Willie Carter has travelled the world as a guitar tech for Otis Taylor; worked at Gryphon and Santa Cruz guitars; served as a professional recording engineer; and is co-founder of Carter Poulsen guitars, where he and Eric Poulsen are making great acoustic guitars out of their workshop in Santa Cruz, Calif. For episode 54 of the podcast, Willie weaves all of these parts of his life together and describes the moment he fell in love with guitarmaking. Willie also talks about his favorite woods, the...
May 26, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 54
Mario Beauregard is among the world's finest and most distinctive archtop and flattop guitar makers. For episode 53 of the podcast, Mario goes into the history and execution of his unique faceted designs and how they differ from traditional archtops. Mario also discusses his time at the Roberto Venn school and how it led to apprenticeships with Ervin Somogyi and Taku Sakashta. He shares advice for new builders, talks about overcoming challenging times and confirms a wild story about rescuing som...
Apr 28, 2021•54 min•Ep. 53
Dan Erlewine literally wrote the book on guitar repair: He's the author of The Guitar Player Repair Guide , which was first published in 1990. A well-worn, dog-eared copy of that book is always close to my bench and it's how I first learned guitar repair. (I bet it taught many of this podcast's listeners, as well.) Over his 50 year career, Dan developed many of the methods luthiers use today and he never shied away from taking on the most challenging repairs. For the 52nd episode of the podcast,...
Mar 25, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 52
Ian Davlin, who goes by the online moniker "Ian Hates Guitars," may have a complicated relationship with guitars, but he sure is good at fixing them. For episode 51 of Luthier on Luthier, Ian tells us about working for Breedlove Guitars and his eventful interview process at Nashville's famous Gruhn Guitars, where he worked for many years. Ian also tells us about the development of his heat stick neck removal tool and his popular finish touch up class he teaches at Dan Erlewine's shop. These days...
Feb 22, 2021•1 hr•Ep. 51
Tom Ribbecke is a lutherie legend and one of the originators of the custom guitar scene as we know it today. For episode 50 of the podcast, Tom walks us through his first 50 years of guitarmaking, including the evolution of his sound bubble guitar, his Halfling model, and his compliant rim guitars and basses. Tom also takes us back to the '70s guitar building scene in San Francisco and ends the podcast with some truly profound advice for aspiring builders. Links: http://www.jackcasady.com/the-di...
Jan 26, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 50
Luthier Rosie Heydenrych is the builder behind England's Turnstone Guitar Company. On episode 49 of the podcast, she shares her approach to voicing instruments, including the use of tonewoods from her native England. She also discusses her views on women in lutherie, her work flow, and how she adopts new techniques and technology into her builds. Link: Turnstone Guitar Company. This month's episode is sponsored by Dream Guitars ....
Dec 23, 2020•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 49
Nigel Forster started building guitars at age 17 as an apprentice with Stephen Sobell... and he stayed with Sobell for the next 15 years. Along the way, Nigel has taken some truly interesting globetrotting side trips, including studying in Buddhist monasteries. During one of those trips Nigel wrote a book titled, Making a Living in Lutherie, which is filled with both practical tips on running a shop and life advice that Nigel describes as "soft-core Buddhism." These days, Nigel is building a var...
Nov 27, 2020•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 48
In 1969, Frank Ford and Richard Johnston started the legendary Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto, California. On episode 47 of the podcast, Ford tells us what it is like to run one of the world's premiere repair shops for over 50 years. We hear about the early days of Gryphon (including their initial attempts to build and sell handmade instruments). Ford also talks about the store today, his philosophy on communicating with customers, his favorite repairs, and how, thanks to Dan Erlewine...
Oct 20, 2020•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 47
Nicolai Schorr makes instantly recognizable and remarkable electric guitars mostly with hand tools out of his home shop in Berlin, Germany. For episode 46 of the podcast, Nicolai takes us through the inspiration for and the development of his thoroughly original models. He also discusses his neck construction, artistic background, and his philosophy on enjoying work and the guitar building process. Links- http://schorrguitars.de / https://www.instagram.com/schorrguitars / This episode is sponsor...
Sep 23, 2020•54 min•Ep. 46
Michael Greenfield makes spectacular acoustic guitars out of his state-of-the-art shop in Montreal. For episode 45 of the podcast, he takes us through his thought process on designing multi-scale instruments for drop tunings, and the evolution of his models. Michael also discuses his journey into the profession, building for the high end custom market, final guitar voicing, and much more. Links: https://www.greenfieldguitars.com/ https://charliehunter.com/ https://andymckee.com/ This episode is ...
