This website is devoted to the steps involved in planning, researching and assembling the materials necessary for building an acoustic guitar. Partner, publisher of guitarmaking textbook see publications 1990 1993 artists in resonance cofounder of instrumentmakers collaborative consisting of three guitarmakers, one drummaker and one harpmaker, in hadley, massachusetts. Open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published. For this guitar i bought the book guitar making by cumpiano and natelson. They are busy working on a second edition that hopefully will come out soon. Nowhere have i found information on building guitars as complete as in this fine publication. Hailed by guitar player magazine as perhaps the finest book on guitars ever produced, and by. We will be following the first book by william cumpiano and jon natelson, guitarmaking. William cumpiano and jonathan natelsons book on building an acoustic steel string guitar and classical guitars is by no means dated unless you consider the time it was published.
I love this marvelous book, guitar making tradition and technology is an inspiring and enlightening book of art. Guitarmaking guitar reference by jonathan natelson, william cumpiano and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. I bought this book as a gift for a friend who is into guitar making. Hardcover edition soon to be republished by rosewood press.
This build will be an homage to the first edition, along with some updates in neck joint and other construction. Hailed by guitar player magazine as perhaps the finest book on guitars ever produced, and by booklist as a rolls royce of construction guidebooks, this impressive volume is the first book of its kind to describe. Since 1971, bill cumpiano has been building and repairing some of the finest handmade guitars and stringed instruments on the planet. I start by setting up the scarf cutting jig on my table saw. William cumpiano has made fretted stringed instruments of unexcelled quality, by hand, for almost five decades.
Building the neck building an acoustic steel string guitar. For a video about the process i am about to describe, check out my youtube video on making a guitar neck. The most complete book is william cumpiano s guitar making, tradition and technology. Guitarmaking, tradition and technology by william r. William richard cumpiano born april 30, 1945 is a builder of stringed musical instruments and is known for his writing and teaching of the art of luthiery. The book does not teach as cumpiano s how to make guitars.
Hailed by guitar player magazine as perhaps the finest book on guitars ever produced, and by booklist as a rolls royce of construction guidebooks, this impressive volume is the first book of its kind to describe in depth how both steelstring and classical guitars are actually designed and built. However, i found willis step by step guitar making useful and valuable. Building the neck wasnt the first thing that i did, i actually cut out a full sized paper template of the body and then built a guitar work board as recommended by natelson and cumpiano, but i decided to group that stuff in with the next section so ill talk about building the neck first. Hailed by guitar player magazine as perhaps the finest book on guitars ever produced, and by booklist as a rolls royce of construction guidebooks, this impressive volume is the first book of its kind to describe in depth how both steelstring and classical guitars are actually. Tradition and technology a complete reference for the design and construction of the steelstring folk guitar and the classical guitar guitar reference william r. Im working with several friends in chicago to prototype a puerto rican tiple kit for children to make, which takes all the power and cuttingtool steps out of the process, leaving only the gluing, sanding, finishing and stringing steps. I dont remember if it has the term bass guitar anywhere in it but its absolutely the most essential book you should have. It has since become the standard world reference for our industry. Over 450 photographs, drawings, and diagrams reveal in exquisite detail the hows, whys, and. Cumpiano s methods are complimentary to those described in making master guitars where the guitar is built on a solera. Oct 21, 2006 it turns out that guitar making is a complex art and there are many different ways for a beginner to approach it. These books are somogyis masterwork, formidable classics of guitarmaking literature to be treasured by serious students of the craft. Hailed by guitar player magazine as perhaps the finest book on guitars ever produced, and by booklist as a rolls royce of construction guidebooks, this. Guitar making tradition and technology i built a very respectable guitar which i still.
Tom is also the author of the guitar making book dvd set the art of lutherie published by mel bay, and has written for and been featured in may publications both in print and online as well as several television and film spots. Previously making instruments by commission only, william cumpiano is now offering his instruments in premade form. Next, i mark the heel for my cuts, as described on page 51 of the cumpiano book. Best guitar building books telecaster guitar forum. A gold standard of guitar building books is guitarmaking. Im sure some of guitars are very nice, but for such a big name in luthiery, he has never really had a waiting list for his guitars other than the 46 months it would take for a custom order. I started out with cumpiano and natelson guitar making. Tradition and technology was a recommended book from some of my forums and online groups. About cumpianoguitarmaker cumpiano handmade guitars. The book is meant to teach the fundamentals of guitar building, and it does so by walking the reader through the build process of one steel string guitar and one it wouldnt take too much to update the book with color photosdiagrams, a slightly modernized tool. Guitarmaking, tradition and technology 1993 edition. I did build an ukulele before, with help and inspiration from youtube. Contemporary acoustic guitar design and build 2nd edition. Cumpiano coauthored, with jonathon natelson, the worlds leading guitarmaking textbook, guitarmaking.
