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Michael Watts

  • HOME
  • LATEST NEWS
  • ABOUT
    • Resumé
  • GETTING TO KNOW YOU
  • MUSIC
    • VETIVER
    • HYLAB
    • ONE TAKE
  • BOOK ME - LOCKDOWN PRESENTS
  • ONLINE LESSONS
  • YOUTUBE
  • INTERVIEWS
    • GUITAR.COM LIVE
    • INSTAGRAM LIVE
    • LUTHIER STORIES
    • WRITTEN INTERVIEWS
  • TABLATURE
  • GUITARS
    • MICHAEL WATTS PLAYS
    • TONE WOOD VIDEOS
    • GUITAR REVIEW VIDEOS
    • HINTS AND TIPS
  • COMMISSIONS
  • MAILING LIST

MICHAEL WATTS

“Michael Watts's skills as a composer, arranger and performer build upon each other creating an aural masterwork"”

— Prof. J Thomas - The Fretboard Journal

LATEST NEWS

Feb 26 2021

Ordering Your First Custom Guitar - 5 Questions To Ask

Ordering your first custom guitar is an incredibly exciting experience as well as a considerable investment in time, emotions and money. With this video I want to give you the tools to get it right by asking the sort of…

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Feb 17 2021

How different can two guitars from the same luthier be?

This is a question I am often asked - how much does the signature style of a guitar maker differ? Well, I just filmed two instruments by Rosie Heydenrych of Turnstone Guitars with contrasting personalities that still retain the Turnstone…

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Feb 4 2021

The Virtuous Circle 2021

The Virtuous circle is from my debut album Vetiver and it is a piece that has a unique hold over me.

Part dream state, part letter it changes each time I play it. The beginning is deliberately tentative, even faltering…

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Jan 30 2021

Book Me Via Lockdown Presents!

I have missed playing live so much. That connection with an audience, the thrill of live music making, it is intoxicating, as is the experience of a performance happening right in front of you. 

Now, while I have been able…

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Jan 21 2021

The Rolls Royce of String Winders

As promised, here is the first Accessories Review video of the year!

We all know that a good winder can be your best friend when you experience a snapped string but it would be stretching the facts absurdly to describe…

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Jan 17 2021

African Blackwood - Expensive Brazilian Rosewood Substitute?

African Blackwood! Heavy, powerful, rare, eye-wateringly expensive and deeply elegant but surely there is more to this exotic tone wood than just a Brazilian Rosewood substitute? 

Delicious...

With a ferocious Casimi C3 Signature fan fret in hand I explore some…

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Jan 13 2021

Octet - A Virtual Guitar Ensemble by The Chris Woods Groove Orchestra for Elixir Strings

I have been a heartfelt endorser of Elixir Strings for years and when they invited me to take part in a long-distance collaboration, featuring artists from all over the world, I was delighted to accept!

Octet is a composition by…

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Jan 7 2021

Midnight Long Distance Blues

Sometimes you just have to play it all out. This was one of those times. I'm playing a beautiful Supro Belmont into a Cornford Hurricane for this Fat Possum meets Buena Vista improvised Slide Blues. I hope you enjoy it. 

…

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Dec 31 2020

Coming up in 2021!

Thinking back over the past year I am tremendously grateful for the vocal support and appreciation of my growing audience. 2020 did not go to plan for any of us but knowing you were out there helped me to keep…

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Dec 12 2020

The World Of Modern Luthiery - With Martin Simpson

British guitarist Martin Simpson is more than just an award-winning internationally successful musician. He is, to my mind, pretty much the epicentre of the modern luthier-built acoustic guitar scene on both sides of the Atlantic.

In fact, I'll go one…

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Dec 3 2020

The Probett SG-TEOR Electric Guitar

When electric guitar renegade Matte Henderson recommends a guitar builder to me I sit up and take notice! The man has impeccable taste and many of the instruments he has commissioned are pretty much exactly what I would have chosen…

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Nov 21 2020

Bog Oak - What is it? Is it any Good?

Since I uploaded the latest video in my Michael Watts Plays... series I have received several messages asking for more details about Bog Oak (and its many other names).

A Bog Oak guitar yesterday

In this latest episode of my…

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Nov 19 2020

Here's a Swannell OMC in Bog Oak!

I have spent an enjoyable couple of days in the company of this OMC model by British luthier Jamie Swannell. 

That's quite fetching isn't it?

This is the first example of Jamie's work that I've played and I'm grateful…

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Nov 11 2020

Turnstone TGE Review - Guitar.com

Long-term readers will be well aware that I need very little excuse to spend some time with a Turnstone guitar. As such I was very happy to be asked to review one of Rosie Heydenrych's E series (all English…

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Nov 7 2020

Interview - Graham Coxon - Guitar.com - Jaded Hearts Club

It was a joy to catch up with one of my favourite guitarists, the mighty Graham Coxon (Blur) alongside Miles Kane (The Last Shadow Puppets) and Nic Cester (Jet) to talk about their new supergroup The Jaded Hearts…

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Oct 29 2020

HYLAB - One Take Performance

I started my One Take Performance series as a way of keeping in touch with pieces that will feature on my second album HYLAB as and when I am able to complete it. 

I did actually listen back to the…

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Oct 8 2020

Apple? It's a Turnstone, anything is possible!

Rosie Heydenrych of Turnstone Guitars can always be relied upon to bring me something I've never played before and in this case it's a gorgeous TM model in the fashionable Bearclaw Alpine Spruce but also, apple!

And why not? Apple…

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Oct 1 2020

Between Streets - One Take Performance

Hello everyone,

I've been pretty ridiculously busy this past couple of weeks but I finally found the time to get in front of the camera for a one-take performance of Between Streets on my Gretsch White Falcon.

A Gretsch White…

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Sep 30 2020

Zoom Call with Carlos Santana for Guitar.com Live!

It's been an interesting couple of weeks...

When Guitar Magazine editor Chris Vinnicombe told me of Guitar.com's grand plan to hold a huge on-line guitar festival featuring some of the biggest names in the six-string world I thought he'd lost…

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Sep 17 2020

Moon Spruce - What is it? Is it worth the cost?

I've had a lot of emails asking about my thoughts on Moon-Harvested Alpine Spruce or "Moon Spruce" as it's more commonly known. That's hardly surprising as it's regarded by many as the ultimate spruce choice and often means a significant…

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Sep 16 2020

Playing a Casimi C3 Signature Fanfret

The latest episode in my "Michael Watts Plays..." series is out now and it features one of my favourite Fanfret guitars on the planet - this mighty Casimi C3 Signature in African Blackwood and Moon-Harvested Alpine Spruce. 

Take a look!

…

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Aug 27 2020

The Messiah Will Come Again - Roy Buchanan - Solo Arrangement

It wasn't supposed to happen like this.

I had other plans for today.

I was planning to make you a beautiful in-depth analysis of my evolving approach to nail care with quotes from players from Tarrega and Pujol to Miles…

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Aug 20 2020

Is a Fan-Fret Guitar Right For You? 7 Questions Worth Asking!

Recent chats with luminaries in the world of fan fret guitars such as luthier Michael Greenfield and Paul Heumiller of Dream Guitars got me thinking about fan fret instruments again. So much so that I arranged to spend some quality…

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Aug 6 2020

My First Thoughts On The Passerelle by Kaki King and Atelier Rosenkrantz

This morning the postman was on form! In amongst the usual stuff was this gorgeous creation, a Passerelle designed by my friend Kaki King and handmade in Bronze by luthier Rachel Rosenkrantz who you need to check out. Now. Seriously.

…

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