paul Fischer
▪ Born David Joseph Spinks, Rubio was an Englishman who adopted his Spanish nickname. He became a well-known maker of classical guitars, early instruments, and violins.
2000
AL#63 p.3 BRB6 p.71 read this article
Tim Miklaucic
▪ Current patriarch of a guitar-making dynasty dies at the age of 47.
2000
AL#63 p.10 BRB6 p.72
Cyndy Burton Sheldon Urlik
▪ When a collector becomes a historian his importance to lutherie takes on a new dimension. Urlik’s collection begins with Torres and extends to many important current, and can be examined by anyone in his book A Collection of Fine Classical Guitars, from Torres to the Present. With 19 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#63 p.40 BRB6 p.130
Gordon Gray Clive Titmuss
▪ Titmuss is a Canadian who builds and performs upon the lute. He’s also a lute historian and a musicologist. It takes an interesting person to make a mostly-forgotten piece of the past come alive, which is what Titmuss does. With 8 photos.
2000
AL#63 p.46 BRB6 p.114
Cyndy Burton
▪ The V joint is an elegant, traditional method of adding a pitched headstock to a classical guitar. This 20-photo essay follows the able hands of Geza Burghardt as he completes the entire operation.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#61 p.64 BRB6 p.113
R.E. Brune
▪ Info on typical string clearances at the 1st and 12th frets on a flamenco guitar, based on GAL plan #42 (1951 M. Barbero) by R.E. Brune.
2000
AL#62 p.3 BRB6 p.81
R.E. Brune
▪ Mentions the death of Jim Norris, who “was instrumental in bringing the classical guitar to Chicago in the late 1950s and early 1960s…”
2000
AL#62 p.18 BRB6 p.42
Jonathon Peterson David Freeman
▪ Freeman is an independent thinker who builds a wide variety of instruments and runs his own lutherie school in Canada. He’s also outspoken and articulate. You’ll be glad you met him here. With 21 photos.
2000
AL#62 p.26 BRB6 p.48
Gary Southwell
▪ The evolution of the guitar was not a straight-line event. Though both the classical and the steelstring have been more or less fixed in form for over a hundred years the century before that has not been well-documented. Here Southwell has begun to repair that oversight. A luthier with a keen sense of history, he has used the guitars of this period to inform and guide his own creations. With 37 photos of historical and Southwell guitars.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#62 p.42 BRB6 p.62
Andrea Tacchi Masaru Kohno
▪ Kohno classicals are ranked with the best of 20th century guitars. His youth in pre-war Japan was an experience unfamiliar to most of us, though his path toward higher standards of craftsmanship is one that many luthiers have traveled. His life was not an ordinary one. With 5 photos.
2000
AL#62 p.58
Peter Giolitto
▪ A method utilizing a go-bar deck as alternative to gluing on a classical bridge using clamps through the soundhole.
2000
AL#61 p.4 BRB6 p.2
Cyndy Burton Geza Burghardt
▪ Burghardt and his family emigrated to Canada from Hungary in 1988 with few worldly goods and little English and proceeded to carve out a niche in a fashion we have grown accustomed to hearing about in these pages. He seems to prefer classical guitars and hand tools. Included is an 8-picture description of the jig he uses to slot the sides into the necks of his guitars, and 7 other photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#61 p.40 BRB6 p.28
Harry Fleishman Fabio Ragghianti
▪ Ragghianti is an Italian luthier. It’s interesting that luthiers from around the world seem to think of their instruments in the same terms. This easily allows them to immediately find a common ground regardless of their cultural background or language. Ragghianti came to America, then Fleishman went to Italy. The terrain didn’t seem to make a lot of difference. With 3 photos.
