Posted on December 27, 2020May 22, 2025 by Dale Phillips Whence Tree Names Whence Tree Names by Nicholas Von Robison Originally published in American Lutherie #31, 1992 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie, Volume Three, 2004 What’s in a name?” cries Juliet; “that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Yet Shakespeare might admit that a rose is not less sweet because we know its name. The system of binomial nomenclature is one of the best inventions. It is effective; it is beautiful in its simplicity. A luthier in New York may talk of trees and wood to a luthier in Faroffistan with precision and mutual understanding. Centuries are tied together between us and the many careful observers hundreds of years ago who left good records in aristocratic Latin, when the common vernacular language was considered not to be a sufficient medium for such learning. To know the names of the forms of life is one of the keenest satisfactions; it brings us into relationship with our materials in another facet of our fascinating occupation. Every binomial has meaning; it is uniquely significant. Consider... 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 May 21, 2020May 21, 2025 by Dale Phillips South American Rosewood South American Rosewood by John Jordan Originally published in American Lutherie #4, 1985 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 See also, African Rosewood by John Jordan Rosewoods are among the most beautiful of all woods. Although they are native to tropical and semitropical climates around the world, we will deal in this article with those native to Central and South America. They are typically hard, very dense, and often resinous woods weighing 50–80 lb./cu. ft. One cubic foot (cu. ft.) is equal to 12 bd. ft. Because of their weight, they are expensive to ship; consequently the number of South American rosewoods available to the wood market in the U.S. will be greater than the number of African or Asian varieties due to our proximity to South and particularly Central America. To quickly dispel some misconceptions: rosewood trees do not produce rose-like flowers, nor are they close relatives of the Rosecae (flowering rose) family. The name rosewood is derived from the fact that the wood, especially when fresh cut, exudes a rose-like scent. Several varieties of rosewoods were being exported for furniture, fine cabinetry, musical instruments, fine carving, and turnery long before botanical identification was established in the tropics. A Swedish botanist named Nicholas Dalberg (1735–1820) was credited with discovering that these rosewoods were close botanical relatives, hence the genus is named Dalbergia. The genus Dalbergia has over 300 species. I have gathered information on over 100 species, 15 of which, including the most popular ones, are represented here. 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 May 21, 2020May 21, 2025 by Dale Phillips Selecting Australian Timbers Selecting Australian Timbers by Lindsay Hewson Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Quarterly, Volume 7 #1, 1979 and Lutherie Woods and Steel String Guitars, 1997 All luthiers no matter what their nationality, have one quest that binds them together more strongly than does the maternal cord: the eternal search for the materials and timbers needed to continue their art. In Europe and America, timbers traditionally used in lutherie grow in some areas, and despite the dwindling supplies of really top-grade wood, such materials are still available from retail outlets. However, here in Australia, some additional obstacles exist. The geographic isolation of this country, combined with the relatively minute luthier population, does not present a sufficiently valid reason for the commercial importation of the traditional lutherie timbers. When someone does arrange to have some spruce or rosewoods imported in large enough quantities to be worthwhile, they are often bitterly disappointed to find that by the time the consignment arrives it has been very carefully ransacked, and the best pieces removed on the docks of the countries involved. Once again, being so far removed from the source of supply, little recall is possible without personally traveling overseas. 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 March 5, 2020May 14, 2025 by Dale Phillips Building a Plywood Bass Building a Plywood Bass by Richard Ennis Originally published in American Lutherie #3, 1985 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 see also, In Praise of the Plywood Bass by Frederick C. Lyman, Jr. Here is the basic design of one of the more unusual instruments I build in my workshop. This plywood three-quarter double bass of approximately 90 liters is built to a design that increases durability and ease of transport with reduced cost and maintenance. It has proved to be very popular with musicians and attracts the attention of nonmusicians as well. The demand for an instrument such as this is widespread. Quality double basses are scarce and very expensive, and certainly beyond the reach of beginners, schools, part-time bands, and those musicians who might take it up as a second instrument. An instrument of this design can be easily purchased and cared for and makes an ideal community instrument. 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 9, 2020May 21, 2025 by Dale Phillips In Praise of the Plywood Bass In Praise of the Plywood Bass by Frederick C. Lyman, Jr. Originally published in American Lutherie #4, 1985 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 see also, Building a Plywood Bass by Richard Ennis It has been said that in order to produce fine wines, one must have had generations of alcoholics in one’s family. Only then can one approach the problem with the necessary patience, devotion, and understanding that will result in superior, classic vintages. Mere cleverness or mere industry will not suffice; one has to be locked into the project by the merciless and irreversible forces of destiny. Similarly, those who are involved in the production of bass sounds seem to require a kind of demonic motivation. They must be attuned, in a special way, to the pulsations of the subaudible register, the tone-feelings that seem to arise from the nether regions. From this unholy obsession with the depths of auditory sensibility comes a fundamental understanding which will forever elude the fiddlers and flautists. What we mean is that bassists have a deep need to make those sounds, and they will find a way to do it. It’s not a question of what is practical or expedient or wise: Bassists are driven. They have a pathological fascination with deep sounds; they are not well without them. 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.
