2023
AL#148 p.44
James Buckland
▪ Beautiful books about the pre-classical guitar, with lush and informative photography, are being published in Europe. Dont worry; they include English text for the benefit of us new-worlders. Mentions Mauro Giuliani, Gennaro Fabricatore, Joseph Pons, Johann Stauffer, Rene Lacote, Wappengitarre.
2022
AL#147 p.28
James Buckland
▪ Baroque guitars were 5-course instruments. That is, they had ten strings in five pairs. Then suddenly here comes the 19th century and guitars had six single strings. Yadda yadda, now its today and everything is normal. The real story is a lot more interesting than that and it actually involves a missing link; the 5-string guitar. Luthier, guitarist, and scholar Buckland lays it all out for us.
2019
AL#136 p.42
Massimo Maddaloni Lizabeth Jane Hella Giacomo Parimbelli
▪ From the time that the violin was invented, Cremona was the world center for the highest quality string instrument making, until it gradually became known for lower-quality mass production of fiddles. After its dark age, Cremona has more recently seen a renaissance of its lutherie heritage. This article looks at an unusual guitar made by a Cremonese luthier in the 1930s and sees echoes of the old masters in its design. Mentions Stradivari, Panormo, Fibonacci spiral, Archimedean spiral, golden ratio.
2018
AL#133 p.34
D. and F. Sinier de Ridder
▪ So you need to restore a guitar that is a third of a millienium old. Of course it was originally a Baroque guitar. A couple hundred years ago somebody chopped it into a Romantic-era 6-string guitar. No prob, you’ll just find a similar authentic instrument for a guide. Except there aren’t any. Spain was packed with them 300 years ago, but now not a single one is known to exist in original condition. Nonetheless, a full and successful restoration is made.
2017
AL#130 p.68
Sebastian Nunez Jan van Cappelle
▪ How did the old boys make those multi-stave sides on Baroque guitars?
2014
AL#119 p.28
D. and F. Sinier de Ridder
▪ A couple hundred years ago, this Stradivari guitar was not only old, it was old-fashioned. The owner had it modernized from a 5-course Baroque guitar to a 6-string Romantic guitar. That meant making a new neck, removing the rosette, and opening the body to make a lot of changes to the bracing and lining. Nowadays, those changes are not just outdated, they are anachronistic and kind of sacrilegious. Sinier and de Ridder got the job of making a new, original-style neck and returning the instrument to Baroque configuration.
2010
AL#102 p.58
Michael McCarten
▪ McCarten devises a style with characteristics of both the ‘paper rose’ and single layer soundhole rose, but with an aesthetic not typical of traditional work.
2010
AL#101 p.22
D. and F. Sinier de Ridder
▪ In the 19th century Baroque guitars were not treasured antiques, they were merely old-fashioned. One that was chopped into a “Spanish” guitar back is restored back to its original configuration by a Parisian lutherie team.
2009
AL#100 p.40 ALA5 p.68
Christian Steinert
▪ Building an early period Baroque era guitar replica believed to be the onetime property of Marie Antoinette.
2009
AL#100 p.41 ALA5 p.69
Kent LaRue
▪ Thoughts on the Marie Antoinette guitar from a balladeer for Colonial Williamsburg’ a provider of 18 century music for visitors to the colonial capital.
1996
AL#48 p.6 BRB4 p.378
Lawrence K. Brown
▪ Brown made the elaborate trim for 27 Baroque guitars, then spread the actual construction over a year and a half. All the details are included. He believes that too much patience stands in the way of making a living. This is an article with attitude. With 29 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1993
AL#33 p.30 BRB3 p.292
Geary Baese
▪ When a violin guy gets on the trail of an old guitar it comes out sounding an awful lot like a violin article. And when Stradivari is involved what else can one expect? Baese makes an educated guess about the materials and techniques that finished a famous guitar. With 8 photos.
1992
AL#32 p.69 BRB3 p.474
Dake Traphagen
▪ Making baroque guitar roses.
1992
AL#31 p.61 BRB3 p.474
Robert Lundberg
▪ Literature on making Baroque guitar roses.
1990
AL#21 p.15 BRB2 p.365
John Bromka
▪ It seems that some 17th century Elizabethan luthiers beat Novak to the punch with a multiple-scale fretboard.
1990
AL#21 p.36 BRB2 p.352
Robert Lundberg R.E. Brune
▪ Lundberg says that perhaps he’s tracked down Marie’s own luthier. Brune examines the evidence and decides he’s not prepared to jump on board. With 3 fine photos.
1989
AL#19 p.24 BRB2 p.250
R.E. Brune
▪ A guitar that may have belonged to Marie Antoinette is brought back to playing condition. This article gives a good picture of what goes into the restoration of a museum-quality instrument. With 13 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1989
AL#19 p.32 BRB2 p.251
Anonymous
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1988
AL#15 p.56 BRB2 p.100
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ Johnson offers a brief note about the Witten-Rawlins collection that was recently acquired by the Shrine to Music Museum. With photos and a museum checklist.
1987
AL#12 p.8 BRB1 p.448 read this article
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ Johnson examines a Stradivarius guitar from the Shrine to Music collection. With 8 photos.
1985
AL#4 p.53 BRB1 p.492 read this article
R.E. Brune
▪ The reviewer finds that this book about Renaissance and Baroque stringed instruments is “the most intense 178 pages of treatise on the art of lutherie. . . . Lots of math, and “exquisite” drawings of 33 instruments.