2023
AL#150 p.64
Maria Gonzalez-Leon
▪ George Smith was one of that rare breed: A self-starter guitar maker before the American Lutherie Boom. Heres three fond remembrances by people who were glad to have known him well.
2023
AL#150 p.24
Lee Herron
▪ A Dobro is good clean fun. And then maybe youll want to expand your lap-steel playing to include an acoustic Hawaiian guitar. Wouldnt it be great to have them both on your lap at the same time? Do it. Go on; you are a luthier, you can mash them up. A Dobro… a Weissenborn… a WeissenBro!
2023
AL#148 p.16
Paul Schmidt Steve Klein
▪ Steve Klein started his lutherie endeavors fifty-five years ago as a teenager in his parents house. Today hes collaborating with Steve Kauffman on dazzlingly decorative acoustic guitars, and continuing to make innovative ergonomic solidbodies in his own shop. Mentions Fibonacci, Carl Margolis, Frank Pollaro, Leonardo DaVinci Steve Kauffman, Larry Robinson, Bob Hergert, Joe Walsh.
2022
AL#147 p.69
John Jordan
▪ Your bottle of expensive shielding paint is getting old and gloppy. Save it with simple material available at the art supply store.
2023
AL#148 p.7
Steve Dickerson
▪ Some say we will play mandolins in heaven. Oh no? Go ahead; prove that we will not! Dickerson discusses this matter and reviews the evolution of his lutherie work.
2022
AL#146 p.26
John Calkin
▪ David Thormahlen started making many kinds of string instruments in the woodshop in college, and then made a strategic decision to focus his lutherie career on lever harps. It all worked out well, and he still makes guitars, mandolins, and bouzoukis in addition to the harps. He shows us some of his gluing fixtures which involve bicycle inner tubes; some stretched, some inflated.
2022
AL#146 p.50
Richard Bozung
▪ Here’s a new kind of autoharp that can change keys in seconds without retuning or switching chord bars. It’s easy to build, and sounds great because you play it with your ear pressed to the side.
2022
AL#145 p.32
Mark French
▪ Frequent author Mark French spends a lot of time in the physics lab and the workshop. But here he emerges, blinking, into the Arizona sunshine to visit a fabulous musical instrument museum. In fact, it’s The Musical Instrument Museum.
2022
AL#145 p.42
Sjaak Elmendorp
▪ Here’s the story of a big guy and his little balalaika. After rashly promising a friend that he would make a balalaika although he knew nothing about the distinctively triangular Russian instrument. We’ve all been there, right? Sjaak went on to explore and build the rare descant member of the family. Mentions balalaika player Jan Van der Hoogt.
2022
AL#145 p.46
C.F. Casey
▪ We sometimes hear of a luthier who enjoys the challenge of building an instrument from lumber-yard materials rather than from picked and approved tonewoods. but Casey goes one better when he makes two successful instruments from a single softwood two-by-four. And it had a knot in it, just for extra fun.
2021
AL#142 p.5
John Calkin
▪ Two luthiers trade cigar-box guitar builds.
2021
AL#142 p.22
Luis Colmenares
▪ The traditional Venezuelan cuatro is a small 4-string instrument with a distinctive flush fretboard and wooden tap plate covering the entire upper bout. See our GAL Instrument Plan #58. The author of this article is a working musician and a member of the Venezuelan diaspora. He has developed an electric version of the instrument for playing the evolving music of the Venezuelan culture.
2021
AL#142 p.55
Max Krimmel
▪ If you are luthier who does not remember the name of Max Krimmel, you might be under age fifty. Max was a pack leader in the early days of the American Lutherie Boom, before he went on to specialize in a few of his many other artistic interests. Anyway, why and article about marimbas? As Max says, “Think of it as deep background learning.”
2020
AL#139 p.48
Lee Herron
▪ Check it out: a standard cheeze grater is easily adaptable as a guitar tailpiece. But why would you even want to know that? Because you are crafting an electric lap steel guitar on a kitchen theme, obviously! This instrument uses pots, pans, flatware, everything but the kitchen table. Wait a minute…. Yes, it actually does use the kitchen table.
2020
AL#140 p.10
Paul Schmidt John Jordan
▪ John Jordan was a young guy happily repairing instruments and making guitars when he got a commission to make an experimental electric violin. It turned out well enough to take his career in a new direction. Read his story and see some of his diverse and beautiful work. Mentions Ervin Somogyi, Shelley Rosen, Rolland Colella, Dave Matthews, Boyd Tinsley, nyckelharpa, D’Angelico, D’Aquisto, Neyveli S. Radhakrishna, Miri Ben Ari.
2019
AL#137 p.69
john Calkin
▪ How come my Flying Vee uke did not sound great? Probly not enough air in it.
2019
AL#137 p.66
Juan Oscar Azaret
▪ This new book is a thoroughly illustrated step-by-step method for making classical guitars, using mostly inexpensive small power tools. It also takes a luthier’s look at a dozen different instruments by well-known hand-makers. Yes, it is only in Spanish. But even if you do not read Spanish, our reviewer says you will probably still get a lot out of it. The author of the book, Luis Alberto Paredes Rodriguez, is a long-time Guild member, a GAL Convention presenter, and an AL author. He takes a close look at twelve different guitar designs, by Voboam; Stradivari; Grobert; Lacote; Panormo; Torres; Esteso; Hauser; Ramírez; Fleta; Schneider/Kasha; Romanillos; and Smallman. He goes so far as to build one of each.
