I recently found out that only a few kilometers from where I live thereās a Liuther 'Shop: he builds wonderful Classical and Acoustic Guitars and Acoustic Bass Guitars as well andā¦
ā¦I went for a problem on the Amp part of my Jude, I was with my husband who is an experienced electrician, so that he could understand better than Iād be able to what the issue was; he thought the problem was in the electronic card and he was a bit dissapointed when the issue turned out to be electric and he couldnāt fix it himself as he already had done once.
As we entered the shop and shook hands with the liuther and an old man who was there I gave the guitar in the case to the former and immediately I felt like I was in wonderland at all those masterpieces he had hung on the wall! The old man asked me questions like how long Iāve been playing and if I had a teacher and at that very moment I had to confess that my true passion was the Classical Guitar! Oh - he exclaimed while moving toward the wall, and grabbing one of those treasures he went on - sure youāll be happy to try this newborn creature outā¦ - and he handed me a very beautiful Classical Guitarā¦can you imagine the light in my eyes when I had it in my arms?! I played a Vals by Carulli which is one Iām quite confident with, not perfectly but I felt it was good enough and with a smooth waltzy feeling to it. - Nice! - he exclaimed and he took the guitar - this one should be within your reach as well - and he played an Andantino in Cmaj by Carulli. Then I attempted my own solo arrangement of Nuovo Cinema Paradiso Love Theme (Iām working on it at the moment) and I told him how I had found out the key and worked out the chords and a Duet arrangement, and I showed him the challenging passage where my pinky shifts from A to G on the thinnest string and then ring finger has to reach the G bass note and immediately after etcā¦ I told him I was practicing to move my fingers in order to get a smooth Legato melody and at the same time a good lasting sound from the G and B bass notes in that pesky passage.
In the meanwhile the Liuther and my husband were trying my Acoustic Guitar and talking about itā¦but my eyes and ears were all for that beauty I had the privilege to play - why, from the very first notes I played I thought the sound was so different and way richer than my own Classical Guitar! And of course I was listening to all the old manā s advice! He said I should learn and practice the Segovia Scalesā¦I need to find them out now and see!
A few days later the guitar was ready and the problem fixedā¦and more than this the Luthier said he made a little adjustment on the neck and that it would be easier now for me to play the chords; the strings now are so close to the fretboard that it needs just a little pressure to play any note and by magic now my barre 7th maj chords are ringing out perfectly! Both the E and the A shape!..and the mini-barre with ring finger Iāll now be able to learn! All these I couldnāt do just the day before yesterday! Priceless!
The icing (s) on the cake:
my husband understood all what the Luthier explained on how he had fixed the neck and heās now much curious to see the inside of the guitar when Iāll remove the strings for putting new ones onā¦he wants to check whether itās so easy as the Luthier explained or thereās something more (he wonāt do the job though, he said)
it was so cheap that we had to protest and doubled the amount of money he had asked for
when I told him that I find it difficult to remove the Pins when I change the strings he gave me this and said I can keep it because he has many
So exciting, so enriching this experience has been for me!
Silvia, thanks for sharing this wonderful story. There is a little movie playing in my mind, inventing stand-in pictures for what really happened - and itās heartwarming, itās a special kind of beautiful.
An enjoyable read, Sonia: you and your husband both look to have had an enjoyable visit. Even better, it was on your doorstep, lucky you ā¦ .
I am fortunate too having a local luthier who does repair and set-up work for many music shop retailers in the south of England, whose business cannot justify costs to employ someone full-time with an āin-houseā workshop.
What a great story Sylvia and a wonderful day out in every way. I look forward to hearing about Santa bringing a custom made guitar to your house very soon!
Not for me to contradict a luthier but Iād be careful using that metal pin puller. You could damage the bridge if you donāt use it carefully. You can get plastic versions.
A tip Iāve posted before elsewhere on the site is to use a coin to push a stubborn pin out from inside the guitar. After loosening off the strings, hold a coin, or better still a plastic ācounterā from a childās game or even a thick guitar pick, on the ends on your fingers, put your hand inside the guitar through the sound hole and push the pin out from the inside using the flat surface of the coin/counter/pick.
Nice story Silvia.
I imagine you would be in your element, showing your skills and listening to a fellow classical guitarist play. Also, talking with him about music you have in common and listening to his advice.
If his guitars are within your budget, well there he is right on your doorstep!
Finding a good Luthier is like striking gold and even sweeter if they are on you door step !
I hit gold when I broke the neck of my LP a few years back and found a wizard just 7 minutes up the road ! Great read Silvia, thank you for sharing.
there is a luthier who builds his own guitars just across the valley from me. less than a mile from my house, Iād wager. Iāve looked up his stuff. thereās a local shop that specializes in high end acoustics and the guitars from this luthier start at about $6,000. even more dangerous for me is that he only seems to build smaller bodied acoustics.
I loved hearing about your visit. makes me want to visit the luthier down the road even more, even though I know I shouldnāt (at least unless I need a repair).
A bit farther away, Iām also aware of people in town who specialize in building electric guitars (I know of two, one of which is walking distance from where I work), amps, pedals, and several other instruments. you could form a band with music gear made only in town or neighboring towns.
Great story. Thanks for sharing. Iāve found luthiers often charge less than what I expected. Thereās a guitar shop nearish to me that has a wall full of old and restored guitars. Itās a delight to visit it. Keep going back to this guy, Iām sure your passion for music rewards him as much as his place rewards you.
Silvia,
A lovely story about what must have been a magical day for you! Itās so rewarding on a human level to connect with others who share our passions - in a musical way, our love of the making, listening to & enjoying the wonder of soundā¦
Years ago, before the Internet & all of the online genealogy sites out there, my grandfather paid a company to find our āRootsā in the Family Tree. What he got back was that in the late 1800s, a man from Italy (somewhere around Napoli) came to the United States to make a better life for his family. He was a shoemaker & I canāt remember precisely what his Italian surname was but it was something like Calicabrese - Iām sure Iām misspelling that - & the immigration officials had a difficult time understanding his dialect. So, on his paperwork to work here in the U.S., his name had been shortened to Calico! My motherās side of the family was originally from Central Europe & were all a bit āreservedāā¦ they always told me that my emotional outlook on life was from my fatherā¦ not always in the most flattering of terms!!! I think thatās why I āfeelā music like I doā¦ itās in my Italian soul!!!
Thank you Alexeyd, I think Iām post-poning this at the moment and follow the outlined pathā¦Are you practicing some Classical Guitat as well? I think I read something about it in one of your posts.
Thanks for reminding me of thisā¦I think Iām putting a little cloth in my toolkit bag, like one of those to clean the glasses, to preserve the bridge.
I think I might have been so clumsy and touched the cables and messed things up like that
.
I think thatās why I āfeelā music like I doā¦ itās in my Italian soul!!! 
