"Such a perfect day, I'm glad I spent it with you" Lou Reed
Independence day 2016 welcomed us with golden sunshine and bright blue skies, a perfect day to present my friend Peter Mix with his new electric mandolin. Peter is a mandolin afficionado, with a fluid style incorporating unique chord voicings and bottleneck slide. He regularly plays a classic 1950's Gibson EM-200 mandolin, the seldom-seen little brother of the Les Paul. While uncommon,
electric mandolin has been around since the 1920's, and it is an amazingly fun instrument to play. Needless to say, when given the opportunity to reinvent a perfect design, a simple copy will not suffice. After an eternity of carving and shaping, the modern classic aesthetic came through loud and clear on this one, and I love the result.
Having the opportunity to work with people to realize their dream instrument is the greatest gift. This instance, seeing Peter's reaction to the mando, with my family all around, was a moment to remember forever.
Which leads me to my next point. When you consider purchasing your next musical instrument, the vehicle for your inspiration, will you blindly click a button and hope for the best? Fresh off a container from China straight to your door. Or walk into a guitar center and stare at 100 guitars, hoping one stands out? The next store has 100 more if you don't find one. Then there is Reverb.com, with thousands of opportunities for buyer's remorse. With countless beautiful factory guitars for the taking at any given moment, immediate gratification is at your finger tips...
Or do you want to discuss your perfect instrument with someone with has devoted their life to the art of lutherie? Talk about the sound you wish it could have. How would it look? What is the guitar you wish you could own? Maybe drool over beautiful tonewood and pick your own set. This is a different way to buy an instrument - it's something you gave life to, your vision becomes your inspiration. Someday you will hand it down to your kids, and give rise to another generation of music. And that is what being a luthier is all about. Thank you to those who understand the heart and soul poured into each piece, and allow us to preserve this way of life.
-Chuck Sanzone
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| Original 1950s Kluson tuners adorn the peghead. Hand-cut abalone logo inspired by Lucky Charms cereal. |
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| Quilted bigleaf maple from Oregon is downright cray cray. Thanks mother nature. |
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| The original Gibson EM-200 and it's reinterpretation. |
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| Peter Mix meets his new mandolin for the first time. |
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| This one loves her music. |
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| One piece body sure shows off the lines...Original Gibson bridge, custom Kent Armstrong humbucker, and a Mix tailpiece. |
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| Deirdre looking beautiful, pickin' the new mando... |
