Schools inside USA
American School of Lutherie, Charles Fox
Portland, OR;
Classroom and hands-on professional training for luthiers of all levels
ARC Guitar
Al Calderone
308 Railroad Ave
Winters CA 95694
530-795-1795; guitars@arcguitar.com
Meets weekly on Saturdays in the Sacramento CA area. The cost for tuition is $50.00 per week for a four hour session. Hands on and classroom instruction are included in each week's session. Class size is limited to 6 students. Approx. 24-26 weeks to complete a guitar
Augusta Heritage Center
Davis & Elkins College, Elkins, WV 26241
800-624-3157 x1209; 304-637-1209
augusta@augustaheritage.com
Summer, intensive week-long classes in fiddle and bow repair, mountain dulcimer construction, instrument repair
Dan Biasca
Portland, OR 503-891-0484; danbiasca@msn.com
(www.northwestwoodworking.com)
Ongoing, 1 night/wk for acoustic guitar construction
JS Bogdanovich Guitars
82 Sean Dr.
Swannanoa, NC 28778
828-398-8704; john@jsbguitars.com
Classes will consist of two day sessions which will take place on Friday and Saturday when offered, and will cover some aspect of the building process. Classes will be demonstration only, therefore photography will be permitted during the presentation
Terry Michael Borman, Borman Violins
1221 E. Rodgers Dr.
Fayetteville, AR, 72701
479-935-9483; terry@bormanviolins.com
6-day intensives in violin setup, varnish, violin making. Prior experience required
Boss Guitars, Jamie Boss
302 East Old Route 6
Hampton, CT 06247
203:218-6199; jamie@hotstringsguitar.com
“Boss guitars” (Formally Hot Strings Guitar Shop) is a small guitar building school hidden away in the Northeast corner of Connecticut on my “First Light Farm.” I have been teaching guitar building for ten years and I offer guitar building classes in steel string (dreadnaught, OM, ooo and parlor), classical, 12 string ( Stella and Holzapfel and tenor guitars. Additionally I restore banjos and mandolins. My guitar building classes are for no more than two students at a time and they are held throughout the year. Each class is 120 hours in length. Traditional guitar building hand tools are emphasized during the course. Additionally, I produce and sell over 20 DVDs on various aspects of guitar building, guitar and banjo set-up and how to play the Tenor guitar and banjo.
Bow Making School of America
See Violin Making School of America
Bow Making Classes taught by Steve Beckley.
Little River Studio in beautiful coastal Mendocino County California.
PO Box 263, Little River, CA 95456
Phone: 707-937-0570;
steve@bowworks.com
The classes are limited to 5 students so that lots of personal attention can be given. High quality sticks and silver mounted frogs and buttons will be supplied.
Bring what tools you have but other tools will be available for your use.
Brian Burns
18000 George's Lane
Fort Bragg, CA 95437
707-961-1064; burnsguitar@yahoo.com; www.lessonsinlutherie.com
Individual, hands-on instruction in classical and flamenco guitar making
Fred Carlson, Beyond the Trees
2026 Back Ranch Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
831-423-9264; wildsols@beyondthetrees.com
Classes, private consultation, and workshops in The Art of Creative Instrument Building available by special arrangement.
Alan Carruth
51 Camel Hump Rd., Newport, NH 03773
603-863-7064; alcarruth@aol.com
Ongoing monthly weekend sessions; guitars, violin family, folk instrument construction; individualized
Chicago School of Guitar Making
1240 N. Homan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60651
773-489-4830; Specimen Products
Courses in guitar building, guitar repair, and tube amp building
Chicago School of Violin Making
3636 Oakton St., Skokie, IL 60076
847-673-9545; fax 847-673-9546
info@csvm.org
3 1/2 years, violin family construction and repair
The Chimneys Violin Maker's Apprenticeship Program
614 Lerew Rd., Boiling Springs, PA 17007
717-258-3203; fax 717-258-3201
edwardcampbell@sprintmail.com
3 or 4 years, violin family construction and repair;
1–4 week intensives in Tucson, AZ in April/May
Eugene Clark
415 S. 118th St., Tacoma, WA 98444
253-548-8376; eldeberkeley@yahoo.com
Day sessions, private tutoring guitar making, French polishing
Colorado School of Lutherie, Edward Victor Dick
Arvada, Colorado
evd303@viawest.net
3hr./wk. for 22 weeks guitar construction
James Condino
Asheville, North Carolina
828-450-5440; secondfret@hotmail.com
Individual instruction and short courses in mandolin, flattop guitar, archtop guitar, and double bass construction
Mike Conklin, Marlee Guitar Company
308 N Roberts Rd
PO Box 5
Oakesdale, WA 99158
509-285-5657; mike@marleeguitars.com
14-week, Saturday, 1 on 1 steel string guitar building tutorial; or 7-month, 1 weekend per month
William Cumpiano
8 Easthampton Rd., Easthampton, MA 01027
413-585-1596 (AM); 413-586-3730 (PM)
william@cumpiano.com
2-week sessions 4- or 5x/yr., individual, one-on-one tutorials in guitar construction; on-line updates to his book, comprehensive website information
The Curbow School of Lutherie
P.O. Box 309
Morganton, GA 30560
706-374-2873; fax 706-374-4247
Simon@Curbow.com
Guitar design and construction
Custom Vibrations
2824 Augusta Hwy
Lexington SC 29072
803-331-0677:
customvibrations@gmail.com
An intensive 6 week course in guitar building and repair.