1999
AL#59 p.22 BRB5 p.332
Jonathon Peterson George Majkowski Boaz Elkayam
▪ George Majkowski and Boaz Elkayam complete their work on 10 Kasha guitars to honor the memory of Richard Schneider and to keep his work alive. The hand tools involved, the strange method of fretting, and the cool vacuum clamps, as well as the design philosophy behind the guitars, make this a pair of articles not to be missed. The Old World meets the future here and they blend very nicely. With 58 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1999
AL#59 p.39 BRB5 p.402
Gordon Gray Grit Laskin
▪ Laskin is a well-known maker of masterful guitars and a groundbreaking artist in inlay concept and design. He’s also a novelist and a recording artist. If the 9 photos of his guitars and inlay work don’t inspire you, you’re certainly from an old school of lutherie.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1999
AL#60 p.4
R.E. Brune
▪ Brune’s letter gives us an update of the Spanish flamenco scene as he found it during a visit to Spain in May of 1999. With 3 photos.
1999
AL#58 p.20 BRB5 p.332
Jonathon Peterson George Majkowski Boaz Elkayam
▪ Boaz Elkayam and George Majkowski extend the work of Michael Kasha and Richard Schneider in a project that entails the construction of 10 guitars. A wide variety of building techniques involving hand and power tools, as well as vacuum clamping, is necessary to make these complicated instruments. An unlikely pairing of craftsmen contributes to our understanding of one of the most controversial instrument designers of our times, and the memory of a respected luthier and teacher. With 26 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1999
AL#58 p.38 BRB5 p.366
Cyndy Burton Gary Southwell
▪ Southwell makes gut-strung guitars that may be strange or more-or-less conventional, but always elegant, and he makes them for some high-profile patrons. His specialty is pre-classical or “salon” guitars. He’s an eloquent Englishman whom you’ll be happy to meet. With 6 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1999
AL#58 p.57 BRB5 p.481
Cyndy Burton
▪ Bream began when the classical guitar world was small, indeed. The reviewer finds this collection of letters about Bream’s early years to be small, expensive, and enjoyable.
1999
AL#58 p.60 BRB5 p.361
R.E. Brune
▪ Publications on identifying Ramirez guitars by serial number and more info on the 1988 model 1A.
1999
AL#57 p.22 BRB5 p.300
Cyndy Burton Joshia de-Jonge
▪ Joshia’s classical won high praise during the listening session at the GAL’s 1998 convention, quite an achievement for a 19-year-old woman. But then, just about every member of her family builds guitars. Her free-spirited optimism may be as much a product of her upbringing as her youth. With 3 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1998
AL#56 p.22 BRB5 p.230
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ In every craft the cream inevitably rises, and Elliott is known to make some of the creamiest classical guitars in the world. Though this article offers a complete recipe for building guitars with “allure,” it becomes obvious that the most important ingredient is the artistic sensitivity he has developed. Not to be overlooked if your goal is to cook up fine classicals. With 9 photos, 1 drawing, and a list for further reading.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1998
AL#56 p.64 BRB5 p.309
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ The variables that influence the ‘feel’ or playability of instruments with the same scale length, string gauge, and setup.
1999
AL#57 p.3
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Elliott offers a correction to his top brace system as stated in his lecture printed in AL#56.
1998
AL#55 p.48 BRB5 p.243
Cyndy Burton Paul Jacobson
▪ Jacobson is a widely respected builder of classical guitars who considers lutherie to be the equivalent of writing sonnets. They are both exercises in controlled creativity. And both can be beautiful.
1998
AL#55 p.60 BRB5 p.208
Tom Blackshear
▪ The relationship of the soundboard to the neck on classical and flamenco guitars.
1998
AL#55 p.65 read this article
Woody Vernice
▪ These are two picture books of guitars made by luthiers who attended the Healdsburg Guitar Festivals in 1996 and 1997. The reviewer finds that the pictures are too little, but that luthiers looking for new ideas may browse through them endlessly.
1998
AL#55 p.16 BRB5 p.214
Mark Bass Paul McGill
▪ McGill is a thinking-man’s guitar maker with some strong notions that run counter to current lutherie mythology. He also has a big-time clientele who believe he is right. With 6 photos.
1998
AL#55 p.40 BRB5 p.209
Sam Littlepage
▪ Suppose you made a stiff framework that resembled a guitar that was strong enough to resist most of the distortion to which the instrument is prone, and then built a guitar around the framework. Well, Littlepage has beat you to it. He reports that it not only works, but also improves the guitar in every way. With 14 photos and a pair of drawings.