Aug 20, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 45
Mike Baranik has been making extraordinary world-class acoustic guitars for decades. On episode 44 of the podcast, Mike recounts the music influences that got him interested in guitars and tells us about his studies at the Roberto-Venn school in the early '90s. Mike also talks to us about his first guitar shows, finding his identity a a luthier, meeting deadlines, re-purposing tools, and using CNCs. Lastly, we get to hear all about Mike's successful venture into electric guitars and how it compl...
Jul 20, 2020•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 44
There is not much that Adam Buchwald doesn't do in the world of guitars. He owns Allied Lutherie (which he recently relocated from California to Vermont to better service East Coast builders), he builds Circle Strings guitars and is also the co-owner of the Iris Guitar and Mandolin company. For episode 43 of the podcast, Adam tells us how a once-aspiring musician and music major at the University of Vermont ended up working at Retrofret Vintage Guitars and becoming a full-time luthier with a div...
Jul 01, 2020•42 min•Ep. 43
Steve Klein and Steve Kauffman have been making some of the world's finest and most innovative guitars since their partnership began in the 1970s. For episode 42 of the podcast, I caught up with them at the 2020 NAMM show where they share their origins, give us their thoughts on Kasha designs and tonewoods, and tell us how they have been able to successfully collaborate for over 40 years. This episode is sponsored by Dream Guitars . Links https://kleinsbench.com/ https://www.kleinandkauffmanguit...
Jun 05, 2020•44 min•Ep. 42
Abe Wechter has done it all: From building guitars one-at-a-time, to running guitar factories both domestically and abroad. For Episode 41 of the podcast, Abe and I take a walk to escape the noise at the 2020 NAMM show. His story takes many twists and turns including successes and failures, corrupt business partners, heartbreak and romance. Abe's guitar story starts 40 years ago in his Paw Paw, Michigan shop and continues and stretches today to Guangzhou, China, where he's a major OEM guitar man...
Apr 29, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 41
Nik Huber comes from a long line of woodworkers, and he carries on his family trade with his team of eight employees that craft exceptionally fine traditionally influenced electric guitars. For episode 40 of the podcast, I met up with Nik at the 2020 NAMM show where he tells us how he got started under the guidance of Paul Reed Smith after finishing an apprenticeship in cabinetry. Nik also shares his views on woods, finishes and hardware and more. This episode is sponsored by Dream Guitars . Lin...
Mar 26, 2020•53 min•Ep. 40
Kathy Wingert crafts some of the best and most beautiful acoustic guitars being made today out her shop in Los Angeles. For Episode 39 of the podcast, I sit down with Kathy and talk about photographing and marketing guitars, the development and design of her models and her experience as a female in craft with an abundance of men. Kathy also tells us about her time in college studying and performing classical guitar and how she got started in luthiere with a violin maker at World of Strings music...
Feb 28, 2020•45 min•Ep. 39
Martin Keith makes acoustic guitars and electric basses out of his one-man shop in Woodstock, New York. For our 38th episode, Martin tells us about his early careers as a journalist and professional bass player before landing a job with Joe Veillette. There, he made over 1000 guitars before starting his own brand. Martin also discusses guitar design and builders that he draws inspiration from. He also tells us about running the Beacon Banjo Company founded by his father, Bill Keith, in the 1960s...
Feb 02, 2020•59 min•Ep. 38
Award winning guitarist Al Petteway has been performing since the age over 12 across a variety of musical styles. These days, he is best known as a Celtic fingerstyle guitarist and for the gorgeous soundtracks he composes for documentary films. Over his 50 year career, Al also worked as a photo editor for National Geographic . For Episode 37 of the podcast, Al traces the path of his musical history, and shares several great stories along the way. He also gives advice to musicians and guitar buil...
Dec 26, 2019•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 37
Sam Guidry not only teaches at the Galloup School of Guitar Building, he also makes world-class acoustic guitars. For Episode 36 of Luthier on Luthier, Sam tells us the unexpected way he started at the Galloup School and what he enjoys about teaching. Sam also runs us through some his guitar's unique design features, and how he uses a top rating measurement system to achieve consistency and get the sound that he wants. We also hear about his time as a touring musician and his latest project, Cas...