Rock 'n' Roll Guitar Building School
P.O.Box 6116, Napa, CA 94581
925-812-2589; rocknrollgtrbldr@aol.com
2-week electric guitar or bass building
Eastern School of Fretted Instrument Repair
3352 Route 9 South, Freehold, NJ 07728
732-866-9024; info@repairguitarschool.com
5 month, 30 hours a week, comprehensive guitar and fretted instrument repair training
Jeffrey Elliott and Cyndy Burton
2812 SE 37th Ave., Portland, OR 97202
503-233-0836; jeff"at"elliottguitars.com
Private consultation guitar making, French polishing; and small group two-day intensives
European Lutherie School, Sasha Radicic
5216 Chippewa, St. Louis, MO 63109
314-832-4515; Radicic-guitars@msn.com
Hourly, weekly, monthly, to 1-year classes available; guitar construction and repair; French polishing
Everett Guitars
369 Hillside Drive, Waleska GA 30183
everettguitars@bellsouth.net
5 day intensive steel string guitar instruction
Frank Finocchio, Finocchio Guitars
20 S. Maple St., Easton, PA 18042
610-258-5154; ffino@enter.net
1-week intensives, 4x/yr. in classical, flattop, or archtop guitar, occasional repair class
Harry Fleishman, Luthiers School International
1533 Welter Ct.
Sebastopol, CA 95472
707-823-3537; hfguitars@gmail.com
Hands-on one and two day seminars, individual assistance by appointment, and lecture seminars on a range of lutherie-related topics. Additionally, periodically Harry provides free sessions for musicians to work on their own instruments with assistance.
Fretted Strings
Harrison Phipps
231 G Street, Studio 27
Davis, CA 95616
530-304-1886; repair@frettedstrings.com
Ongoing classes in guitar and ukulele building and repair.
Bryan Galloup's School of Guitar Building and Repair
10840 Northland Dr., Big Rapids, MI 49307
231-796-5611; 800-278-0089; fax 231-796-3837
bryan@galloupguitars.com
2- and 6-month courses in acoustic and electric guitar repair and construction
Mark Geiger, Geiger School Of Lutherie By The Sea
Carmel, CA
626-252-8255; geigerguitars@earthlink.net
Week intensive acoustic building class. One week electric building class and One on One instruction available
Gitana Stringed Instruments and Luthier's Workshop, Thomas Knatt
83 Riverside Ave., Concord, MA 01742
978- 287-0464 or 877-588-4437 (toll free)
877-luthier; tknatt@ziplink.net
1x/wk. guitar construction; 1-month apprenticeships;
9-day summer sessions; monthly 2-day weekend seminars
Haight Guitars
One Week, One Guitar
Scottsdale, AZ
haightguitars.com
Offering private consultation on guitar building and repair
Hamm-tone School of Guitar Building & Repair, N. Jeremy Hamm
www.guitarbuildingschool.com; www.hammtone.com
Winnipeg, Manitoba
204-894-3834; jeremyhammtone@gmail.com
5 week acoustic guitar building class
3 week electric guitar building class
2 & 5 day repair classes
Ted Harlan
Louisville KY
502-637-8844
Year round classes in flat top, archtop and mandolin construction
Paul Hart Violins
36 W. Main St., Mt. Pleasant, UT 84647
435-462-0301; paulhart@cut.net
3–4 year, violin family construction
Hawkins Guitar Luthier School, Brian Hawkins
located in Virginia Beach, VA
(757) 214-2278; support@hawkinsguitar.com
www.facebook.com/hawkinsguitar; http://twitter.com/hawkinsguitar
20 day intense, one on one course. Build a acoustic guitar from scratch.
