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Ry Turner.
We have a new workshop 'gnome', Ry Turner. Ry lives locally and brings
a keen mind, a good background in general woodwork, and a love of the
guitar (particularly acoustic and electric).
Ry is already participating in most parts of the guitar making process,
from making frames, fingerboards and bridges to preparing backs, braces
and rib bending.
He also enjoys testing the new guitars whenever he gets a chance.
He is pictured here with
a new prickly ash Grange guitar, which is currently for sale (see
For Sale page).
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Les Deux Amis - Eric Cathan & Giuseppe Zangari
We recently hosted a concert given by Eric and Giuseppe at the
church across the road in Comboyne. It was a terrific program
enjoyed by a packed house/church! For the final piece, they
played together on the two recently finished treble/requinto
guitars before we packed them off to the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne. The
dog was not part of performance - this photo was taken during rehearsal!
Giuseppe Zangari, Angela and Eric Cathan on the front verandah of the workshop.
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Custom Guitars
We recently made a custom instrument for a Dutch guitarist
who ordered a 'Grange' style guitar with extra wide
fingerboard and increased string length. He also asked
for armrest (not regularly fitted on Granges) and
inlaid mastic decoration for rosette and headstock.
Here are the results. |
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Graham and Ry Turner.
Graham demonstrating 'rubbing back' to our new worker, Ry Turner. The instrument is a classical bass commissioned
by Anthony Field at Victorian College of the Arts.
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Roundbacks Galore....
The new roundback Concert guitars and are getting good press - here is a picture of the
back and sides of the latest Silky Oak Concert guitar.
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Another roundback Concert guitar. Concert guitars have a 20 fret fingerboard. This one has a beautiful rosette in West Australian She-Oak.
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Close up of the woods in Gilles Boyer's 'Teardrop' guitar.
Back - Australian Blackwood; Sides - European Maple; Neck - Australian Red Cedar; Bindings - Indian Rosewood, European Maple, Australian Cedar veneer.
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New England duo, EphenStephen, visited our village recently to perform
their beautifully arranged version of Bach's Goldberg Variations (originally written for harpsichord).
Naturally enough, they ventured to the workshop to test some 'hot off the press' guitars.
Steve Tafra (above left) is pictured playing a blackwood/cedar roundback concert guitar, and Steve Thorneycroft (above right)
fell in love with this blackwood/maple/cedar Grange guitar.
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*Background Music: Roger Lock playing 'LaCatedral' (Barrios) on his spruce-top concert guitar.
You can find older news items here.
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