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About Gary
A passion for playing guitars at an early age,
combined with a love of wood learnt from my father, a bespoke cabinet
maker, led me to become a guitar maker.
During the years 1980-83, I studied at the London College of Furniture,
under the wonderful Herbert Schwarz. The fact that many of the finest
makers and repairers working around the world today were taught by him, or
inspired by his and his students’ work, shows the extent of his influence.
I believe the modern British guitar making scene would not be so vibrant
today without his unique input, though he was too modest to say such a
thing.
I had additional tutoring from Tony Smith, and on
historical guitars, from Stephen Barber, whose fine work with Sandi Harris
can be seen at
lutesandguitars.co.uk.
In 1983 I set up my own workshop in Nottingham
specializing in 19th century guitars, the only maker specializing in this
field at that time.
I have researched, and continue to research and
document many instruments from around the world. I have worked on many
public and private collections, including those at Edinburgh University,
the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Paris Conservatoire and the
Metropolitan Museum in New York. In 1991 I received a grant by the British
Council to study guitars in Russia, and spent many fascinating weeks in
Moscow and St Petersburg studying collections and talking to makers there
at a time when Russia, or the USSR, was not easily accessible to the rest
of the world.
I have worked with many leading guitarists who
perform 19th century music. I have written articles and lectured about
period guitars, and have acted as a consultant for other makers and
collectors interested in this period.
I began to shift my focus to modern guitar making
in 1992 with my own concert guitars and started developing my ‘A Series
Guitar’ with David Starobin. I have been making Hauser guitars for Julian
Bream since 1995, and I have been working closely with John Williams
developing systems for amplifying nylon string guitars. Most of my work
schedule is now taken up with making my A Series guitars, with occasional
work on historical guitars and special commissions.
*taken directly from Gary Southwell's site at
http://www.southwellguitars.co.uk/about_gary.shtml |
