Here are 100 books that Guitarmaking fans have personally recommended if you like
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Michael Dresdner is a nationally known finishing and woodworking expert and guitar maker/designer, author of five books and several videos on wood finishing and guitar making. He’s been a Contributing Editor to Fine Woodworking Magazine, American Woodworker Magazine, and Woodworker’s Journal, wrote the Just Finishing byline column for American Woodworker Magazine for over 7 years, and the Finishing Thoughts byline column for Woodworker’s Journal for almost 20 years. While a consultant to one of the country’s largest coatings conglomerates, he wrote answers to over 8,000 questions for the www.woodanswers.com website blog and edited the Woodworker’s Journal eZine, an award-winning online woodworking magazine with over a quarter of a million subscribers.
Forget the tape measure. Leave the fractions, decimals, and mathematics behind. Long before the tape measure was a universal adornment on the woodworker’s belt, people designed furniture, houses, bridges, and cathedrals using nothing more than simple whole number ratios. This slender tome will show you how to do just that and will entertain you along the way.
Cartoon character, "Journeyman" and his dog, "Snidely" teach the basics of furniture making. Geometry is a major component of the instruction plus the basic tools of the trade are explained and applied to this art. A novice will truly learn the craft while an experienced carpenter will find this enjoyable reading.
Michael Dresdner is a nationally known finishing and woodworking expert and guitar maker/designer, author of five books and several videos on wood finishing and guitar making. He’s been a Contributing Editor to Fine Woodworking Magazine, American Woodworker Magazine, and Woodworker’s Journal, wrote the Just Finishing byline column for American Woodworker Magazine for over 7 years, and the Finishing Thoughts byline column for Woodworker’s Journal for almost 20 years. While a consultant to one of the country’s largest coatings conglomerates, he wrote answers to over 8,000 questions for the www.woodanswers.com website blog and edited the Woodworker’s Journal eZine, an award-winning online woodworking magazine with over a quarter of a million subscribers.
When the day’s work is done, sit down with a mug of something pleasant and crack open this sumptuous coffee table book. Inside you will find incredibly beautiful photos of some of the finest, and most typical, hand tools ever made. From simple plumb bobs to complex rose engine lathes, from plain worker’s tools to some of the most intricately ornamented ones, take a journey through both time and craft to drool over some of the most amazing hand tools ever crafted.
"The Art of Fine Tools" is a visual collection featuring more than 250 woodworking tools from Japan, China, USA, Britain and Europe built over the last 300 years. It also presents historical and technical information along with descriptions and uses of each example.
Michael Dresdner is a nationally known finishing and woodworking expert and guitar maker/designer, author of five books and several videos on wood finishing and guitar making. He’s been a Contributing Editor to Fine Woodworking Magazine, American Woodworker Magazine, and Woodworker’s Journal, wrote the Just Finishing byline column for American Woodworker Magazine for over 7 years, and the Finishing Thoughts byline column for Woodworker’s Journal for almost 20 years. While a consultant to one of the country’s largest coatings conglomerates, he wrote answers to over 8,000 questions for the www.woodanswers.com website blog and edited the Woodworker’s Journal eZine, an award-winning online woodworking magazine with over a quarter of a million subscribers.
Now that you’ve mastered clear finishes and can make your prettiest wood projects glow with pride, it may be time to turn to a bit of whimsy. There are a wealth of “painted finishes” that completely change wood into something very different. They go from simple faux bois (fake wood grain) to complex recreations of quill, bamboo, and stone (malachite, lapis, etc.) This introduction to the art of making wood look like marble will give you both ideas and techniques for your finishing playtime.
Throughout history, decorative painters have captured the magic of marble in paint. For many people today, the painted illusion of marbling represents a way of introducing colour, elegance and atmosphere into their surroundings. This book explains the techniques.