1998
AL#54 p.54 BRB5 p.474
Cyndy Burton
▪ The reviewer urges the purchase of this pricey book ($119.95) by anyone seriously interested in the history or construction of the classical guitar.
1998
AL#55 p.8 BRB5 p.217
R.E. Brune
▪ The story of this astonishing flamenco guitar involves Barbero, Sabicas, Carlos Montoya, and Elektra records. It dropped from sight until showing up at Brune’s for repair. Brune drew up a complete set of plans while the guitar was in his possession. They are printed here, and are also available as a full-size GAL Plan #42. With 12 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1998
AL#55 p.10 BRB5 p.219
R.E. Brune
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1998
AL#53 p.64 BRB5 p.474
Bryan Johanson
▪ The reviewer finds the book flawed in minor ways but says that it is well worth its price of $75, which is a pretty good recommendation.
1998
AL#53 p.32 BRB5 p.108
John Calkin
▪ In AL#52 we looked at the tools and jigs Charles Fox uses to build acoustic guitars. In Part 2 we examine how that equipment is put to use as Fox takes us through the procedure of building a classical guitar at his American School of Lutherie. Most of this info will be just as useful to the steel string builder, as well. With 55 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#52 p.3
Joe-D. Franklin
▪ Many builders maintain that a guitar top that varies in thickness offers better tone than a uniform top.Franklin offers technical reasons for why it is so.
1997
AL#52 p.12 BRB5 p.108
John Calkin
▪ The main thrust of Fox’s American School of Lutherie lies in teaching lone guitarmakers to make better instruments through more accurate tooling and in helping them become more commercially viable by increasing their production. Calkin attended one of Charles’ week-long Contemporary Guitar Making seminars and documented much of the hard info for American Lutherie readers. This segment concentrates on nearly 3 dozen jigs and fixtures that anyone can add to their lutherie arsenal, most of them adapted to power tools. With 57 photos. Parts 2 & 3 to follow.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#52 p.42 BRB5 p.144
Tim Olsen R.E. Brune
▪ Brune was an original founder of the Guild, has been a GAL convention lecturer, and an American Lutherie author. He’s also a world-renowned maker, dealer, and collector of classical guitars. In this interview he offers some personal background as well as what he thinks it will take to stay afloat in the lutherie world that’s coming. His insider’s view of high-buck instrument dealing is especially compelling. With 7 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#52 p.46 BRB5 p.148
R.E. Brune
▪ What does it take to restore an important instrument? Skill, research, and a solid feel and appreciation for the time during which the piece was made and played. Skip any of these factors and you could easily screw up an irreplaceable piece. Brune describes his approach to one guitar while at the same time demonstrating the qualities necessary to enter this field.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#52 p.50 BRB5 p.138
Jonathon Peterson Augustino LoPrinzi
▪ Augie LoPrinzi has made or overseen the construction of over 8000 guitars. He went from a one-man shop in the back of his barbershop to a factory that employed 30 people and made 80 flattops a month. Now back in a small-shop setting, his enthusiasm for the guitar is as high as ever. Come along for one of the wilder rides in the annals of lutherie.
1997
AL#51 p.20 BRB5 p.80
Armin Kelly Hermann Hauser-III
▪ The name Hermann Hauser needs no introduction in the classical guitar world. Here Hauser #3 talks about heritage, learning the craft, wood, and closing in on the perfect guitar. With 6 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#51 p.26 BRB5 p.92
Jonathon Peterson Boaz Elkayam
▪ Elkayam grew up as a luthier, built guitars as he traveled half the world on a motorcycle, never stopped learning, and seems never to have met a challenge he didn’t welcome. High-class lutherie skills don’t necessarily make a person interesting. If Boaz quit the trade today he’d still be someone you’d like to seek out. Check out his classical guitar with two fingerboards (but only one neck). With 24 photos of beautiful instruments, beautiful places, and beautiful women.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#51 p.46 BRB5 p.471
Bryan Johanson
▪ Though taken aback by the ego of the author, the reviewer decides the book is invaluable to his enjoyment of the guitar. “If you care about the guitar, you should own this book.”
