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Making guitars in a changing world

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Out of Africa: Changing the world one guitar at a time

Posted on December 17, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

A Canadian guitar maker initiated a trade school in Uganda that trains young people to make world class guitars.

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Sleeping giants: Ancient Kauri from Far North New Zealand

Posted on November 22, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Old growth Kauri trees are now found only in small remnant areas. But huge ancient logs buried in peat yield spectacular wood.

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The Cadillac of Woods: Brazilian Rosewood

Posted on October 14, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Brazilian Rosewood has a long history as a prized tonewood, but its over-exploitation and subsequent trade restrictions mean it is now scarce.

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Quenda, Zanda, Jacaranda! What’s in a name?

Posted on August 30, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Correctly identifying and putting a name to species is important for both conservation and trade. Many species are at increasing risk of extinction, including some of the trees that produce the most prized guitar woods. Here I look at the ins and outs of biological names.

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Mighty oaks, whisky and guitars

Posted on July 13, 2020June 10, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Guitars and whisky barrels? The oak wood in the Fylde Single Malt Ariel started life in Kentucky and cycled through bourbon and single malt whisky barrels.

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From forest giant in Canada to floorboards in Australia

Posted on May 29, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

How the global timber trade turned giant Douglas Fir from Vancouver Island into floorboards in Fremantle.

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The big picture: storylines for the nature of music

Posted on May 29, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Traditional materials for making guitars have been getting scarcer and caught up in tangles with trade restrictions. How are guitar makers responding?

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At home with the Hendersons

Posted on April 23, 2020July 15, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Visiting guitar-making father and daughter, Wayne and Jayne Henderson, in Virginia and North Carolina and watching amazing guitars being created.

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A message from Richard Hoover of Santa Cruz Guitar Company

Posted on March 31, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Guitar makers, like virtually everyone, have been impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic in many ways, but continue to hope for a better future.

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Why write about guitars when the world’s falling apart?

Posted on March 25, 2020January 4, 2022 by Richard Hobbs

Thinking and writing about guitars may seem fatuous in the midst of an all-consuming pandemic, but music remains as important to the human soul as ever.

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