Host Jeff Wilson introduces viewers to the world of vintage luthurie. In other words viewers discover how stringed instrument builders (luthiers) mix contemporary materials and "old school" know-how to create guitars that resemble beloved vintage guitars. The "gold standard" for bluegrass pickers is the Martin D-28 built in the 1930s and the early 1940s. Viewers of DIY’s Hand Made Music find out how Lynn Dudenbostel crafts new guitars that meet the high standards set by the great luthiers of yesteryear. In this first episode of DIY's four-part guitar-building series viewers also are introduced to two luthiers whose passion for replicating vintage guitars borders on obsession. They are John Arnold and Ted Davis, and they know reproduction of vintage requires red spruce wood. Martin Guitars used it to build tops for the famous D-28 during the golden era, but during World War II the aircraft industry depleted the supply of spruce wood so guitar manufacturers switched to alternative wood. Today after sixty years of growth the Red Spruce tree is once again available for selective harvesting. For John and Ted, it's been a long time to wait for the revival of great sounding guitars!
A quick reminder of the importance of red spruce begins this second episode in our series on handmade guitars. Jeff Wilson, host of DIY's Handmade Music then mingles with the seasoned musicians who appreciate the kind of sound mastier luthier Lynn Dudenbostel creates. Bluegrass band Kentucky Thunder entertains viewers while Lynn continues building. Viewers discover how to bend rosewood to form the sides of a guitar made in the style of the classic Martin D-28. Points of emphasis include creating a head block, tail block and kerfed lining. Finally, Lynn joins the top and back with the sides to form the guitar's body. And in a brief interlude along the way Andy Leftwich of Kentucky Thunder treats viewer to a DIY lesson in songwriting.
In this third episode of DIY’s Hand Made Music focusing on hand-built guitars, host Jeff Wilson drops in on George Gruhn (of the world famous Gruhn Guitars in Nashville) to learn more about the quality of vintage guitars. Armed with information provided by Gruhn, DIY demonstrates the functional and aesthetic importance of binding. Vintage guitars were bound with distinctive herringbone strips that framed a guitar’s perimeter. Lynn Dudenbostel demonstrates how he adds this decorative element to his guitars. With binding complete the Dudenbostel guitar body is complete, and after a quick sound test Lynn turns his attention to the guitar neck. Lynn shows viewers how to slowly carve away wood from a block of mahogany until a perfectly shaped neck remains. He then attaches an inlayed fingerboard and prepares the guitar for finish. Host Jeff Wilson closes the show with more music from Kentucky Thunder. It’s a session that delivers a "sneak peak" at the completed Dudenbostel Guitar.
This episode brings to a conclusion the guitar-building project. Featured here is the precision application of finish to the instrument. It's an alchemy of applied elements, but luthier Lynn Dudenbostel shares a secret. A good finish is the result of what he removes, not what he applies. As he says, "It's not how much varnish you put on a guitar, it's how much varnish you leave on a guitar." This show culminates in the recording studio with Cody Kilby of Kentucky Thunder. Viewers witness his test drive of the complete Dudenbostel guitar. And just to insure a passing grade, host Jeff Wilson asks the expert on vintage guitars, George Gruhn, to evaluate the finished product.
The quest to build a mandolin leads DIY's Handmade Music series to the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. It was from the Ryman's stage that a man named Bill Monroe introduced the world to bluegrass music. That was 1945 and it was an F5 style mandolin that delivered the unique sound. Since then, the world hasn't stopped tapping its toe to that high lonesome sound, and musicians haven't stopped trying to replicate Mr. Monroe's style. But Bill Monroe's 1920s-era Gibson F5s are hard to come by, and that's where we come in (along with Lynn Dudenbostel). Lynn is a craftsman who replicates the look and sound of Bill Monroe's mandolin. On the first of three episodes devoted to mandolin construction, we learn why the instrument is special and how we can build one. We begin with the construction of a red spruce top. The top features a set of tone bars on the inside of the mandolin and Lynn shows why this step is referred to as "giving the instrument its voice". Old-school yields to high-tech when Lynn introduces the use of a computerized router to carve the top and the curly maple back. Finally Lynn prepares the sides of the instrument. But this show ventures out of the wood shop and enjoys craftsmanship of another kind. Viewers see (or hear) how Dudenbostel Mandolins sound when pushed with a virtuoso performance. Andy Leftwich and his fellow Kentucky Thunder band-mates put a Dudenbostel mandolin through its paces with a genuine bluegrass jam.