1997
AL#49 p.6 BRB5 p.2
Woodley White Rene Baarslag
▪ A Dutchman who moved to Spain and learned guitar making with the help of Antonio Marin, Baarslag has carved out a reputation as a fine luthier. The descriptions of his home will make you wonder why luthiers can’t live this well in America. Baarslag’s life must be very pleasant.
1997
AL#49 p.10 BRB4 p.4
Woodley White
▪ Baarslag journeys to the American School of Lutherie to teach a week-long class about building classical guitars. White attended, and gives a full report. With 37 photos.
1997
AL#49 p.36 BRB5 p.34
Brent Benfield
▪ So you bought a spherically dished form in which to build your guitars. But how do you go about it? Benfield describes a path notable for its lack of complication. This is a painless way to bring your guitars into the 21st century. Most of the ideas are applicable to flattop guitars as well. With 10 photos and 4 drawings.
1997
AL#49 p.3 BRB5 p.37 read this article
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ A well-known teacher and maker of controversial classical guitars passes on.
1996
AL#48 p.28 BRB4 p.408
Cyndy Burton John Mello
▪ Mello is a repairperson, guitarmaker, restorer, and instrument dealer. He apprenticed under Richard Schneider and worked with Jeffrey R. Elliott before opening his own shop.Much of the interview dwells upon the restoration of an 1862 Torres guitar. With 11 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1996
AL#47 p.34 BRB4 p.368
Greg Byers
▪ Finding perfect intonation through deep math and jiggling the string length at both ends. For some luthiers the quest for perfection knows no bounds. The rest of us are just jealous.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1996
AL#47 p.46 BRB4 p.364
Colin Kaminski Marc Silber
▪ Silber is a musician, nomad, repairman, musical historian, guitar designer, dealer, collector, and all around keeper of the flame. How can a man have so much fun and make a living at the same time?
1996
AL#47 p.60 BRB4 p.471
Kenny Hill
▪ This book, printed only in Spanish, describes guitar making in Ecuador. The reviewer finds that the Ecuadorian guitar as described in this book is crudely fashioned, and that the text is incomplete. Nevertheless, he enjoys it as a look into another culture.
1996
AL#45 p.4 BRB4 p.258
Debbie Suran
▪ On the trail of S. American luthiers, strange instruments, and unusual wood varieties, in a land where travel is difficult but the people are friendly. Ask your tonewood supplier to start stocking armadillo shells. With 24 photos.
1996
AL#45 p.10 BRB4 p.264
R.E. Brune
▪ This 1995 lecture transcription investigates the history of art applied to lutherie in all its varied forms, and then translates many of them into illustrations of contemporary instruments. Topics include painting, gilding, carving, veneer, inlay, engraving, and varnish work. With 49 photos and illustrations.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#44 p.8 BRB4 p.222
Robert Desmond
▪ This is a short biography of a luthier who entered the trade before many of us were born, and who has turned classical guitar making into a family business.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#43 p.59 BRB4 p.495
Filippo Avignonesi
▪ Adding two fairly stiff but very light braces between the 3 center fan braces between the waist bar and the bridge patch to add a little more kick to a redwood topped classical guitar.
1995
AL#43 p.8 BRB4 p.202
Todd Brotherton Jim Williams
▪ Australians continue to make a mark in the evolution of the guitar. Williams made his mark as an author, as well. He discusses his background and his instruments.
1995
AL#43 p.11 BRB4 p.206
Jim Williams
▪ Williams discusses the building style he has borrowed from Greg Smallman for classical guitars. With 14 photos, plus drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#42 p.12 BRB4 p.174
Robert Ruck
▪ Ruck spends most of his time in this lecture talking about top design and finishing. With 13 photos and several drawings, plus a detailed list of his finish materials and procedures.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#42 p.22 BRB4 p.184
Keith Hill
▪ A maker of classical guitars harvests some strange local trees to try out as instruments.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#41 p.10 BRB4 p.126
Graham Caldersmith
▪ Caldersmith is working to expand the voice range of guitar ensembles, both classical and steel string. With 4 photos and frequency response graphs. The first installment of Caldersmith’s work with a classical guitar family came way back in AL#18.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#41 p.40 BRB4 p.144
Ronald-Louis Fernandez
▪ It’s untrue that all the old builders were stodgy old putzes locked into a cold tradition. Some of their guitars were pretty far out. With 21 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#41 p.50 BRB4 p.71
Alan Carruth
▪
1994
AL#40 p.18 BRB4 p.96
R.E. Brune
▪ There is an undying interest in the Segovia guitars. Brune offers good description as well as 10 photos and a complete set of plans. The plans are a reduced version of our full-scale Plan # 38.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1994
AL#40 p.19 BRB4 p.97
R.E. Brune
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1994
AL#40 p.24 BRB4 p.124
Jonathon Peterson Rossco Wright Larry Roberts
▪ Classical guitarists are too fussy to simply travel with a shrunken guitar. These two luthiers offer instruments that suit the special needs of special guitarists.