2019
AL#136 p.36
Mike Gluyas Shaun Newman
▪ Although he had fallen in love with the classical guitar the first time he heard one as a teenager, Shaun Newman was already well along in a career as a language teacher when he first tried to make one. He was lucky enough to find a mentor in his corner of England, and he has been making and restoring an impressive variety of fine instruments for the last thirty years.
2018
AL#134 p.4
Monica Esparza
▪ There was a party in Spain when luthier, scholar, teacher, and author Jose Romanillos turned 85. Luthiers, musicians, dignitaries gathered to honor him. We get a close-up look through the eyes of his longtime admirer and student Monica Esparza.
2018
AL#134 p.9
Monica Esparza Josep Melo Stefano Grondona Antigoni Goni
▪ Two guitarists and a luthier tell their stories of working with Romanillos.
2017
AL#132 p.68
Jose Cano
▪ What’s the deal with those little guitar-like instruments they play in the Veracruz region of Mexico?
2017
AL#130 p.63 read this article
R.M. Mottola
▪ Kyvelos was a world-respected maker of middle Eastern ouds. See his detailed step-by-step article on oud construction in American Lutherie #94 and American Lutherie #95.
2017
AL#131 p.44
Paul Ruppa
▪ Without the mandolin orchestra fad of the early 20th-century, we might not see Gibson mandolins today except in museums. The story of the pop-music sensation that triggered that fad is even more curious and unlikely than we have previouosly known. Get the straight poop here. Includes extensive historical references and illustrations.
2017
AL#129 p.64
John Calkin
▪ Calkin’s manifesto of outlaw lutherie. He says real lutherie can be fun, spontanious, quick, and cheap. Relax. It’s good for you.
2016
AL#128 p.68
G.D. Armstrong
▪ Graham McDonald has written books about mandolin-family instrument construction as well as speaking at GAL Conventions and writing for AL. Now he has written a book about mandolin history, and long-time GAL member GD Armstrong likes it. John Calkin gives a good review to a recent addition to Robbie O’Brien’s large and deep online lutherie instruction catalog. This one focuses on Kent Carlos Everett’s fret work techniques.
2017
AL#129 p.3
Leo Bidne
▪ An electric guitar by pioneering designer Doc Kauffman uses a speaker cone in place of a resophonic cone.
2009
AL#98 p.57 read this article
Ahanali Jahandideh Mitra Jahandideh Hadi Abbaszadeh Samad Jahandideh
▪ The Kamanche is a Persian bowed instrument with a skin head. The authors use a ratio of the value of phi to define its size, a trick violin makers have used for a long time. With one photo and 4 drawings.
2009
AL#98 p.44
Thomas Johnson
▪ The instruments are the igil and the morin khuur. They may figure prominently on the top of the pops in Tuva, but we bet you’ve never heard of them. Obscure instruments are fun and exotic, just like foreign places (where the heck is Tuva, anyway?). Both are fretless and played with a bow. One is covered in goat or fish skin and one is not. Either would have looked right in place in “Conan the Barbarian”. That’s a compliment, not a slight. Full scale plans are available as GAL plan #60. With 4 photos and a mini-plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2008
AL#96 p.34 read this article
Luis Alberto Paredes Rodriguez Manuel Bernal Martinez
▪ The Andean bandola (isn’t that cool to say? Makes you want to have one) looks like a big 6-course flattop mandolin, though it stems just as much from the guitar. Bandola development went into over drive during the 1960s and continues today. In fact, the authors have developed a bandola family. One version owes a lot to the ever-influential Greg Smallman. With 25 photos, a string gauge chart, and a tuning chart. Includes reduced image of GAL Instrument Plan #59.
2008
AL#96 p.36
Luis Alberto Paredes Rodriguez
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2009
AL#97 p.42
John Calkin Graham McDonald
▪ Aussie McDonald has built many sorts of instruments, though he has come to specialize in mandolins and bouzoukis and has written a pair of books about their construction. He has also contributed a number of articles to American Lutherie over the years. It becomes apparent that like is different in Australia. We should all take a field trip there. With 8 photos.
2008
AL#95 p.18 read this article
R.M. Mottola Peter Kyvelos
▪ The oud is the Arabic ancestor of the lute, as well as being a popular contemporary instrument in many parts of the world. Part One of this two-part series was printed in AL#94. This part concerns the construction of the soundboard and neck of the instrument. With 33 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2008
AL#94 p.48
Aquiles Torres
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2008
AL#94 p.8 read this article
R.M. Mottola Peter Kyvelos
▪ The oud, of course, is the Arabic ancestor of the lute, as well as being a popular contemporary instrument in many parts of the world. Kyvelos has been building them since 1970. The story offers a bit of background on the oud, a few of its recent historical builders, and Kyvelos himself, though most emphasis is placed upon the construction of the instrument. This part mostly concerns the construction of the bowl of the instrument. With 33 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2008
AL#94 p.42
Aquiles Torres
▪ This instrument is a small 4-string guitar with 14 frets clear of the body and no frets over the body, a flush fretboard, and a large veneer tap plate. Note: the Cuatro built for the article has 17 frets clear of the body. The story includes 38 photos and a shrunken version of GAL Plan #58.