DIY’s Handmade Music continues with creation of a great custom mandolin. Our master luthier Lynn Dudenbostel glues the top and the back to the sides, and then he adds binding to complete the body. Viewers also discover the initial steps of building a mandolin's neck. The focus of the episode features the intricate work required to form the most distinctive characteristic of a classic F-5 mandolin. It's the swirling scroll -- and it is not easy to replicate. Lynn breaks out nearly every tool to complete the scroll with style. Inspired by craftsmanship of master luthiers from the past, Lynn finishes the mandolin body with celluloid binding added to its perimeter. This episode completes the body (minus the finish) and then shifts gears to begin work on the mandolin's neck -- carved from a four-by-four block of curly maple. Lynn strays a bit from the traditional course by using cocobolo for many of the neck’s details including the fingerboard and peg head veneer. (Most vintage mandolins have ebony fingerboards). This show also veers from the construction of a custom mandolin with some information on repair of a cherished antique mandolin. The episode concludes with viewers treated to more great bluegrass music with Andy Leftwich and other members of Kentucky Thunder.
This episode of Hand Made Music embarks on the final steps of mandolin building. Master luthier Lynn Dudenbostel joins the instrument's neck with the body after the labor-intensive task of carving the neck is finished. Viewers finally see the instrument "in the white" which is what luthiers say when the mandolin is complete except for the finish. This episode demonstrates why finish is about more than appearances. In fact, the finish is just as important to an instrument's sound. Stain, shellac and varnish all contribute to the final product, and then Lynn "finishes the finish" with a technique called French polishing. The practice comes from the old-school pages of the luthier handbook. After a quick set-up, this show wraps up in the recording studio with the bluegrass band Kentucky Thunder as they christen another edition from the Dudenbostel workshop!
This edition of DIY's Handmade Music focuses on the building of a dulcimer. Dulcimers are easy to build, and they have changed little through the generations. Just about anyone can tackle this project with basic tools. The dulcimer found its way to the Appalachian region thanks to musically inclined settlers. Instruments were hard to come by on the frontier so early luthiers improvised and built the familiar dulcimer with readily available materials. This is a great first project for any budding luthier or maker of stringed instruments. Professor Gary Mahoney from Berea College shows us the best methods for building all the components of a dulcimer. He crafts from walnut a top, a back, a fret board, two sides (bent with a hot pipe) and a peg head. After assembling all the pieces to create the dulcimer Gary uses a spray booth to apply finish, and after a quick set up job the dulcimer is ready to play. Gary closes the show with the sweet sounds of his custom built dulcimer.
Welcome to "Violin Making 101" -- literally. This episode of DIY's Handmade Music introduces viewers to the students and faculty at the Chicago School of Violin Making. It's an introduction to the very first steps of building a violin. This first episode in the five-part violin series focuses on the initial steps of building a violin. The rib structure is the foundation of a violin, and Chicago School co-director Becky Elliott demonstrates the step-by-step process of creating a rib structure for a beautiful violin.
This second episode of DIY's five-part series on violin-making focuses on the violin's plates -- i.e., the top and back. After a quick review on the violin's rib structure, host Jeff Wilson and the staff at the Chicago School of Violin Making begin creating the plates for the violin body. The top plate is made from spruce that's specially selected for its tonal qualities. The back is made from flame-maple. Expert violin-maker Becky Elliott joins book-matched pairs of stock using the "non-clamp" method used by violinmakers for centuries. This episode is dedicated to following each step as the stock evolves from raw blanks to precisely crafted violin plates. Students and viewers are treated to an exhibit of rare and expensive (twenty-million dollar) Stradivarius violins. Duly inspired, the students and directors return to their projects and complete both plates by show's end.