Dec 04, 2019•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 36
Legendary guitar maker Ken Parker is known worldwide for his innovative archtop guitars. For Episode 35 of the podcast, I caught up with Ken after the first-ever Rocky Mountain Archtop Festival. Ken shares how he blends his deep understanding of classical methods with modern techniques and materials to achieve his goal of making the ultimate acoustic instrument. Link: Ken Parker Archtops
Nov 05, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 35
Archtop guitar maker Bill Comins started his career as an aspiring jazz musician. Thanks to that, he brings the player's viewpoint into his guitars. "If I go overboard on making things very resonant, I'm going to be fighting inconsistencies, and as player that is useless to me on the bandstand," he says. For our 34th episode, I sit down with Bill at the Rocky Mountain Archtop Festival, where he shares his player-led insights into archtop guitar design, voicing and amplification. Bill also tells ...
Sep 30, 2019•56 min•Ep. 34
With encouragement from his friend Richard Hoover, Michael Hornick (Shanti Guitars) made his first guitar in 1985. He has not stopped building since. Michael also runs the instrument building workshop at the Bluegrass Academy, which started at the 1992 Telluride Bluegrass festival and is now held annually at RockyGrass. For episode 33 of the podcast we catch up with Michael on a sunny afternoon during RockyGrass. Michael shares stories from building the spray booths at Santa Cruz Guitars to how ...
Sep 04, 2019•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 33
Trevor Gore has a goal to build better guitars. To that end, he has applied the full force of his expertise as a professional engineer to research and document the physics of how acoustic guitars work and develop the methods to control the sound. Trevor lays all this out in his two-part book, Contemporary Acoustic Guitar Design and Build , co-authored with Gerard Gilet. For episode 32 of the podcast, I sit down with Trevor after his modal tuning workshop and he gives us an overview of his approa...
Aug 08, 2019•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 32
When you look at a Sean Kochel guitar you will notice the shotgun shell knobs, the bullet casing fret markers, and the 100 year-old woods from demolished buildings that are featured in all his guitars. For episode 31 of the podcast, we visit Sean's remote shop in the mountains outside of Missoula, Montana. It takes us a little while to discuss to his cool guitars, because Sean has quite a history: from working in Alaska's oil fields, to snowboarding and bee keeping, all before starting his succe...
Jul 12, 2019•55 min•Ep. 31
For our 30th episode of the podcast, we talk with Colorado-based instrument builder Jeff Bamburg. Jeff tells us about his multifaceted approach to the guitar business; including running a retail shop, his custom line of Bamburg guitars, his production line of Rocky Mountain guitars, as well as teaching lutherie and doing repairs. Jeff also explains why one of his goals is to build a business that he can sell, and about his experiments with double-top and true-tempered guitars. Link: https://www....
May 22, 2019•47 min•Ep. 30
Roger Sadowsky makes guitars for many of today's top professional guitarists, and his instruments are in heavy rotation on stages and in studios across the world. For episode 29 of the podcast, we caught up with Roger at the 2019 winter NAMM Show. Roger shares his thoughts on electric guitar tonewoods, neck design, and the story of how in 1972 he put down the scalpel and picked up a chisel. It would start him on the path to becoming one of the world's most highly respected guitar makers. https:/...
Apr 24, 2019•31 min•Ep. 29
Michael Watts is a London-based guitarist deeply steeped in the custom guitar world. Michael knows how to have the "tone talk" both with guitar builders and players. For our 28th episode, Michael discusses his latest CD, gives advice on ordering a custom guitar, and shares his insights into the relationship between luthiers and musicians. https://michaelwattsguitar.com/home
Mar 26, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 28
For Episode 27 of Luthier on Luthier, we sit down with Farhad Soheili, who was as self-described guitar-infatuated teenager playing and working on instruments 10 hours a day. More than 20 years later, Farhad now owns FSC guitars based in Brooklyn, New York, where he builds incredible vintage-inspired electric guitars and runs a full service repair shop. Farhad shares his insights into running a small business in a big city and how he keeps inspired. Links: https://fscinstruments.com / http://www...
Feb 25, 2019•58 min•Ep. 27
For our 26th episode of Luthier on Luthier, we sit down with veteran guitarmaker Ric McCurdy of McCurdy Guitars. Ric takes us from building guitars barefoot in Santa Barbara, California to his busy NYC shop where he now makes some of finest archtop and electric guitars around. Ric also shares his insights into voicing archtop plates and changing the resonant frequency of a guitar neck. At the end of the day, Ric sums it up like this: "If I can help a musician get their art out and play a little ...
Jan 17, 2019•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 26
Marc Beneteau has successfully navigated a career in building custom guitars since 1974. For our twenty fifth episode, Marc takes us back to his early years, talks to us about forging his own path and describes how he has remained focused and passionate about guitar building over all these years. Links: http://www.beneteauguitars.com / http://www.foxsearchlight.com/youngatheart /
Dec 26, 2018•55 min•Ep. 25