Cumpiano is a master guitarmaker and teacher of instrument building and. It is shorter and clearer than cumpiano and interestingly, a lot of the steps, sequence of operations, and jigs are different. A comprehensive 2volume manual applying science to making superior sounding acoustic guitars. Natelson often called the bible of guitar making, this work presents the most thorough overview available for the serious beginning guitar maker about building both a classical and steel string guitar. Little or no woodworking experience is necessary to create your first guitarjust patience and an open mind.
Since completing his apprenticeship in 1972, william cumpiano has created hundreds of individuallycrafted guitars and other stringed instruments in the european, north american. Clyde herlitz everything you need to know about guitar making including the preparation and planning, soundboard bracing, assembly, fingerboards. Natelson, william cumpiano, jonathan solomon, jonathan natelson, 1993, chronicle books edition, in english. Im really happy of this purchase because shipment was excellent as always with amazon and the book is exactly as descripted. Hailed by guitar player magazine as perhaps the finest book on guitars. Gore and gilet apply physics, the science of hearing, advanced materials and building techniques on their quest to build the perfect guitar. Since completing his apprenticeship in 1972, william cumpiano has created hundreds of individuallycrafted guitars and other stringed instruments in the european, north american and latin american traditions. Next, i band saw at the slanted lines just behind the line that represents the 12th fret. To start this process, there are two jigs that i find essential. It is a narrative of the life of manuel rodriguez as told by himself. Tradition and technology, a complete reference for the design and construction of the steel string folk guitar and the classical guitar, which has been acclaimed as the principal textbook in his field and considered by many as the bible of guitarmaking. We truly live in a golden age of guitar making and the resources available to a beginning builder are more extensive than ever in history. Guitarmaking guitar reference 9780811806404 by jonathan natelson. From the math of plate design and acoustic performance of various materials, to detailed designs and tips for making various jigs these books cover how to build a guitar.
The most complete book is william cumpianos guitar making, tradition and technology. He built for michael gurian before the shop burned down. The classical guitar making book by john bogdanovich is a complete guide to building a quality classical guitar, widely considered to be the best book on. The book has been in continuous print now for almost thirty years and sold over 80,000 copies. This build will be an homage to the first edition, along with some updates in neck joint.
William cumpiano presents a step by step tutorial on how to build either a classical or steel string guitar, from scratch. I have been building guitars for more than 12 years, having studied with william cumpiano, a master builder from northampton, massachusetts. Tradition and technology a complete reference for the design and construction of the steelstring folk guitar and the classical guitar guitar reference by cumpiano, william r. The definitive scientific approach to guitar design a beautiful data driven approach to guitarmaking. Tom bills has been hand crafting one of a kind custom guitars for the top players and collectors around the world since 1998. William cumpiano and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. Of the two books from my first round of how to build a guitar book purchases, i decided that guitar making, tradition and technology is the one thats most useful to me. Cumpiano, 9780811806404, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. A limited number of personalized appointments can be included.
He has been involved in the preservation and understanding of the fading musical and musical craft traditions of his native puerto rico. This book has been called the bible of guitar making by many and although it shows some signs of age, the concept and execution are brilliant. It has been translated from spanish to english, german, italian, etc. Cumpiano is a master guitarmaker and teacher of instrument building and repair in amherst, massachusetts, serving professional musicians across the country. A this book is regarded by many as the benchmark by which all other instrument building books are judged. Altho a little dated in appearance, with photos that arent a clearsharp as i would like, it has all the copy content that counts. She gave as impression of the book that it is an extremely detailed book, much better than many others which she came across. Im proud of myself as i basically had no experience in woodworking before i started with the ukulele, 1,5 years ago. Making a guitar with william cumpiano new england luthiers. I have many reference books on traditional guitar making and this is now top of the list. I like to reference the top figure labeled top view to make sure i am accurate in how i do this.
That book is still a wonderful book, especially if your interest is in steel string acoustics. Cumpiano is known for his book and teaching skill more than anything. The guitar makers workshop by rik middleton, make own classical guitar by stanley doubtfire, the art and craft of making. The second is a neck assembly jig that was created by william. I have taught people of all ages, of all levels of experienceand all have emerged surprised and delighted with the instrument theyve taken home. Some good history of the guitar with names included. Ive recently donated this guitar to my wifes nonprofit agency, to be raffled off to help fund their operating expenses. The man primarily responsible for crafting this singular work, written with thenpartner jon natelson, is william cumpiano, but even this outstanding book pales in comparison to his talent as a luthier and teacher. The book is meant to teach the fundamentals of guitar building, and it does so by walking the reader through the build process of one steel string guitar and one it wouldnt take too much to update the book with color photosdiagrams, a slightly modernized tool list and methods using those tools e. A this outstanding book provides stepbystep instructions on how to build an acoustic steel string or classical guitar. Cumpianos book can be approached as both a comprehensively detailed construction manual as well as a structural framework for creative. In book two, making the responsive guitar, ervin somogyi applies these principles to the how of guitarmaking. Tradition and technology guitar reference 9780811806404. Harry becker, bachelor of industrial design, 68, and william cumpiano, bachelor of industrial design, 68, have been friends since they first met 44 years ago at pratt in 1964.
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