Vermont Instruments

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This is a very challenging and intense course designed to fit into most people’s busy lives. The course offers the first-time builder the chance to develop skills and study the craft by building a steel-stringed or classical guitar from the ground up, using the same high-quality raw materials that we use for our own instruments. Students choose the size, shape, materials, and tonal characteristics of their guitars, and learn the skills necessary to continue their own creative work upon graduation.

In the Guitar Building Basics Course everyone builds a straight-ahead, high-quality guitar with special attention paid to the most important aspects of the instrument: craftsmanship, tonal quality, playability, and strong design. With enrollment limited to five, we provide a great deal of personal attention. People work daily in tandem with the instructor, George Morris, a thirty-year veteran of the craft, who builds an instrument along with everyone during the course. We follow a shop manual detailing a day-by-day, blow-by-blow account of each task, along with supportive technical and theoretical information. It is designed to emphasize innovation and flexibility, not sameness and high production. We follow the hand-building tradition, not the factory model. We wish to further the craft by incorporating useful modern techniques with traditional wisdom. Students learn general wood-working skills such as using and sharpening chisels and planes, routers and saws, and also guitar-specific skills peculiar to the craft. The course is tailored to do two things: produce a very fine instrument and, more importantly, prepare students to continue their own work as soon as possible without having to invest in expensive equipment.

Students are encouraged to use our extensive library of books, journals, magazines, and videos while they are here to deepen there knowledge of the craft. Tuition is $3000 and includes all materials and supplies, and on-site housing with two fully-equipped kitchens. Guitar cases, pick-ups, amps and other accessories can be purchased from the school at below market prices. We supply on-going technical support for all graduates.