This third installment of violin building on DIY's Handmade Music capitalizes on the production of the first two episodes. Previously host Jeff Wilson learned the old-school methods used at the Chicago School of Violin Making. So far those methods have yielded ribs and plates. Now it all comes together as students glue the elements together and form a violin body. One of the most distinctive features of a violin is the scroll found at the end of its neck. This episode transitions into the next stage of violin building and learns how first-timers are taught simple carving methods for a seemingly complicated part of the instrument.
This episode brings to a conclusion the violin-building project. (A follow-up episode shows the process for creating a violin bow.) Viewers learn in this episode how to fit the violin's neck to the body and how to apply a finish to the instrument. Students are treated once again to beautiful and priceless examples of the world's greatest violins. They learn that the legendary varnish used by Stradivarius is no different than the mixture concocted at the Chicago School of Violin Making. After a quick polish and set-up, students show they are not just violin makers. They are violin players as well. The show concludes with a beautiful rendition of Vivaldi's Concerto Grosso.
This edition of DIY's Handmade Music travels to Mendocino, California to learn from Steven Beckley how to craft a violin bow. Violin bows may look like a sticks, but viewers will be amazed at the complexity, precision, and dedication required in building them. Beckley’s bows are among the best in the world. Like most hand crafted bows Steven’s are made from rare and highly coveted pernambuco wood. Its density, color and strength-to-weight ratio make it the perfect choice for violin bows. Choosing and cutting material is only part of the process, and Steven demonstrates the transformation from blank to bow. The first step comes with carving the head. Then a gradual process of creating tapers, transforming facets, and bending a camber in the stick is revealed. But this stick requires hardware as well and Steven demonstrates for host Jeff Wilson the techniques he uses to build a frog and a button. One of the oldest methods of finishing is chosen for this bow as Steven Beckley "suns" the stick to enhance the pernambuco’s color. A French polish is applied and horsehair is added to prepare the bow for play.
This lesson on instrument making goes "old-school." How old? Well, banjos can be traced back at least five centuries. They've evolved quite a bit since originating in Africa, but this edition of Handmade Music focuses on the original style -- gourd banjos. First, host Jeff Wilson learns how to prepare a gourd from luthier Matt Morelock. Matt begins by cutting open the top and cleaning the inside with water. While the gourd dries, Matt cuts a neck from mahogany stock. The neck is comprised of several components including the fingerboard, peg head and spike. After careful measurement and shaping, Matt inserts the spike of the neck through the gourd. The taper of the spike creates a bond to hold the two components together. An oil finish is applied and gut strings are added. By show's end Matt Morelock is playing the gourd banjo and creating the kind of music heard centuries before. Part of the fun of creating a gourd banjo is the freedom to "veer off course" since design changes and artistic expression in carving are characteristic to the building of this instrument. No two gourd banjos are exactly alike, and minor variations don't adversely affect the sound. In this episode, we see evidence of that kind of freedom in Matt's work.
With its series on old-time banjo making, Handmade Music continues the tradition of educating viewers with a step-by-step demonstration of building a stringed musical instrument. This first installment of a three-episode DIY series on the banjo demonstrates how a one-of-a-kind instrument comes to life while also introducing viewers to a world of "old-time" music. Just as old-time music differs from bluegrass, old-time banjos are designed, built and played differently. The sound is unique and exciting, and the style is reflected in our craftsman Dave Ball. Dave dedicates this episode of the banjo making series to neck construction. Starting with a 4x4 piece of maple stock, Dave cuts the shape of his banjo neck and refines it to final dimensions. He adds ebony veneer to the fingerboard and peg head, and finishes this first stage by carving the neck with a rasp.
