Coming Soon: #104
This guitar is currently in the finishing process, and will be available in early October.
I was very fortunate to obtain a batch of fine old wood from the shop of a prominent maker back in the "60's
and '70's. This wood was cut over 35 years ago, and has been maturing ever since.
This guitar is made of this old wood. The soundboard is Sitka spruce, with back and sides of Indian
rosewood. The sound is extremely focussed, with strong fundamentals and outstanding projection. The tone
is balanced, with strong basses which can be pushed without losing tone quality, clear trebles, a smooth mid-range, and
good separation.
There is a small hairline crack at the edge of the upper bout which is nearly invisible. This
occurred during a rapid change in humidity in my shop, a problem which has since been rectified. Like a fractured bone,
the repair is stronger than the surrounding wood, and is covered by my guarantee.
I received a very flattering compliment on this guitar from Phillip de Fremery. I commented that
I thought my guitars sounded good, but that I had no frame of reference, lacking much exposure to the top guitars. Phil
gave this some thought, then said that he would feel perfectly comfortable playing a recital with this guitar, and
would actually prefer it to the guitars of several of the most famous makers. He said it did not have quite as
much volume as some top guitars, but had sufficient volume and a more focussed sound than most, owing to less "noise"
(false harmonics), and would project better. I was encouraged by this critique, as this is exactly the sound I
have been trying to produce.
I expect to have pictures of this instrument within the week.