2007
AL#92 p.64 read this article
Barbara Goldowsky
▪ Mr. Shirazi’s book give clear and precise direction for building all the parts of this Persian instruments, as well as information about building five different body types. This is perhaps the only AL book review that includes a nice interview with the author. With 1 photo.
2007
AL#92 p.35 read this article
Javad Naini
▪ The santur is the Persian version of the hammered dulcimer, often tuned to scales that would make it unplayable by Western musicians. With 9 photos and a 2-page version of GAL Plan #56.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#92 p.36
Javad Naini
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2007
AL#90 p.40
Anamaria Paredes Garcia R.M. Mottola
▪ Cross a 12-string flattop with a classical guitar and you get the Colombian tiple, only the tiple has four courses of three steel strings. Inside, though, it’s a classical. Follow the construction of the instrument in the shop of Alberto Paredes in this photo tour. With 41 photos. Sr. Paredes authored GAL Plan #51, Colombian Tiple. See AL #82.
2007
AL#89 p.34 read this article
C.F. Casey
▪ The requinto is a small classical guitar tuned a forth higher than standard tuning, and is the lead instrument in a form called Trio Romantico. Casey discusses the history of the instrument and offers a plan of one particular example. With 7 photos and a 2-page version of GAL Plan #54.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2007
AL#89 p.36
C.F. Casey
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2006
AL#88 p.16 read this article
Alain Bieber
▪ The lyre guitar goes back centuries. Lyre instruments in general go back millennia. The author couldn’t resist resurrecting the harp guitar, bringing it up to current standards. His research covers a wide look at art history as well a guitar history. Fascinating! With 14 photos and 2 drawings.
2006
AL#88 p.48
C.F. Casey Jose Zamora
▪ Reyes-Zamora is a proud Puerto Rican who made it his business to rescue portions of the country’s history from oblivion. He has specialized in resuscitating the Puerto Rican tiple, an instrument unlike others of the same name. With 6 photos.
2006
AL#86 p.54
C.F. Casey
▪ Luthiers probably believe that quality instruments made in the Western Hemisphere all come from North America because that’s all they hear about. Not so! The Puerto Rican lutherie scene may be small but the luthiers are just as intense about their craft as American and Canadian builders. So what’s a Puerto Rican tiple, anyway? You better read this to find out. Just don’t confuse it with the Martin or Colombian tiple—Puerto Rican luthiers have their pride, too! With 5 photos.
2006
AL#85 p.8
Graham McDonald
▪ McDonald’s forte has become the oversized mandolin called the Irish Bouzouki. Here he unloads a ton of information about building them with flattops and carved tops with several forms of neck attachment and scale lengths, including pin bridge and tailpiece models. Zowie! With 25 photos and 5 drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2005
AL#83 p.61 BRB7 p.501
David Golber
▪ Restoring old decorated Hardanger fiddle pegs. You need to preserve the old carved button, so this method involves grafting it to a new shaft.
2005
AL#83 p.6
Chris Burt
▪ Do you own or have access to archtop instruments that you’d like to duplicate? Ever wonder why they sound so good, or why they don’t? Use this article to map out the plate thicknesses, arch heights, and neck angles. Measure everything you can get your hands on. Become an expert. Tell your friends how they’re going wrong. Be the hero of your lutherie group.With 6 photos.
2005
AL#83 p.52 BRB7 p.532 read this article
C.F. Casey
▪ The reviewer notes that this book is more about harp construction theory than about actual construction techniques, but decides that that is where the emphasis should be. He notes that the section of string length vs. string tension is especially useful, and that the book as a whole should have an important place on any harp makers’ reference shelf.
2005
AL#82 p.54 read this article
Bruce Calder
▪ Take a 2-page, 6-photo journey to a lutherie shop around the world. The ouds and other instruments are vastly different from American Normal and their decoration is almost beyond description.
2005
AL#82 p.6 BRB7 p.320
Fred Carlson
▪ Carlson makes some of the world’s coolest, most graceful, and weirdest stringed instruments. Focusing on a harp guitar he calls the Flying Dream he discusses at length how he designs and builds his creations. There is lots of detailed info here that will help you build the instruments you see in your mind, as opposed to the ones for which you can already buy a blueprint. Truly inspirational. With 42 photos and 10 drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
2005
AL#82 p.34 BRB7 p.341
Luis Alberto Paredes Rodriguez
▪ Tracking the evolution of Spanish-based South American instruments can be complicated. Fortunately luthiers don’t have to care about it since we live in the present, or at least many of us try to. The Colombian tiple is a four course, 12-string instrument a bit smaller than a classical guitar, and not like the Martin tiple at all. The heart of this article is the 2 page version of GAL plan #51. The text dabbles with instrument history and offers a string gauge chart as well as a family tree of the tiple, bandola, and guitar. The most intriguing text involves the author’s method in compensating the nut when different gauges of strings are used in the same course. With 1 photo.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2005
AL#82 p.36 BRB7 p.343
Luis Alberto Paredes Rodriguez
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2005
AL#81 p.58 BRB7 p.527 read this article
C.F. Casey
▪ The reviewer enjoyed this Spanish-only book about the Puerto Rican tiple, which includes the instrument’s history, how to build it, and how to play it.