In this second installment of DIY's three-part Handmade Music series focusing on the banjo, a custom old-time banjo continues its evolution. Craftsman Dave Ball shifts focus from the neck to the banjo rim. In building the rim Dave first acquires a raw blank from George Wunderlich. George specializes in bending maple stock with steam and pressure. After receiving the rough rim, Dave shapes it with a lathe. A tone ring is created next. Using a hard resonate tropical wood called padauk, Dave creates a "ring" that attaches to the rim like a "cap" on the upper end. Next, a resonator is crafted and joined with the rim, and here the difference in old-time and bluegrass banjos becomes apparent. The show comes to a close with Dave preparing the rim's dowel stick. The dowel stick is a key component in joining the rim and neck. That sets the stage for the final part of the banjo series when the rim and neck are united, and the banjo is completed.
This third installment of DIY's three-part Handmade Music series focusing on the banjo explores the final steps in building an old-time banjo building. Dave Ball is our luthier, and this edition demonstrates his ability to build and play this traditional stringed instrument. Dave's reputation for building beautiful instruments comes in part from the stunning examples of fingerboard and peg head inlay. He demonstrates the painstaking process of selecting patterns, cutting abalone shell, embedding cutouts into the ebony, and engraving each piece while looking through a microscope. After adding frets to the fingerboard, Dave returns to the rim to prepare for joining the neck and rim. First he clamps the banjo head in place with hardware to create a "drum". Previously Dave created a neck, a rim, and a dowel stick. Now he simply combines the elements to complete his banjo. Like many of our luthiers on Handmade Music, Dave prefers French polish to finish his instruments and he demonstrates how the techniques works beautifully on a natural oil finish. After strings are added Dave's band "The Mumbillies" join him in a demonstration of traditional old-time music.
Dr. Ellie Mannette, "The Father of the Modern Steel Drum," has dedicated his life to crafting quality steel drums. Handmade Music joins the man dubbed "The Stradivarius of the Steel Drum" to discover how he begins building his instruments to create a symphony orchestra of steel drums.
The sound of a steel drum or pan is as unique as any we've featured on Handmade Music. Years of training are required even before a maker attempts to build one from start to finish. At Mannette Steel Drums inexperienced staff members blossom into master builders under the direction of Ellie Mannette, and this episode of Handmade Music features his tutelage and his amazing personal journey.
What makes a vintage guitar so special? Time is the secret ingredient. With each passing year a guitar's sound mellows and refines. But with each passing year a guitar's shape declines. That's why George Gruhn of Gruhn Guitars in Nashville puts such value on his staff of highly trained guitar repairmen. They employ tricks of the trade to revive instruments like a Martin D18 that would be otherwise lost without their help. Host Jeff Wilson pries those secrets out of the Gruhn staff to reveal helpful tips from the art of guitar and instrument restoration and repair.
The restoration of a 1935 Martin D18 continues with Gruhn Guitar's restoration ace Andy Jellison. In this second phase of the restoration, Jellison removes the pick-guard, repairs damage to the wood on the guitar's top and neck and then performs a delicate neck set. But with the best in the repair business under one roof, the duties and the projects get evenly split. That's why a 1923 Martin Mandolin ends up on Bill Baldock's workbench. He takes the instrument through a standard set up and fret job, but really demonstrates his talent when he seamlessly removes a hole in the mandolin's maple back. Also, George Gruhn himself discusses his philosophy of stringed instrument restoration and explains what he means by the repair specialist remaining invisible.
What's better than a 401K? Try a Gibson Les Paul "Sunburst"--at least an original one from 1959 in perfect shape. Collecting vintage guitars can be enormously profitable, and George Gruhn of Gruhn Guitars in Nashville shares some of his trade secrets. Without a skilled repairman many of the guitars he sells would be worthless, and his staff shows some of the life saving techniques they employ on a daily basis.
Gruhn Guitar's repair specialist Andy Jellison resumes the restoration of a 1935 Martin D18 with work focused on replacing the body's pick guard and the neck's frets. But George Gruhn sells more than guitars from his Nashville store and Bill Baldock demonstrates some of the common repairs he makes when working on fiddles.
