Posted on January 6, 2010May 20, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The New Yorker Special by Frederick Cohen Review: The New Yorker Special by Frederick Cohen Reviewed by Tim Olsen Originally published in American Lutherie #9, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 The New Yorker Special Frederick Cohen Available from Filmakers Library, Inc This charming little film is a valentine to a guy who deserves one: Jimmy D’Aquisto. Jimmy was my childhood hero, and visiting him in his shop in 1977 only built my admiration and affection for a man that to me is a genuine paradigm for luthiers. This film is far above the average coverage that luthiers generally get from journalists. You know the type: They breeze in, ask a few irrelevant questions, then write a piece that makes you seem like something between a wacko and a wizard. Frederick Cohen obviously knows something about guitars, as well as being a fine filmmaker. He has succeeded in producing a film which is perfectly suitable and entertaining for the uninitiated, yet one in which the luthier will find many informative gems half-buried. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on January 6, 2010May 19, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: Steel-String Guitar Construction by Irving R. Sloane Review: Steel-String Guitar Construction by Irving R. Sloane Reviewed by David Riggs Originally published in American Lutherie #26, 1991 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Three, 2004 Steel-String Guitar Construction Irving R. Sloane Bold Strummer, 1990 ISBN 0-933224-19-2 This is a reissue of a book which was originally published in 1975 and was, at that time, just about the only widely available assistance for those aspiring to build a steel string guitar. In its new edition, it is virtually unchanged from its original incarnation and thus is as good or as bad as it used to be. Although some of the book’s information might appear a bit dated to our information-saturated eyes, it does contain at least one essential feature available nowhere else. The purpose of this book is to give a person with a few woodworking skills the information needed to build a first guitar, and Mr. Sloane successfully covers all aspects of this commission. Good, solid advice is given concerning selection of materials, design requirements, and the processes which will result in a satisfactory effort, whilst avoiding great expense for materials and special tools. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on January 6, 2010May 16, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The Gibson Guitar (Volumes 1 & 2) by Ian C. Bishop Review: The Gibson Guitar (Volumes 1 & 2) by Ian C. Bishop Reviewed by Gary Frisbie Originally published in American Lutherie #28, 1991 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Three, 2004 The Gibson Guitar (Volumes 1 & 2) Ian C. Bishop The Bold Strummer, 1990 ISBN 0-933224-46-X (Volume 1) ISBN 0-933224-47-8 (Volume 2) These are books from the ’70s, written by an Englishman and intended to provide a wealth of information on the Gibson guitars built from 1950 to the end of the ’70s when the second volume was published. Volume 1 would appear to be the more essential of the two because it covers the major lines of solidbody and hollowbody electrics, plus the jazz and flattop acoustics. However, Volume 2 is really just as important, because the author discusses omissions and inaccuracies which occurred in Volume 1, and also because he covers the Epiphone guitars produced under Gibson auspices, as well as Japanese Epiphones. Also discussed are some off-brand peculiarities such as Kalamazoos and Dwights. Because there are so many myths and assumed facts regarding these instruments, it is hard to believe that everything written in these books is true. However, a great majority of the material seems to be accurate, and one could do worse than to consult these books as a reference to the authenticity of a given guitar. The author even states that one of his main goals is to provide enough information for a reader to accurately assess a guitar and thereby avoid paying more than is warranted if the guitar is being misrepresented as older and more collectible than it really is. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on January 5, 2010May 23, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The Guitar in America, Victorian Era to Jazz Age by Jeffrey J. Noonan Review: The Guitar in America, Victorian Era to Jazz Age by Jeffrey J. Noonan Reviewed by Don Overstreet Originally published in American Lutherie #96, 2008 The Guitar in America, Victorian Era to Jazz Age Jeffrey J. Noonan ISBN (hardcover): 139781934110188 University Press of Mississippi, 2008, $50 In the year 2008, say “BMG” and some will think of the mail-order catalog of recordings. In the year 1908, say “BMG” and many in the musical community in America would immediately think of the Banjo, Mandolin, and Guitar movement. Jeffrey Noonan’s recent publication, (an expansion of a doctoral dissertation and echoing its academic origin), gives us a clear portrait of the life and times of a true social phenomenon that began in the last half of the 19th century and continued into the 1920s, when changing times and tastes caused it to fade away. We can be thankful to Mr. Noonan for adding this book to the list of efforts published in recent years by writers such as Philip Gura and James Bollman, whose studies of the banjo and the life and times of C.F. Martin, Sr. have become standard references, not only for their overviews of the instruments themselves but also for illuminating the social environment in which the music became so popular. The important figures of the era are identified and given biographies while we learn about the amazing process of the creation and marketing of the instruments. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on January 1, 2010May 14, 2025 by Dale Phillips Three Holes are Better than One Three Holes are Better than One by Robert Ruck previously published in American Lutherie #91, 2007 See also, “There’s a Hole in the Bucket” by Cyndy Burton “Sideways” by John Monteleone “Herr Helmholtz’ Tube” by Mike Doolin Classical guitar maker Robert Ruck pioneered sideports for nylon string gutiars. He describes how the idea materialized out of several experiences going back to the begining of his career in the ’60s. A strong advocate, he now offers ports as an option on all of his guitars. Since late 1999, I have regularly used sideports in my guitars. My experience with the resulting 150 or so ported classical and flamenco guitars with various designs is consistent, predictable, and all positive. There is an increase in loudness both for the player and for listeners. In listening tests with several fine players, we have concluded that the guitar is louder for the audience, too. The fundamental tone quality of the guitar stays the same, but it is louder, has stronger trebles, and has a more balanced quality for the player, opening up an area of sound around the player that is not normally heard. Since we as players sit somewhat asymmetrically to the guitar and the conventional soundhole is positioned to our right, there is an area on the left side of our heads that does not receive as much sound as the right side. We grow up hearing the guitar this way, so we never question it. Players comment that it’s as if one is hearing the guitar in stereo for the first time. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