2004
AL#80 p.39 BRB7 p.267
Alain Bieber
▪
2004
AL#80 p.58 BRB7 p.525 read this article
John Calkin
▪ The reviewer found this book about several ways of constructing the Irish bouzouki to be up-to-date, useful, and generally well written, though the huge number of typos bothered him.
2004
AL#80 p.59 BRB7 p.526 read this article
Bryan Johanson
▪ The reviewer gushes about the detail and quality of research that went into the book, as well as the authors’ enthusiasm for their subjects.
2004
AL#80 p.63 BRB7 p.268
Howard Bryan
▪ Evaluating an old Clark harp, SN 2102, with light wear.
2004
AL#77 p.64 read this article
Marc Connelly
▪ The setar is a “long-necked, fretted, 3-or 4-stringed instrument with a gourd-shaped soundbox,” (reviewer’s description). The reviewer loves this book about how to construct the setar, admires it for its detail and concision, and enjoys the fact that it is printed in both English and Persian script (in 2 sections, not both at once).
2004
AL#78 p.46 BRB7 p.200
John Calkin Jeffrey Yong
▪ Yong hails from Malaysia, a country not often associated with fine lutherie. Nevertheless, he makes a lot of instruments that look very contemporary and tasty, and he has access to varieties of wood that would make many of us very envious. With 10 photos.
2004
AL#77 p.8 BRB7 p.142
Jonathon Peterson Sue Mooers Ray Mooers
▪ This is a wonderful story of how a couple began a basement lutherie business and ended up employing 36 people in the creation of fine harps and hammered dulcimers. Everybody in the lutherie trades should be this nice and interesting (and the wonder of it is that so many are!). With 37 photos, including a bunch of the harp assembly shop.
2004
AL#77 p.30 BRB7 p.162
Wilfried Ulrich
▪ Whether the hurdy-gurdy is a fascination or an abomination is up to each listener, but it has to be built right to be given a fair shot. Ulrich uses historical examples as a basis for his instruments, then modifies them to suit contemporary players. This article contains some hurdy-history, photos of a museum hurdy, and a magazine-size version of GAL Plan #49. Also included are photos and drawings of Ulrich’s hurdy-gurdy, a chart of dimensions for laying out the key box, and a series of drawings to help explain the inner workings of the beast. You, too, can enjoy a bit of history in all its hurdy-glory.
2004
AL#77 p.36 BRB7 p.168
Wilfried Ulrich
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2003
AL#75 p.42 BRB7 p.76
Jonathon Peterson Dake Traphagen
▪ For those who really make an impact in lutherie complete immersion in the craft is the rule, not the exception. Long days, few breaks, and a lot of work. Traphagan is a good example. Floating to the top of the heap isn’t a simple matter. Still, one can get there while maintaining a sense of humor and a continuing appreciation for the mysteries of the craft, and Traphagan is also a good example of that, too. A really good interview with 10 photos and three diagrams of guitar tops.
2003
AL#74 p.40 BRB7 p.66 read this article
Andy DePaule Do Viet Dung
▪ A common, if unspoken, theme that runs through AL is how different humans are around the world even though they may share the same work or obsessions. Vietnamese luthier Dung is a prime example. Things are different over there. May we keep sharing, but may we all remain different! With 9 photos.
2003
AL#74 p.43 BRB7 p.69 read this article
Andy DePaule
▪ A short discussion that includes the Dan ty ba, Dan guyet, Dan bau, Dan tran, and Dan tam thap luc. With 5 photos.
2002
AL#72 p.24 BRB6 p.404
Ken Goodwin Edward Victor Dick
▪ A Canadian now living in Denver, Dick has a long and varied career as a builder, repairman, and teacher. He builds a wide array of instruments, including some fascinating sound sculptures. The 13 photos illustrate his versatility as a builder and artist.
2002
AL#71 p.44 BRB6 p.507
John Calkin
▪ Irish ‘zooks are cool, though they don’t much resemble bouzoukis and very few of them come from Ireland. The author finds the kit to be easily assembled and a bargain. Though the nontraditional materials may turn off some, the instrument is playable and sounds decent. With 13 photos.
2002
AL#69 p.48 BRB6 p.500 read this article
John Calkin
▪ The author discovers that this kit provides a harp fit for a professional musician. The finished harp is a powerful instrument with a wide range, and though the kit is pricey it is easy to build. The process of lace finishing is described in detail. With 17 photos.
2001
AL#67 p.6 BRB6 p.222
Scott Hackleman
▪ Hackleman spent nearly a year in India learning one shop’s traditional ways of making sitars. The low state of technology in India, and the amazing work they do with so few tools, make this a fascinating read no matter what your interest in ethnic instruments. With 36 photos and 11 drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2001
AL#66 p.50 BRB6 p.496 read this article
John Calkin
▪ Calkin barely knew what a hurdy-gurdy was when he began this kit, and afterwards he still wasn’t too sure. Not that it was the kit’s fault. The hurdy-gurdy (a mechanical fiddle) has nearly vanished from the musical scene and few details are to be found outside of museum blueprints. The kit turned out pretty good, though it makes no attempt at historical accuracy. Fun stuff, with 15 photos.
