Posted on July 3, 2026July 3, 2026 by Dale Phillips What To Do When Your Head Falls Off: Instrument Repair Tips and Techniques What To Do When Your Head Falls Off: Instrument Repair Tips and Techniques by Brian Michael and Alex Glasser from their 2011 GAL Convention workshop Originally published in American Lutherie #115, 2013 Alex: A peghead reglue is not hard, but it’s a common repair, and one that’s commonly done poorly. We cheated. We took the neck from a broken guitar, removed the tuners, and broke the peghead. Normally, your cracks would be lower, around the nut or volute, but with the tuners removed, it breaks across the tuners. The repair’s the same, though. For most headstock repairs we use hide glue, because it has high heat resistance. We try to make repairs foolproof, so if the customer leaves it in the trunk of his guitar, it won’t break open. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on May 22, 2026May 22, 2026 by Dale Phillips Restoring a Battle Axe Restoring a Battle Axe by Roger Alan Skipper Originally published in American Lutherie #97, 2009 Some time ago a friend delivered to my shop, in a cardboard box, a 1972 D-28 Martin guitar; a basket would have been a more suitable container. This instrument had experienced some major trauma. From my friend’s reluctance to discuss particulars, I suspected some human trauma had occurred about the same time — that this “axe” had done genuine battle. “This thing has been in my attic for years,” he said. “Salvage the tuners or whatever you can, and throw the rest away.” I glanced at the splintered mess, closed the box, and filed it on a top shelf, out of the way. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on May 4, 2026May 4, 2026 by Dale Phillips Meet the Maker: John Koster Meet the Maker: John Koster by Nicholas Von Robison Originally published in American Lutherie #34 1994 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Four, 2006 Dateline Vermillion, South Dakota. It happened at the GAL’s 13th national convention. Quick as an adder, the long, thin arm of American Lutherie editor Tim Olsen snaked into the crowd and tore me kicking and screaming from the group of luthiers. “Go interview” was the command, and “Who would you like to do?” the question. Without hesitation I named John Koster, the conservator of the Shrine to Music Museum (Editor’s note: now the National Music Museum). I had never met John but I knew that he was also a devoteé of taking tiny splinters of wood and putting them under a microscope in order to precisely determine the identity of a wood. I soon found that wood anatomy is only one of the myriad and assorted areas of knowledge that John calls upon in his work. He was enjoying a day off, but graciously consented to this interview and a tour of his workshop. The time I spent with John one of the high points of my convention experience. John, please tell us a little bit about your early beginnings, your background and education, and the path that led you to the Shrine to Music Museum. I’m a fairly recent arrival here at the Shrine to Music Museum. I came here in September of 1991 so I’ve only been here eight or nine months. Previous to this I was a harpsichord maker for about twenty years, back in Massachusetts. Before that, my background had been more musical than instrument making. I went to St. Thomas Choir school in New York City, the only church-affiliated, boarding choir school in the country, very much on the English model. I was into classical music and played the piano, but really wanted to play the harpsichord. In prep-school years, during the summer, my father and I put together one of the original Zuckerman clavichord kits — a plywood box with some strings on it and a piano keyboard. A couple of years later when I was fifteen we put together a harpsichord, another Zuckerman kit, one of the original nonbent-sided ones. It was a cigar-box-violin kind of thing, but it got me started and I had something to play on. 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 April 17, 2026April 17, 2026 by Dale Phillips Restoring Tárrega’s 1888 Torres Restoring Tárrega’s 1888 Torres by Jeffrey R. Elliott from his 2004 GAL Convention lecture Originally published in American Lutherie #83, 2005 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2015 It was a privilege and an honor to restore this 1888 Antonio de Torres classical guitar, which is the centerpiece of a wonderful collection owned by Sheldon Urlik of Los Angeles, California. Identified as SE 114 in Antonio de Torres Guitar Maker — His Life and Work by José Romanillos, this guitar has great historical significance, not only because it was made by Antonio de Torres, but because it was owned by the great guitarist, composer, and pedagogue Francisco Tárrega. Before I began any work, I consulted with luthier and historian José L. Romanillos of Guijosa, Spain, for his expertise on Torres guitars and also reread his comprehensive book, which is the primary source of the historical information that follows. In addition, I consulted with luthier John F. Mello of Berkeley, California, for his restoration experience on Torres guitars and both previous owner Elias Barreiro of New Orleans, Louisiana, and the present owner Sheldon Urlik for their knowledge of the history of this guitar. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on April 16, 2026April 16, 2026 by Dale Phillips Remembering Julian Bream Remembering Julian Bream by Cyndy Burton, José Romanillos, R.E. Bruné, Jeffrey R. Elliott, Kevin Aram, Gary Southwell, and Simon Ambridge Originally published in American Lutherie #142, 2021 Julian Bream was born on July 15, 1933, and died on August 14, 2020, one month after his 87th birthday. The accolades that followed were online and in print everywhere, and were consistently filled with superlatives praising his genius as a classical guitarist, his tireless commissioning and presentation of new guitar repertoire from notable contemporary composers, and his teaching and creating opportunities for the next generation of classical guitarists. But commonly overlooked in descriptions of Julian Bream’s achievements in his long career, are the fruits of his relationships with the handful of classical guitar makers he chose to build for him. He sought the best classical guitars possible to serve his musical purposes and, at the same time, inspired their makers to improve their art and craft. We are fortunate that those luthiers are represented here, and that they’ve offered memories of their interactions with Julian Bream. — Cyndy Burton Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