Indiana University School of Music
Violin Making and Repair Program/Thomas Sparks
Bloomington, IN 47405
812-855-7998; thsparks@indiana.edu
2 years, includes music theory and playing
Drew Johnston
P.O. Box 6297, Kennewick, WA 99336
509-734-1227; uudrew@mac.com
14-hour-home-study video guitar-building course
La Gitana Instruments, Thomas Knatt
687 Townsend Road
Groton, MA 01450
1-978-448-9663; luthiers@alum.mit.edu; thomasknatt@yahoo.com
One day per week guitar making classes
1-month apprenticeships;
21-day summer sessions;
1 or 2-day weekend Introductory Seminars for fretting and setup of guitars
Leeds Guitarmakers’ School, Ivon Schmukler
12 North Main Street, Box 434
Williamsburg, MA 01096
413-582-0034; ivon@leedsguitar.com
1-day to 16-week classes; one-on-one tutorials in flattop, archtop, and classical construction, repair, finishing
Jay Lichty, Lichty Guitars
50 Merrywood Lane
Tryon, NC 28782
828-817-1460; info@lichtyguitars.com
Individual, one-on-one guitar building workshops and small group workshops lichtyguitars.com/2011/01/28/guitar-building-workshops-and-one-on-one-instruction/
Maine Guitarmakers' School
60 Spring lane Rockport, ME 04856
207-594-0032
Individual and class instruction
John Bigelow Martczyanov
541-286-0328; jbmguitarz@yahoo.com
Ongoing Guitar Building Workshops, 8 to 12 weeks. one “and” two times a week sessions available. Learn to design and build your own guitar, Bass or other stringed instrument. I'm offering fun and affordable “hands on” workshops: focus on electric instruments though design elements of acoustic instruments will be discussed, explored and welcome. Accommodates all skill levels. Though basic woodworking helpful. Feel free to call or email for more info.
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, Violin Repair Sessions
375 Church St., N. Adams, MA 01247
413-662-5575; fax 413-662-5104; E.Leibinger@mcla.edu
4, 1-week summer sessions in violin setup and repair with Hans Nebel
Midwest Guitar Repair and Building School
Mike Boggeman
731 Dale Ave., St. Louis, MO 63119
877-453-8119; midwestguitar@aol.com
1-month to 1-year guitar construction; apprenticeships in guitar construction and repair; individual instruction
National String Workshop, String Repair Clinic
University of Wisconsin Ä Madison
720 Lowell Center, 610 Langdon St.
Madison, WI 53703
608-265-5629; 608-263-6670; fax 608-262-1694
cbowles@dcs.wisc.edu
7-day sessions, summer, violin family and bow repair
Nazareth Guitar Institute
14 South Broad STreet
Nazareth, PA 18064
(570) 856-1324; dale@AmericanArchtop.com
Dale Unger of American Archtop Guitars always enjoyed teaching and sharing the skills he has acquired in his 33 years of guitar-building experience. In 1996, he began teaching the art of Lutherie at colleges and workshops all around. In the years following, he opened Nazareth Guitar Institute, a fully equipped studio and workshop located in historic Nazareth, Pennsylvania. Hundreds of students, young and old, some with experience some with none, have attended the school over the years. The school offers many group workshops or a one-on-one dream building workshop. Come and enjoy the passion we have for music and the art of guitar-building.
The New World School of Violin Making, Brian Derber
6970 Red Lake Dr. HC1-119 A
Presque Isle, WI 54557
715-686-7732
3–3 1/2 years violin family; Wisconsin Board certified
Brad Nickerson
70R N Liberty St.
Asheville, NC 28801
nickersonguitars@hotmail.com
Individual instruction in building steel string archtop, flattop, and hollow and semi-hollow electric guitars
North Bennet Street School
150 North Bennet St., Boston, MA 02109
617-227-0155; admissions@nbss.edu
3-year, full-time program in violin making & repair. Financial aid & veterans' benefits available.
Northampton Community College
Martin Guitar Design Workshop
Bethlehem, PA
610-861-4553 or 877-543-0998; fax 610-861-5551
etruscott@northampton.edu
5-day summer guitar-design workshop with Martin staff and archtop maker, Dale Unger
O'Brien Guitars, Robert O'Brien
robert@obrienguitars.com
Hands on individual or two person classical or steel string classes.