2000
AL#64 p.38 BRB6 p.160
Craig Pierpont
▪ American Lutherie #61 offered a plan and description of the Clark Irish harp.Here harp maker Pierpont gives a more technical explanation of the Clark’s anatomy and explains why it is a good starting point for any prospective harp builder. With 9 photos and a set of diagrams.
2000
AL#64 p.44 BRB6 p.136
R.M. Mottola
▪ The author’s invention is an attempt to create the tone of the upright bass in a more portable instrument. The Bassola is a carved-plate instrument very much like a huge F-model mandolin, though not as large as a bass mandolin. It utilizes standard bass guitar strings and “fits in any car.” With 9 photos.
2000
AL#61 p.20 BRB6 p.12
Jonathon Peterson David Rivinus
▪ This luthier has redesigned the viola into a beast he calls the Pellegrina. Its ergonomic design can potentially extend the working life of violists while supplying the tone they need for the most exacting jobs. The price, however, is a way-cool new look for the instrument. Way-cool for some, at least. With 12 photos and 3 drawings of different viola bridges.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
2000
AL#61 p.34 BRB6 p.22
David Riggs
▪ The Celtic harp has become something of a cult object. The author offers his plans as a place to begin creation and not as an idea frozen in stone. There are 7 photos of construction details, along with some suggestions of how to proceed. The plans are a shrunken version of GAL full-size blueprint #45.
2000
AL#61 p.37 BRB6 p.25
David Riggs
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
2000
AL#61 p.46 read this article
Janos Pap
▪ The cymbalom is the mother of hammered dulcimers. It may also be the mother of the piano. It’s also a complex animal to build, though building it isn’t the focus here. What can be learned by rolling an instrument into an acoustics laboratory? We’re still not sure. With 17 charts, three drawings, and a photo of the beast in question.
1999
AL#60 p.6 BRB5 p.422
Fred Carlson Harry Fleishman William Eaton Saul Koll
▪ The market for flattop guitars probably isn’t evolving away from tried and true designs at all, but individual luthiers are working on instruments that would baffle (and hopefully intrigue) Orville and old C.F. These four groundbreaking guitarmakers got together to discuss their work in front of an audience at the 1998 GAL convention, and if their work and philosophies don’t show you anything you must be hopelessly lost in the nostalgic past. This article is a condensed version of that discussion. With 24 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1999
AL#60 p.28 BRB5 p.420
John Calkin Bob Gernandt
▪ This North Carolina luthier likes to use native timber in the wide variety of instruments he builds. His particular interest is the Irish bouzouki and cittern.
1999
AL#60 p.30 BRB5 p.412
Joseph Curtin
▪ Evia is Curtin’s shorthand for Experimental Viola, a design he has created in wood and which he hopes to transfer into graphite and foam. Perhaps the time for change is finally upon us. Many think they can see the end of first-quality tonewood, and if we’re going to alter a 500-year-old tradition by changing wood species, why not change all the way and leave wood behind? Curtin (a widely respected creator of bowed instruments) seems certain that synthetic instruments of tonal excellence are less than a decade away. With 19 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1999
AL#58 p.55 BRB5 p.480 read this article
David Riggs
▪ The reviewer likes this book about building assorted folk and flea market instruments, though he doesn’t expect serious luthiers to have much use for it. Not unless they like to kick back with a tin can banjo, that is. A fun book for unserious moments.
1999
AL#57 p.63 BRB5 p.480 read this article
John Calkin
▪ The reviewer finds that this book will guide any luthier through the construction of this instrument that is sort of a simple guitar from Yugoslavia.
1998
AL#56 p.6 BRB5 p.248
Lawrence Smart
▪ The demands of contemporary players has forced many changes in the mandolin family since the fabled Loar family of Gibsons was created in the 1920s. Smart has built mandolins, mandolas, and mandocellos to work together as an ensemble as well as separately, and here he discusses the differences that might be desirable in the family as the setting is changed, as well as the changes that players have asked for in his instruments. Accompanied by charts of Smart’s instrument specs as well as those of Gibson. With 5 photos and 5 drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1998
AL#55 p.65 read this article
John Calkin
▪ The reviewer enjoyed this video. It is iconoclastic and hip, and should help anyone keep their squeezebox wheezing healthily. Instruction should always be this fun.
1998
AL#53 p.52 BRB5 p.486
John Calkin
▪ A non-fiddle maker reviews 10 of the less expensive books about building violins. Are they useful? Interesting? Deadly dull? Worth the bread? There are far more expensive books in this category, but these are the ones most likely to be encountered by the beginner. This will give you a leg up before you order.
