Luthier Jason Kostal is rightly recognised for his attention to detail at all stages in the guitar making process and during my recent visit to his workshop in Phoenix Arizona we had a chat about the importance of string choice…

Over the past few years Rory Dowling of Taran Guitars has been working on a very special new design with legendary UK guitarist Martin Simpson! Yes, really!

Taking inspiration from a 1930's Martin and Rory's Tirga Mhor design this…

I recently spent a wonderful morning at the Tate Modern in London catching up with a dear friend of mine, guitar collector and musician turned luthier Howard Feng. 

We met at The Tate Modern to get some inspiration, there is…

Nick Branwell is a London-based luthier who is perhaps best known for his beautiful Torres style classical guitars. Recently Nick has turned his attentions to the steel-string acoustic instrument and he invited me to visit his workshop this week to…

The desert is a weird place. And there's a lot of it. Especially in-between Phoenix and Spring Branch... 

It was this desert that Jason Kostal and I would traverse in an epic 1000 mile road trip through Arizona, New Mexico…

Well, that's a very good question! As the buying public's appetite for exotic woods (especially post-CITES Dalbergia alternatives) has increased, there has been something of a rush to find the next, greatest, coolest, rarest, oldest, etc woods possible. One choice…

I'll just leave this here... I hope you enjoy it!

Do please share, comment etc. Your support means a lot to me. If you'd like a closer look at the mic set-up, well it's two pairs of Gefell M300's and…

So here's the thing, I know nothing about tangos, literally nada. My only real tango experience was that scene in Scent of a Woman where Al Pacino dances with Gabrielle Anwar. Maybe that hit me at a formative age, who…

As far as I'm concerned there are few things in life as pleasurable as playing a new guitar for the luthier who made it. In this case the instrument in question was a beautiful small body TS model in Bog…

If you haven't heard the name Emma Tricca then where have you been? Obviously not at one of Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets European concerts where Emma supported the band in historic venues like London's Roundhouse, Berlin's Tempodrom and the…

It's a real honour to have been asked to feature in the first #asktheartist section for Tony Polecastro's wonderful Acoustic Life YouTube channel. In this episode of Acoustic Tuesday you can learn about my favourite guitar (no prizes for guessing…

I've been a fan of Tony Polecastro's work for many years now and I've enjoyed his Acoustic Life YouTube channel with it's weekly Acoustic Tuesday show since the first episode. It was therefore a wonderful surprise to hear that my…

Ages ago I stumbled across quite a pleasing little chord sequence that I subsequently pressed into service as a useful idea for demoing guitars. As one of my top 5 "quite pleasing" chord sequences of the time it piqued the…

My YouTube channel recently crossed the milestone of 1000 subscribers which for an entirely independent one-man operation is very pleasing! This video is my way of saying a heart-felt thank you for all your support. 

Until next time

Stay Tuned

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My latest video tells the story of a visit to Savile Row with Matthias Roux and Matthew Rice of Casimi Guitars in 2017. It also features a sneak peak at a new track "Sabiro" which takes its name from the…

This may be the first time you've heard the name Mark Gaiero but I can promise you it won't be the last! 
I met Mark during the final days of his apprenticeship at the Somogyi Guitars workshop in Oakland California…

I've just returned from a wonderful trip to Oakland California, where I had the chance to catch up with my friend Leo Buendia who, like Michi Matsuda, Mario Beauregard, and Jason Kostal before him apprenticed with Ervin Somogyi. 

Since…

Derek Gripper is an extraordinary talent and since we first played together in Paris earlier this year I've been looking forward to the next time we'd share a stage. That happened in October in Cape Town South Africa at the…

This wonderful instrument is the first Casimi Guitar, it even predates the company's logo so there's nothing on the headstock and no label! It is what was to become the Casimi C2 model and is made from Cocobolo on the…

I've loved Linda Manzer's work since first meeting her in 2009 and had harboured a secret hope that at some point I'd get a chance to play her astonishing Iceberg harp guitar having seen it exhibited as part of the…

Last month I spent a truly magical few days in Cape Town South Africa with Matthias Roux and Matthew Rice of Casimi Guitars. We had a lot to cram into that short stay and I came back to the UK…

I took a quick break during a marathon editing session following my trip to South Africa to visit Rosie Heydenrych at Turnstone guitars and film this wonderful TS model in Cocobolo and Alpine Spruce. the last time I saw Rosie…

I have long been inspired by piano music, in particular the work of composers such as Erik Satie, Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett. Pianists have an advantage over guitarists in the shape of the sustain pedal (it's the one in…

Rosie Heydenrych of Turnstone Guitars makes beautiful bespoke instruments one at a time from her workshop in Surrey UK. I first met Rosie years ago when she was still under apprenticeship and it's been very interesting to see her work…

Thank you to everybody who has asked me for guidance when it comes to recording acoustic instruments over the years. I hope that this video will serve as an introduction to my own method for capturing the sound of a…