Michael Dresdner is a nationally known finishing and woodworking expert and guitar maker/designer, author of five books and several videos on wood finishing and guitar making. He’s been a Contributing Editor to Fine Woodworking Magazine, American Woodworker Magazine, and Woodworker’s Journal, wrote the Just Finishing byline column for American Woodworker Magazine for over 7 years, and the Finishing Thoughts byline column for Woodworker’s Journal for almost 20 years. While a consultant to one of the country’s largest coatings conglomerates, he wrote answers to over 8,000 questions for the www.woodanswers.com website blog and edited the Woodworker’s Journal eZine, an award-winning online woodworking magazine with over a quarter of a million subscribers.
Whether starting from scratch or expanding into new woodworking ventures, correctly setting up your shop can spell the difference between success and failure. Here’s where to come for information on electricity and lighting, tools, heating and ventilation, dust collection, benches, shop layout, and even safety. You’ll know what to buy, what to avoid, and what to do to make your workspace as efficient and comfortable as possible, no matter what flights of woodworking fancy you pursue.
This book is ideal for fitting a shop for the first time, or expanding an existing shop. "Setting Up Shop, Revised" takes the practical knowledge and ingenious solutions of the first edition and combines them with additional photos and drawings to create the most comprehensive workshop book on the market. Includes new photos and also updates on technology especially regarding dust collection, pneumatic tools and safety. With guidance on the best shop location, shop layout, equipping the shop with tools and accessories, shop safety and storage.
I’ve been making guitars for about 30 years now and love it. I’m mostly self-taught and there were some pretty rough instruments early on, but I got better with every one. I’ve lost track of how many I’ve made and my favorite is always the next one. I learned my craft from people who took the time to write about it. I’ve now written dozens of articles and three books on guitars. As a professor, I run a guitar-making lab and teach classes on stringed instrument design and manufacture. I hope to do my part to help new builders the way others have helped me.
This is very nice a two-volume set, written by Trevor Gore, an accomplished guitar maker with an extensive technical background, and Gerard Gilet, a builder of fine acoustic guitars. This is required reading for people who are interested both in how to make guitars and how they work.
I have been building guitars and related instruments since 1994. My enthusiasm for guitar construction led me to deeply explore all aspects of the art and to share as much information as I can with others via my lutherie information website, writing for American Lutherie, published books, and my research publications. I am fortunate to count myself among those that consider building stringed musical instruments to be one of the best things one can do.
There is nothing that enhances the process of building guitars more than having a solid foundation in the history of the instrument.
Although there are a number of excellent guitar histories available, few offer as clear and accessible information as this book does. The book is the catalog of a traveling museum show about guitars that was curated by the author at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.
It is lavishly illustrated, and contains just the right amount of text on the subject to keep the reader engaged. No builder of stringed musical instruments should be without this book.
"The guitar and the dog, in order not to be separated from man, have submitted themselves with resignation to the worst alterations of size and appearance." Andres Segovia
I’ve been making guitars for about 30 years now and love it. I’m mostly self-taught and there were some pretty rough instruments early on, but I got better with every one. I’ve lost track of how many I’ve made and my favorite is always the next one. I learned my craft from people who took the time to write about it. I’ve now written dozens of articles and three books on guitars. As a professor, I run a guitar-making lab and teach classes on stringed instrument design and manufacture. I hope to do my part to help new builders the way others have helped me.
This is a beautiful book written by a master, who wants to inspire others to make classical guitars. These nylon string guitars look outwardly like other acoustic guitars. However, they are for a different kind of music and are made differently. Bogdanovich does a great job in leading a new builder through each step. I refer to this book a lot. It’s so nicely produced that I find myself just browsing through it, even when I’m not actually working on a classical guitar.
What a thrill for any musician: playing a fine-sounding instrument that he or she has lovingly crafted from scratch. With this richly illustrated manual, well-known luthier and guitarist John Bogdanovich shows exactly how to build that first, beautiful guitar, using traditional, time-tested methods. All that’s required are basic woodworking techniques and a minimally equipped shop. Bogdanovich discusses the anatomy of the guitar, sound, choosing an instrument, selecting woods, templates and molds, and preparation. In more than 300 pages of text, he painstakingly lays out the details of construction, from assembling the neck and sides to installing the fingerboard and bridge.