1998
AL#54 p.26 BRB5 p.198
Graham McDonald
▪ Advice about building an Irish instrument with a Greek name from an Australian in an American magazine. You could get jet lag just thinking about it. McDonald covers the construction of the entire instrument (his neck joint is really slick) but the focal point is his top construction. He steams thick flat plates in the oven and bends them into an arch until they set. After joining there is a minimum of carving yet to be done. All this is in the name of saving time and timber. With 9 photos and a pair of drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1997
AL#51 p.46 BRB5 p.471
John Calkin
▪ The reviewer likes this book about instrument creation. The book deals lightly with the physics of music and lightly with the concept of craft. Hopkin’s real message is that musical instruments are everywhere on the planet, not just in the guitar shop, and he happily guides the reader through the creation of dozens of them. Deals with wind and percussion instruments more than with strings, but the string section is useful.
1997
AL#49 p.28 BRB5 p.18
Tim Olsen Fred Carlson
▪ Carlson grew up on a New England commune and never outgrew the philosophy of sharing. He would rather let his uniqueness bloom than give in to commercial considerations. You’ll be glad you met him here. With 16 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1996
AL#48 p.5 BRB4 p.205
Kerry Char
▪ Char sends several photos of a unique resophonic mando-cello he made for Gregg Miner.
1996
AL#47 p.20 BRB4 p.350
Carol Ventura
▪ When these Guatemalans decide to build an instrument they begin by hacking a tree out of the jungle. Read this and you may never bad-mouth your suppliers or instruction books again. With 32 step-by-step photos of the birth of a guitarria.
1996
AL#48 p.3 BRB4 p.297
George Diamesis
▪ Diamesis writes about the lutherie scene in Greece, and sends 2 photos of ethnic instruments he and his students have built.
1996
AL#45 p.59 BRB4 p.469
Robert Lundberg
▪ This is a thorough and glowing review of an important book, by a reviewer who is best known for his work in early instruments.
1996
AL#45 p.4 BRB4 p.258
Debbie Suran
▪ On the trail of S. American luthiers, strange instruments, and unusual wood varieties, in a land where travel is difficult but the people are friendly. Ask your tonewood supplier to start stocking armadillo shells. With 24 photos.
1995
AL#42 p.57 BRB4 p.481
Robert Lundberg
▪ The reviewer finds that although the abstracts are clear and well written, the quality and usefulness of the abstracted material is not judged. The unwary may be sent on a long search for information of little, or dangerous, use.
1995
AL#42 p.26 BRB4 p.160
John Koster
▪ Koster explains what you can hope to gain by examining museum instruments, how to approach a museum, and what to do when you get there. With 21 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#41 p.10 BRB4 p.126
Graham Caldersmith
▪ Caldersmith is working to expand the voice range of guitar ensembles, both classical and steel string. With 4 photos and frequency response graphs. The first installment of Caldersmith’s work with a classical guitar family came way back in AL#18.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1995
AL#41 p.40 BRB4 p.144
Ronald Louis Fernandez
▪ It’s untrue that all the old builders were stodgy old putzes locked into a cold tradition. Some of their guitars were pretty far out. With 21 photos.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1994
AL#39 p.32 BRB4 p.64
Jorge Gonzalez
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1994
AL#39 p.30 BRB4 p.62
Jorge Gonzalez
▪ Outwardly, the tiple resembles a biggish ukulele with 10 strings arranged in four courses. Tuning arrangements vary with geography. In America the Martin tiple is the best known.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1994
AL#38 p.34 BRB4 p.42
Francis Kosheleff
▪ A typical bandura looks like a melted acoustic guitar with about a hundred extra strings spread across the body. OK, not that many. A lot, though. Kosheleff knows these Russians well.
1993
AL#36 p.26 BRB3 p.410 read this article
David Golber
▪ The chief difference between the Hardanger and a normal violin is its use of sympathetic strings, though other differences abound. Ornate decoration is also usual. Golber offers a good description of a typical Hardanger and how to set it up.With 9 photos and a number of drawings.
1993
AL#35 p.21 BRB3 p.392
Paul Hostetter
▪ Using these drawings and text you can make your own kabosy in a few days. A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1993
AL#35 p.61
Cyndy Burton
▪ The Folk Harp Journal is a good source of harp or Celtic harp info.
1993
AL#35 p.62 BRB3 p.502 read this article
Ray Mooers Betty Truitt
▪ Robinson was a prime mover in the resurgence of the folk harp.
1993
AL#35 p.16 BRB3 p.386 read this article
Paul Hostetter
▪ The kabosy is a folk instrument from Madagascar. It comes in several body shapes, but always has a neck with the same layout of staggered frets, many of which don’t completely cross the fingerboard. It’s easy to build and fun to play once your eyes stop being baffled by the weird frets.
1993
AL#33 p.46 BRB3 p.310 read this article
David Golber
▪ If stock tuners stick up too far from the top of your headstock you can fix them, but it requires a machinist’s lathe.
1992
AL#31 p.55 BRB3 p.237 read this article
John Bromka
▪ Bromka examines a French member of the lap dulcimer family. With 2 photos.
1991
AL#27 p.26 BRB3 p.100 read this article
James Flynn
▪ This instrument is a unique and graceful-looking Russian folk psaltery, a sophisticated version of the lap harp grade schoolers play by sliding numbered sheet music under the strings.
