acoustic guitar

Dave Matthews is renowned not just for his soulful voice and poetic lyrics but also for his distinctive guitar style that's as unique as his music itself. When it comes to Dave's guitar playing, rhythm is the name of the game.

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Porfirio, Candelario, and Manuel Delgado, from left to right, in the family’s Los Angeles shop.

Our new columnist bares his family’s roots in guitar-building, going back to 1928 and his grandfather, who made instruments for Segovia and many others.

I’ve had the honor and blessing of growing up as a luthier’s apprentice. My entire life, being around instruments and music was the norm, and creating with my hands was equally a joy as playing hide-and-seek or baseball in the street. I’ve never known a world absent of artists or craftsmanship. In fact, many of us who’ve grown up the children of immigrants have had similar experiences, from watching our mothers and grandmothers create amazing traditional meals from raw ingredients to our fathers and grandfathers building what was necessary for shelter or creature comforts. My grandfather would often remind me, “If you can’t make it with your own hands, you probably do not need it.”

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This Larsons-built Maurer 595 model has X-bracing and a slightly arched solid spruce top.

This museum-ready flattop was built by a legendary Chicagoan luthier duo.

In the early 20th century, Chicago’s reputation was one of grit, and the city was full of factories, gangsters, and slaughterhouses. But in a small shop on the North Side’s Elm Street, brothers Carl and August Larson built fine acoustic instruments under a variety of brand names, including ornate statement pieces like this Maurer 595.

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