as I have always wanted to write a manifesto. I decided to avoid the more usual political variety as it would have involved research. Guitars are so much easier for me to write about. It is difficult though to convey in words that which is so much easier to convey by simply playing a guitar. With that in mind it is my hope that by writing this I can illuminate some of what I am trying to achieve in my building and the approach I take to realize that goal.

   When I began as Alan Carruth's apprentice he told me something that has stayed with me as a perpetually evolving lesson. He said that our job as luthiers is to take a sound and put a box around it. Alan then elaborated by saying that, just as every guitarist is different, their own particular needs and wants would be a little different. I later realized that this observation contains one of the many paradoxes we deal with in guitar making. Each and every guitarist is looking for the same thing, the guitar that fits them best. Which will inherently be different.

   I continually strive to improve my ability to work within this paradox by seeking out as many musicians as I can to give me feedback on my guitars. Many times I have showed a number of fine guitarists the same guitar. All else being equal (volume, projection, evenness across the strings) the flexibility of tone and response are what usually determines how many people like a particular guitar. I remember an instance when two very fine guitarists of completely opposite playing approaches were attracted to the same guitar, for different reasons. Because that guitar had a great deal of tonal flexibitliy they were both able to find something that spoke to them and work with the guitar. I have found that a guitar like this also allows the guitarist to mold it's inherent sound and response more as the guitarist plays in the guitar. The better the guitarist the better the results, but it's here that I think we find an answer to the paradox I mentioned above. When I am commissioned to build a guitar for someone, I try to give them what I interpret to be their needs and wants. At the same time, I am also trying to give them a guitar that will be supple enough to take an imprint of that person's musical soul and become part of them.

   I choose to work in a traditional approach to design. This means fan bracing on the top and traditional materials. I find endless possibilities in fan bracing as I can tailor each guitar's design to work with the set of wood that I have chosen. In many cases this means very minute variations but these variations do happen for a reason. No two sets of wood are exactly the same. Even sets cut from the same board will be different in some way. Life would be easier if this wasn't the case, but it is.

   Logic would tell us then that it is really important to be selective with our materials. All of my experience building guitars is based on what I did to maximize the potential of a given set of wood. For this reason I select wood that has qualities that I feel are important and relevant. These qualities can be different for different guitars. Some tops, for example, I won't use for my flamenco guitars but would be more than happy to use for a classical. The desired end result is what leads me to my decision. When I have a sound in my head and a set of wood in my hands, my job is to maximize the potential of that set of wood to realize my intended goal.

   Through Alan Carruth I was very fortunate to get an education in guitar acoustics and the methodology known as "plate tuning" to help verify how the guitar's resonances are working and they all relate to each other. However I realized early on that, for me, this is an incomplete approach. This is not a statement on the relevance of the science of acoustics in lutherie. Everyone must find for themselves the methodology that works best for them. I do prefer to think of science as an act more than a thing, in this context we call it the scientific process. The scientific process is one of careful and measured steps using results to verify theory. I work in this fashion even when using techniques that do not lend themselves to easily being quantified. I use plate tuning in conjunction with what my ears and hands tell me when tap tuning and feeling stiffness graduations of the top and back. Instead of one set of eyes, as it were, I have three. I am constantly tuning all through out the process of building, from the initial top graduations before bracing to the final prep stages before applying the French polish. By simply reinforcing in my own awareness of the guitar's response, I gain better control. Even though the next guitar will be of unique materials and therefore unique, this memory stays with me and helps guide me.

   Although my guitar playing could hardly be called accomplished, I do play guitar myself. I feel that this is critical not only in communicating with musicians but also in developing an understanding of what makes a well playing guitar. To me this is every bit as important as developing the sound. The variable people tend to focus on most when determining how easy a guitar is to play is the scale length. However there are many other factors that determine how a guitar plays. They include neck contour, action height, degree of relief in the fretboard, fretboard radius, string tension (this seemingly independent variable is also known as the pulsation). The guitar's inherent cavity resonances can affect how a guitar plays by how they affect the vibration of the strings. Understanding these variables allows me to achieve greater control and flexibility toward designing an instrument for the needs of a specific musician.

   I realize that what I have written here may seem rather cursory and vague. Explaining what I do and how I measure my results is only part of the equation. The ideals expressed here cannot be understood separately from the actual act of building guitars. What it is that I hope comes across is that my own personal satisfaction with my guitars is based upon the satisfaction of my client. Rather than one side or the other I am going for that fine line between them that encompasses both. As every guitar and guitarist is different so is where we find that line. I believe it is there that we find balance and harmony. Both are good qualities in guitars and life.