1994
AL#39 p.49 BRB4 p.461
Kevin Aram
▪ The reviewer finds that his good first impression of the book is dimmed by six months spent in its company. He maintains that the information is inconsistent and not in the best interest of the beginning luthier, nor complete enough for the experienced builder.
1994
AL#38 p.24 BRB4 p.34
R.E. Brune
▪ Brune made a map of plate dimensions using a new (and expensive) gizzy called the Elcometer. Then he decides that plate thickness probably isn’t so big a deal. Well, at least you have a model to guide you.
1994
AL#38 p.26 BRB4 p.20
David Riggs
▪ Sometimes German instruments can look downright, well, German! Not the ones that Riggs captured on film, though. Perhaps the whole world is now one big melting pot.
1993
AL#36 p.40 BRB3 p.405
Jonathon Peterson Scott Tremblay
▪ Trembley is a Canadian luthier who specializes in the guitars of the 19th century, both as a maker and a restorationist. He has studied the subject deeply. With 12 photos and a scale drawing of an 1816 Salon Guitar by Jose Martinez. This plan is a reduced version of GAL full-scale Plan #36.
1993
AL#36 p.41 BRB3 p.409
Scott Tremblay
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1993
AL#35 p.44 BRB3 p.500 read this article
Bruce McGuire
▪ Overholtzer is cussed and discussed, but he had an undeniable influence on the American classical guitar scene. He built Spanish guitars in a very un-Spanish manner.
1993
AL#35 p.60
Paul Hurley
▪ Hurley believes that classical guitars aren’t loud enough, and that if design changes can’t make improvements, perhaps concert halls should be changed or amplification used. He wishes to boost the popularity of guitar concerts.
1993
AL#34 p.41 BRB3 p.351 ALA3 p.51
R.E. Brune
▪ Is the Met’s Segovia Hauser the famous Hauser? Probably, but maybe not. That such mysteries can remain about the most famous classical guitarist ever is quite heartening.
1993
AL#34 p.42 ALA5 p.8
H.E. Huttig Todd Taggart Tim Olsen
▪ A well-loved man is remembered in his own words. Also see AL#32.
1993
AL#34 p.6 BRB3 p.316 ALA5 p.22
Jeffrey-R. Elliott
▪ Elliott believes that top replacements might be far more common in the future than they are now. Instruments with tired tops might have them replaced rather than retire the rare/irreplaceable hardwoods that comprise the rest of the instrument. Anyhow, he tried it out. Here he presents a description of the operation and the ethics involved, with 23 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1993
AL#33 p.6 BRB3 p.272
Cyndy Burton Roberto Gomes
▪ A Brazilian guitar maker comments upon his situation in Brazil and his first trip to America as a luthier.
1993
AL#33 p.12 BRB3 p.278 read this article
Roberto Gomes
▪ Gomes offers a list and short description of some current Brazilian builders.
1993
AL#33 p.14 BRB3 p.280
R.E. Brune
▪ Brune describes a rare 11-string Torres guitar and the manner in which he restored it. With 11 photos and a half-page of drawings. Mentions Romanillos.
1993
AL#33 p.3
Skip Helms
▪ Doin’ it with a router table.
1992
AL#32 p.46 BRB3 p.265
Lisa Hurlong
▪ An adopted daughter of Granada describes an up-and-coming Spanish guitar maker. Good local color. Mentions Antonio Marin.