1991
AL#27 p.32 BRB3 p.106
James Flynn
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1991
AL#27 p.34 BRB3 p.108 read this article
Ronald Louis Fernandez
▪ This instrument is a lovely looking cittern, sort of a big mandolin with 12 strings. The traditional tuners are unique, compact, and distinctly ungraceful, but they allow—indeed, encourage—the use of a wonderfully distinctive headstock. With 16 photos.
1991
AL#26 p.14 BRB3 p.46
Dan Erlewine Herb David
▪ It’s tough to be in business and stay successful. It’s really tough to stay in business and keep having fun, too. Herb David tells how he runs his business, builds a few instruments, stays in shape, has fun. Here’s the last line of his personal prayer: “Deliver me from temptation but keep me in touch.” You gotta love the guy. Mentions Sam Varjebedian and Terry Horvath.
1990
AL#23 p.54 BRB2 p.420
Gabriel Petric
▪ AL #23 takes its second glimpse at instrument making in a strange land and finds that the concerns of luthiers are the same the world over. With 7 photos.
1990
AL#23 p.20 BRB2 p.398
Jonathon Peterson George A. Smith
▪ Smith is a veteran builder of many instruments who prefers to specialize in guitars and harpsichords.
1990
AL#23 p.28 BRB2 p.411
James Hillier
▪ The kibangala is a seven string, four-course instrument carved from solid wood that utilizes a skin head. The plan is a shrunken version of our full-scale Plan #28.
1990
AL#23 p.14 BRB2 p.406
Jonathon Peterson
▪ Doan describes his collection of oddball zithers.
1989
AL#20 p.59 BRB2 p.483
Ronald Louis Fernandez
▪ Obtaining a Portuguese Guitarra and viola, the instruments of fado and Portuguese folk music.
1990
AL#21 p.44 BRB2 p.262
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ A number of non-mandolins were considered to be intrinsic parts of the mandolin orchestras. This installment of the series looks at all the boys in the band (and some girls, too). With 16 photos and a few drawings.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1989
AL#19 p.59 BRB2 p.479
Francis Kosheleff
▪ Got a movable bridge instrument with ladder-style bracing? Want to try a bridge design that might offer an improvement in tone? Kosheleff has an idea you should look at.
1989
AL#20 p.56 read this article
Francis Kosheleff
▪ The reviewer finds this little Canadian magazine put out by a lutherie school to be “interesting but not too deep.”
1989
AL#19 p.34 BRB2 p.262
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ Mandolin mania in America was a social phenomenon that was inflated to the max by the Gibson Company advertising propaganda. This portion of the series details the rise of the mandolin orchestras and mandolin clubs. With 9 photos and a Gibson cartoon. Part Two and Part Three follow in AL#20 and AL#21.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1989
AL#18 p.20 BRB2 p.222
Graham Caldersmith
▪ Caldersmith and the Canberra Guitar Ensemble work toward developing a series of classical guitars to match the range of the violin family.
1989
AL#18 p.36 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman not only comes up with a new instrument, but also writes the article as a lesson in problem solving as he worked toward an uncertain goal.
1988
AL#16 p.55 BRB2 p.493
Tim Olsen
▪ It’s hard to tell when the reviewer is being enthusiastic or facetious, but I think he likes this cassette collection of odd musical noises (noisy musical oddities?).
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.
1988
AL#15 p.69 BRB2 p.492
Tim Olsen
▪ The Shrine to Music Museum holds some of the world’s most important collections of musical instruments. This inexpensive volume is not only a great souvenir to those who have visited the museum, but a valuable research resource.
1988
AL#13 p.57 BRB2 p.490
Tim Olsen
▪ Olsen admits to an interest in odd musical noises. This cassette gets his approval as “interesting,” and not a lot more.
1987
AL#12 p.18 BRB1 p.452 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Robison offers description, anecdotes, 4 photos, and a drawing of an instrument that might be crudely described as a Japanese 3-string banjo. The plans are a shrunken version of our full-scale Plan #16.
1987
AL#12 p.19 BRB1 p.453
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1987
AL#12 p.50 read this article
George Manno
▪ Manno examines the Zeta JV-205 and the EV-5 Barrett electric violins and finds them exceptional. High marks go to both, but especially to the Zeta.
1987
AL#11 p.24 BRB1 p.432
Dave Schneider
▪ Don’t take that repair job without this article! One question remains unanswered: why does sanding the finish of a sitar release such a strong smell of tobacco?
1987
AL#10 p.44 BRB1 p.398
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ This is a checklist of what to look for when you get there. Also, a reason to go.
1987
AL#11 p.8
Steve Klein
▪ The following four articles demonstrate how innovation and individual flair can lead to instruments that don’t resemble the rest of the pack.
1987
AL#11 p.10 BRB1 p.419 read this article
Susan Norris
▪ Norris offers no details about her asymmetric 10-string fiddle, but the one good photo adds much to a delightful little article.
1987
AL#9 p.56 BRB1 p.500 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ The reviewer is enthusiastic about the mind-opening possibilities of this booklet/cassette combination.
1987
AL#10 p.30 BRB1 p.382 read this article
Nasser Shirazi
▪ The tar (or Persian banjo) is a classical Iranian instrument, the body of which is carved from a mulberry log and covered in lambskin. The neck traditionally incorporates rams horn and camel bone. Exotic, fascinating, wonderfully politically incorrect. Some alternate materials are listed for those who can’t wait for their camel to die. With 6 photos, 2 sketches, and a scaled down version of GAL Plan #14.