Months of work culminate in this revealing episode of Handmade Music. Guitar specialist and repair technician Andy Jellison has dedicated most of his summer to the restoration of a 1935 Martin D18 guitar. The final phase of repair consists of the set-up: dressing the guitar's frets, replacing the nut and saddle and stringing the instrument up. And finally, he hears how the instrument sounds. After final tweaks Andy is ready for shop founder and world-renowned guitar expert George Gruhn give it a test run and review his work. George also talks about the finer points of true and faithful restoration of vintage instruments.
"An accordion is just a carrying case for a bunch of reeds." At least that’s how Marc Savoy describes it. One look at his creations and anyone will tell you there’s a lot more to it than that. He’s been building accordions at the Savoy Music Center in Eunice Louisiana for forty-five years, and in this episode Marc shares his secrets of building an accordion with a Cajun flare. The beating heart of the instrument is a collection of reeds, and host Jeff Wilson discovers how building reed-mounts sets the foundation for the many steps to come.
When Marc Savoy built the Savoy Music Center, townspeople from Eunice, Louisiana thought he had "gone off the deep end". No one shared his vision of bringing the culture and music of his Cajun heritage to the world. But forty years later that's just what he's done. He's also become the world's finest maker of Cajun accordions, and he describes to host Jeff Wilson how he has perfected his techniques. This episode focuses on the many steps involved in building keyboards for the treble side of his accordions.
The accordion is the centerpiece of Cajun music. Along with fiddles and guitars, it drives the rhythm that defines the sound of Cajun culture. According to Marc Savoy, if you're not dancing when you hear Cajun music then you should check into the morgue, because "you're dead and forgot to fall." That energy in music and lifestyle has kept Marc building accordions for forty-five years. He's refined his craft over the years and now he shares his knowledge with Handmade Music. The accordion makes music only when air passes through it, and this episode focuses on the many points of entry and escape on the bass side and the treble side of the accordion.
If you want to insult Marc Savoy, put one of his creations on your shelf. The accordions he builds are works of art, but he wants his customers to play them. That's why he holds weekly jam sessions at the Savoy Music Center. Host Jeff Wilson samples Cajun music in a traditional "house party" atmosphere and learns a little more about the great accordions built by Marc Savoy. The accordion Marc builds on Handmade Music takes several steps toward completion in this episode when Marc applies finish, mounts the reeds, and adds a little hardware for decoration.
Marc Savoy likes to compare his building technique for accordions to his cooking prowess. Both require many ingredients and, taken separately, the parts are meaningless. But when they're mixed together in just the right way, you get something really special. This episode of Handmade Music mixes all the parts previously built by Marc to end up with a finished "tasty" accordion. Marc connects the keyboard to the treble-side reeds, and adds the air-pumping bellows to both ends of the instrument to get a finished instrument. After extensive tuning he unveils the new creation in front of his guests at his weekly jam session in the Savoy Music Center.
Moog Music builds electronic instruments at its factory in Asheville, North Carolina. So why is a show called Handmade Music visiting there? Because founder Bob Moog blazed an electronic analog trail and insisted all instruments bearing his name be built by hand. Sounds like our kind of company. In this episode Host Jeff Wilson discovers how the Mini Moog Voyager and the Ethernet Pro are made and played just the way Bob envisioned.
This one-hour special chronicles the making of one custom guitar. Noted luthier Lynn Dudenbostel builds a classic handmade guitar in the style of the famous Martin D-28. Follow every step of the process, from searching out and harvesting a rare red spruce tree to get the wood for the guitar top through the design and creation of the guitar body and neck to the final assembly and custom finish. Lynn explains and demonstrates the special tools, woods and glues used to create this beautiful custom instrument. The guitar ends up in the hands of members of the Bluegrass band Kentucky Thunder for the final test: playing this wonderful, handmade instrument.