Oregon State University, OSU/MU Craft Center
Paul Kincaid
10 Memorial Union East, Corvallis, OR 97331
541-737-2937; craft.center@mu.orst.edu
3-month 1x/week guitar construction
Planet Bluegrass, Michael Hornick
500 W. Main, Lyons, CO 80540
800-624-2422; fax 303-823-0849
planet@bluegrass.com
4-day A-style mandolin building with M. Hornick
Joseph Regh
36 Sherwood Heights, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590
ph/fax 845-297-2521; reghj@aol.com
2-week bow-making course by individual arrangement
Red Rocks School of Woodworking & Lutherie
13300 W. 6th Ave., Lakewood, CO 80228
303-914-6514; Jeremy Cox; jeremy.cox@rrcc.edu
1-day/week, classical, steel string, and electric guitars; mandolin; lutherie certificates are available
Renton Technical College
Musical Instrument Repair Technician Program
3000 NE 4th St., Renton, WA 98056
425-235-2453
Part-time classes in string repair; full-time program (1 year) in brass and woodwind repair
Roberto Venn School of Luthiery
4011 S. 16th St., Phoenix, AZ 85040
602-243-1179; fax 602-304-1175
mail@roberto-venn.com
5 months, guitar making and repair
Bruce Roper, Chicago Luthiers Workshop (www.chicagoluthiers.com) (live link)
Chicago, Illinois
773-528-2426; bsotnw@sbcglobal.net
10-week guitar making class, flexible schedule
Eric Schaefer Guitars,
Eric Schaefer
166 Tulpehocken St.
Bernville, PA
610-639-2777; eric@ericschaeferguitars.com
8 day course where you build your own flattop acoustic out of exotic tonewoods. Maximum of 3 students to a class.
SF Guitarworks
Geoff Luttrell (instructor)
323 Potrero Ave., San Francisco, CA 94103
415-865-5424; info@sfguitarworks.com
Seperate courses covering, Bone Nut Making, Custom Electric Guitar Building, Effects Pedal Building, Guitar Electronics Repair & Upgrade, Fret Leveling, Refretting, and Guitar Setup & Maintenance.
Sound Guitar Workshop
118 North 35th Street, suite 105, Seattle WA 98103
206-547-1407
Acoustic guitar and ukulele construction. 1/2 day, 1-day, and multi-day classes in various aspects of fretted instrument construction and repair.
Classes taught by Cat Fox (Sound Guitar Repair) and Rick Davis (Running Dog Guitars)
Southeast Technical College
308 Pioneer Road
Red Wing, MN 55066
1-800-657-4849; bboedigheimer@southeastmn.edu; dvincent@southestmn.edu
9-month full-time guitar repair and building course, 9-month full-time violin repair; optional electric design & construction & archtop instrument building (mandolin, guitar or violin) courses
Spencer Acoustics, Randy Spencer
Garland, TX
214-537-7178; info@spenceracoustics.com
www.facebook.com/Spencer-Acoustics-344128985716156/
Build every part of the guitar from scratch! NO KITS ALLOWED! Classes are once a week for 3hours (take more classes each week if you wish, $40 per class). Work at your own pace. One on one instruction. Daytime class times are from 10am-1pm and 2pm-5pm Monday thru Saturday. Evening class times M-F are 6pm-9pm.
Uku'le'le school, HA NA LIMA 'IA
718 Puuhale Rd., Honolulu, HI 96819
ph/fax 808-847-1541; ukeman@hanalima.com
1x/wk for 10 weeks, uke building
Utah School of Guitar Making
Director & Luthier: Justin Leslie MA, BA
Mapleton, UT
(385) 685-8011; USGMguitars@gmail.com
www.Facebook.com/utahschoolofguitarmaking
USGM offers both local and national students an opportunity to build a custom mastergrade guitar in an affordable and timely manner. Our school is designed and equipped to offer aggressive builds in 7-10 days without compromising any quality, steps, or playability.
Vermont Instruments, George Morris
P.O. Box 115, Post Mills, VT 05058
802-333-4308; georgem@sover.net
2-week, 4x/yr., beginning, intermediate, and advanced guitar making
Violin and Bow Making and Restoration Institute
College of the Redwoods
Community Education
605 K St. Eureka, CA 95501
Contact: ginevra-blake@redwoods.edu or call 707-269-4000
Week long workshops in violin or bow making and restoration taught by Boyd Poulsen or Steve Lohmann and Lynn Hannings. Winter and summer sessions are one week long, with 2-3 weeks offered in each discipline
Violin Craftsmanship Institute
University of New Hampshire Professional Development & Training Room G50
11 Garrison Avenue, Durham, NH 03824
603-862-7380; fax 603-862-7381
professional.development@unh.edu
1-week workshops (in the summer) led by internationally renowned craftsmen on violin building, maintenance, and repair, bow rehiring, and bow making and repair
Violin Making School of America
Bow Making School of America
308 E. 200 S., Salt Lake City, UT 84111
801-364-3651; 800-801-3651; fax 801-364-3652
info@prierviolins.com
3 years, violin family construction and repair
Wells School of Lutherie
Daytona Beach, FL
781-361-1471; sylvan@wellsguitars.com
One on one instruction for 8 straight days. At the end of the course the student takes home with him the guitar he made!
Bob Zatzman Guitar Repair
8024 Germantown Ave.(rear), Philadelphia, PA 19118
215-247-5010
Apprenticeships by private arrangement |