1987
AL#10 p.32 BRB1 p.385
Nasser Shirazi
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1986
AL#8 p.5
David Golber
▪ Golber adds information to the Shirazi article about the Persian kamanche (AL#4). Specifically, what kind of skin is traditionally used for the soundboard of the instrument.
1986
AL#8 p.7 read this article
Loretta Kelley
▪ Kelley adds to the information fund concerning the Hardanger fiddle (see AL#7).
1986
AL#7 p.24
E.M. Peters
▪ A brief description of a typical Norwegian fiddle accompanies Peters’ plans for the same, along with a photo of two Hardangers and a drawing of useful ornamentations. The plans are a reduced version of our full-scale Plan #11. Hardangers utilize a set of sympathetic strings and may be tuned in over twenty ways.
1986
AL#7 p.25
E.M. Peters
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1986
AL#5 p.53 BRB1 p.495 read this article
Christopher Allworth
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be “important and useful” to builders who wish to pursue the early viols.
1986
AL#6 p.51
Bill Hultgren
▪ Hultgren mentions a source for elephant ivory, though he finds its use unethical. He also warns that anthrax can be contracted from working with infected ivory, and that most American doctors will not recognize its symptoms. St. Croix instrument kits get a nod of approval.
1986
AL#5 p.32 BRB1 p.180 read this article
Ernest Nussbaum
▪ Nussbaum describes his “travel cello,” a takedown frame-body/neck which uses a transducer to produce full sound.
1986
AL#5 p.38 BRB1 p.186 read this article
Alexander I. Eppler
▪ Eppler describes the most sophisticated member of the hammered dulcimer family, but offers no construction information.
1985
AL#4 p.50
Bill Hultgren
▪ Hultgren offers quick advice about obtaining instrument kits and why one should use them, and mentions two sources of used instruments.
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.
1985
AL#4 p.27 BRB1 p.126 read this article
Nasser Shirazi
▪ Shirazi offers a history of the Persian bowed instrument as well as plans and construction advice. The kamanche is a four-stringed neck attached to a gourd. The plans are a reduced version of our full-scale Plan #9.
1985
AL#4 p.28 BRB1 p.131
Nasser Shirazi
▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.
1985
AL#3 p.50 BRB1 p.490 read this article
Fred Carlson
▪ The reviewer finds the newsletter “thin”, but is enthusiastic about its future.
1985
AL#2 p.46 read this article
Topher Gayle
▪ A jig for holding a natural-skin head at tension while it is being glued to a drum.
1985
AL#1 p.53
Carl McFarland
▪ McFarland drilled up through the face of a finished tamburah when drilling holes for string anchors in the tail area of the sides.
1985
AL#2 p.3 read this article
Tony Pizzo
▪ Where to get gourds and gourd seeds for building ethnic instruments.
1983
DS#246 BRB2 p.455
Bruce Day
▪ Tuning pins on antique zithers are different and larger than modern steel pins. Fortunately they are not hard to make. Here’s how, including 2 drawings.
1982
DS#230 BRB2 p.462
Rich Westerman
▪ Westerman was among the first to produce quantities of Irish bouzoukis, or citterns. Here he offers an explanation of his design, as well as a blueprint for the instrument. The plans are available as GAL Instrument Plan #3.
1981
GALQ Vol.9#3 p.20 BRB2 p.458
Hardy B. Menagh
▪ The cobza is an obsolete, nearly-neckless lute from Romania. The author capitulates his efforts to track one down while touring the cobza’s homeland. With 3 photos.
1981
DS#195 BRB2 p.258
John Taye
▪ There must certainly be more than one way to make a lyre, especially since the instrument was never standardized. Taye uses a series of drawings, a blueprint, and a photo to help explain how he chose his version and how he builds them.
1980
DS#156 BRB2 p.284
R.L. Robinson
▪ Robinson was a champion of the folk harps long before the current Celtic music craze. He built a lot of harps, and had some strong opinions about how it should be done. With a photo and 14 drawings.
1980
DS#134 BRB2 p.298
Alan Carruth
▪ There’s nothing like a hurdy-gurdy to help you win the hearts of the damsels at a Renaissance fair. Carruth offers helpful advice about making one that even plays music! Turn that crank and relive the Middle Ages! With 5 drawings.
1979
DS#115 BRB1 p.94
Thom Lipiczky
▪ Sitars are wonderful to look at, strange to hold, lovely to listen to, and peculiar to repair and set up.These days, when vintage instrument values make repair a high-risk endeavor, Lipiczky’s offbeat cures for broken gourds and loose frets are a breath of fresh air. Sitar repair has no doubt advanced since 1979, but we’ll have to take what we can get as far as instruction is concerned. The Indian words make for exotic reading, and the chart of string gauges may save your bacon one strange day.
1975
GALNL Vol.3#2 p.1 BRB2 p.61
H.E. Huttig
▪ Hutting happens across Manuel Davila in Guatemala City, who builds guitars that are completely original and do not follow tradition in construction and decoration.