ABOUT

SOME OF MY STORY
” A guitar is an outwardly simple device to the uninitiated, but its beauty and soul are in the quality of the materials used and the attention the builder gives to nuance and detail…​

As a founding member of the Gibson Guitar Company my great great grandfather, Thaddeus McHugh was a tenor, innovator, and master luthier who in 1921 helped changed the way we play guitars today. His patented designs of the truss rod and adjustable bridge made guitars more playable, longer lasting and these innovations carry on today. This idea that a product should perform well and bring years of service and joy was passed on through generations of wood workers and guitar players in my family.

As a teenager I myself fell in love with the guitar and for years I eagerly absorbed as much of it as possible. Practicing and studying continuously to hone these skills. Through the years I performed locally and regionally, offered private lessons all the while continuing to learn. As a necessity I educated myself to repair, build and maintain my guitars.

​Having grown up with generations of woodworkers, luthiers and craftsmen I continued these traditions as well. Honing these skills throughout my adult life the guitar was always my constant companion. As time went on my interests diverged from performing to actually creating the instrument. After more than 25 years my passion continues. Today I build handcrafted classical guitars for the discerning enthusiast.

A guitar is an outwardly simple device to the uninitiated, but its beauty and soul are in the quality of the materials used and the attention the builder gives to nuance and detail. I build using the finest available materials and employ traditional construction techniques. My guitars are built to provide years of enjoyment to their owners with a simplicity and quality that my great great grandfather would approve of.

MY WORK

PRICES & POLICIES

Here you will find some common repairs services and pricing options. I am a full service repair shop and not every scenario can be listed so please feel free to contact me regarding the specifics of your instrument. I work by appointment only.

When someone purchases one of my guitars I encourage the buyer be personally involved in every aspect of the build. From the initial interview, selection of features to suit the players needs, types of woods used all the way down to the finish. In my opinion this is what makes a guitar “custom”, the fact that every aspect is founded on your personal needs and desires hence giving it its unique character.

All of my guitars are handcrafted from a player’s perspective using only the best materials and techniques available. I build only a limited number of guitars each year and in doing so it enables me to not only focus on producing instruments with superior sound quality but unique visual aesthetics as well. Each guitar I build is truly a one of a kind.

I style my guitars after Hermann Hauser using mostly traditional building techniques. With all the master luthiers that have come before us I couldn’t convince myself to do it any other way. I saw it as an opportunity to resurrect a piece of history while utilizing the best of each of their works. This has been my philosophy from day one and as I now see the industry trend returning to some of these traditional methods and materials I now know it was the correct one.

GALLERY

SOME OF MY GUITARS

LETS TALK

HOW CAN I HELP

Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions about the guitars and/or the services that I offer. I have many additional resources not listed that may be able to assist you…

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