I’m a children’s book author with a Master of Education in Language and Literacy who loves the musicality of words. Growing up in a musical family, I started piano lessons in second grade, clarinet lessons in fourth, and dabbled a bit in saxophone in high school. Clarinet was the instrument that really stuck for me – I played in bands, pit bands, and orchestras all through school and beyond. My picture book Clarinet and Trumpet blasted forth from my own band experiences.
This book makes a wonderful read-aloud for a music class or a library storytime. The main character, Mr. V the band director, introduces each instrument in the band. The best feature of this book? It’s funny! Kids will crack up as the young drummer keeps interrupting right before each instrument in the band is about to play. As a former clarinetist, my favorite line is, “Listening to a clarinet is like eating rich chocolate cake, bold and sweet at the same time.” Warning to parents: any reader who hasn’t yet chosen their just-right instrument will ask to after reading this book! (If your little readers love Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein or Z is for Moose by Kelly Bingham and Paul O. Zelinsky, I bet they’ll love this one, too.)
No matter where you are, you can find the perfect instrument and join this band! A winning pick for young readers who adore books by Jory John, Mac Barnett, and Christian Robinson.
The band director knows everything about all the instruments, and he can't wait to help find the perfect one for you. But an irrepressible young girl keeps interrupting with enthusiastic BOOM BOOM BOOMS on her drum. At least until the band director introduces one instrument that's even louder.
This laugh-out-loud picture book from National Book Award-longlisted author Colleen AF Venable is packed with boundless energy and giggle-worthy jokes-as…
I am an award-winning composer, author, and educator. Since 1990 I have had the privilege of teaching others about music through my concerts, children’s books, academic books, lessons, and online courses.
This is a great little book for introducing younger readers to their first pieces of classical music. Although it is meant for a younger audience, there are many anecdotes that slightly older readers will also enjoy. The accompanying music is available in both a CD and an online version. The recordings are from Naxos which has an excellent music library of top-notch performances. A great value!
My First Classical Music Book is a delightfully colorful introduction to classical music, designed to fire the imagination of children aged 5-7 years. Readers are asked to think about the different places in which we might hear music. Then, each of the major composers and musical instrument families are introduced and brought to life in a vivid and enchanting way. Throughout the book, children are referred to the accompanying audio CD so that they can hear examples as they read. This is the most exceptional book of its kind, providing an absorbing experience for both eyes and ears.
I’m a children’s book author with a Master of Education in Language and Literacy who loves the musicality of words. Growing up in a musical family, I started piano lessons in second grade, clarinet lessons in fourth, and dabbled a bit in saxophone in high school. Clarinet was the instrument that really stuck for me – I played in bands, pit bands, and orchestras all through school and beyond. My picture book Clarinet and Trumpet blasted forth from my own band experiences.
This book not only introduces readers to the sections and instruments in an orchestra, it does so in lyrical, rhythmic, rhyming verse. Readers will love saying – and hearing – sounds like “pling…plung,” “lootle-oots,” and “bumble, boom…crash!” As a bonus, readers learn musical terms like “arpeggio,” “glissando,” and “diminuendo.” The illustrations are colorful and dynamic and remind me of a movie I loved as a child – Fantasia!
"A symphony soars in rhyming couplets.There are many other introductions-to-the-orchestra titles out there, but few have such charm. Pleasing to the eye and ear." -Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
"Like a 21st-century update of Lloyd Moss's virtuoso Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin, this really is a magical, musical book." -School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
Best Picture Books of 2021--School Library Journal
Music! Music! Oh, how grand! A language we all understand. Get swept away by the musical performance of a lifetime as, one by one, each instrument of the symphony orchestra shows off their skills!
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