www.classicalguitars.ca

Handmade
Classical Guitars
by
Fritz Mueller

Frequently asked questions

Do you still build traditionally-constructed guitars?

Not at the present time. My current focus is entirely on double-tops.

Interestingly enough, I have had no new orders for traditional guitars since I began offering double-tops four years ago, which means my current emphasis on double-tops is as much my customers' decision as my own.

How long does it take to make a double-top guitar?

There are about five to six weeks of labour in one of my instruments, although from beginning to end it takes approximately four to six months, since the guitars need to hang for several weeks while the finish hardens. Usually I build two instruments at a time. I make all the rosettes and purflings myself.

I heard one of your double-tops that I liked a lot. Can I get one just like it?

Not "exactly" like it, but very close. I keep extensive records of all the elements that have gone into a guitar -- the types of woods, their weight, stiffness, resonances,and so on -- and I try to keep sister cuts of wood in stock. This means that I can usually duplicate an instrument fairly well.

I've been particularly successful in achieving instrument-to-instrument consistency with double-tops. Probably that's because so much of the acoustic nature of a double-top is dependent on how the top is assembled, and not simply on the qualities of a single piece of top wood, as in traditional construction. Quality of wood is still very important, of course, but probably less so than in traditional construction.

Do you offer a lifetime warranty?

Yes, and with proper care, my instruments will undoubtedly have a long, happy, musical life.

My approach is fairly simple, really -- build to the highest standard so that repairs are never needed, and offer a lifetime warranty just in case.

Do double-top instruments sound like lattice-top guitars?

No. Lattice-top construction works on quite a different principle than composite or double-top construction. In a lattice guitar, the top is ultra thin (perhaps .5 mm) and is held up by a strong lattice-work of braces. In composite construction, the assembled top is as stiff and thick as a traditional solid top and is braced fairly lightly, just as in traditional construction.

Unlike lattice-top guitars, my double-tops have the traditional tonality of the classical guitar. There are probably many reasons why this is so, but I believe it is primarily because they duplicate the resonances of traditional, solid-wood construction. Once it is assembled, one of these composite tops looks and acts a whole lot like a solid top, only it is much, much lighter.

Is there a characteristic double-top sound? Do double-tops by all builders sound about the same?

Loudness and responsiveness are qualities I associate with double tops, but since there are many, many ways to assemble a composite top, double-tops by different builders can sound very different.

I'll make a small prediction. Composite-top construction is here to stay, but it will be two or three decades before players (and many builders) lose their distrust of the "new technology". Eventually composite construction will be seen as nothing out of the ordinary, but as simply one of the many wonderful options available to musicians and builders, akin to, say, the choice we now have between cedar and spruce. Remember when cedar was "experimental"?

[Update November, 2004:] How could I have been so pessimistic? After attending the 2004 GFA in Montreal, it's obvious that acceptance of composite construction, as well as many of the other innovations by contemporary builders, is here now!

What are the musical benefits of double-tops?

Here's one benefit: the increased dynamic range.

Most classical guitarists play with a very limited dynamic range -- loud and soft, basically. Dynamic contrast has not really been that important a part of the music, primarily because the instruments have never before had much dynamic capability.

As an example, I recently attended the concert of a world-class player, who played impeccably, as usual. However, part way through the concert I realized that it was all at a single dynamic level -- not even two levels, just one. I was amazed. Here is an extremely skilled and respected musician, one who is helping to define the contemporary classical guitar, and he plays without dynamics. But in this case there was an even greater irony: the instrument he was using is a Dammann double top. So even when it is possible, he doesn't use dynamics!

Double-tops are loud, and there will be a temptation for many players to simply crank up the volume. However, there is an exciting new capability here, and that is to incorporate several distinct dynamic levels into the music. Once players understand this, I believe they will never be able to turn back.

And here's another benefit: sustain. Players routinely tell me they've never before played a guitar with so much sustain. Again, this is a capability that the traditional instrument doesn't have, and as a result players haven't been able to exploit it in their music.

What is honeycomb?

Honeycomb is the material that I am currently using between the “skins” in my double-tops. It is made by a number of manufacturers, and comes in a variety of materials and sizes. Right now I’m using Hexcel’s aramid-fiber honeycomb, which, frankly, looks like it might be made from brown paper bags. The cells are hexagonal and are about 2-3 mm across; the aramid paper, which is a synthetic, forms the cell walls.

It's certainly possible to use other materials in place of honeycomb. Gernot Wagner once described to me a system that he had used that employed tiny strips of balsa wood arranged in a grid between the skins. I imagine that it gave good results, but the advantage of honeycomb is that it is extremely light -– only a few grams are needed for a guitar top.

Honeycomb is not new. The aeronautics industry has been using it for many decades; there is a substantial engineering literature about it and its use in composite construction. And honeybees figured out the structural advantages of hexagonal cells millennia ago.

Is honeycomb musical?

In itself it’s not, in that it doesn't have a definable "tap tone". But the completed composite top definitely is, with all the resonance and ring of a traditionally-made guitar top.

What about the evenness of the sound of your guitars?

I believe that the evenness of my double-tops, both across the strings and along them, is exceptional. One important reason is the control I now have over the frequencies of the major resonances of the instruments. Also, in a composite top the resonances respond over a particularly broad frequency range, which is extremely beneficial. (Read more about resonances here.)

Do you put epoxy-graphite in your braces?

No, and I have no plans to do so at the present time.

What is the purpose of the raised neck?

The raised neck, or more accurately, the raised fingerboard, makes access to the frets above the body of the guitar somewhat easier. Most players find it quite helpful, and also very easy to adapt to.

Unlike some builders, I don't believe that a raised neck affects the sound of the instrument differently than does a conventional neck. Certainly it doesn't give the guitar a harp-like sound.

Are your instruments like the Contreras double-top?

I don’t think so. I’ve never examined a Contreras double-top, but it’s my understanding that it is constructed very differently than composite-tops.

This points out some of the confusion that comes with calling these instruments “double-tops”. A more accurate term for the guitars that I build (and for those of Dammann and Wagner) would be “composite-tops”. However, the momentum to refer to this style of construction as "double-top" is probably too great to change now.

Is it possible to replace the top on my current conventional instrument with a composite top?

Yes, and there would likely be a significant increase in loudness and responsiveness, although the final result would depend on the rest of the instrument -- the stiffness of the back, the size of the air cavity, etc. Like any other guitar, the sound of a double-top is not simply dependent on the configuration given the top of the instrument

November, 2004, update: A few players have read this and have contacted me about replacing the top on their existing guitar. While it is definitely possible to do so, and it might seem like an economical way to get a doubletop, it is also somewhat risky. I should have emphasized much more strongly that the success of the final outcome depends just as much on the construction of the rest of the instrument as it does on the top, and that top replacements shouldn't be undertaken without considerable thought about the pros and cons.

Do you tune your tops?

Yes, by which I mean that I set the frequencies of the major resonances of the instrument to specific targets that I've developed over the years. In most of my instruments the main air resonance is between F and F#, the main top resonance is between G and G#, and the main back resonance is between A and A#. Nearly all the Hauser instruments that I've examined, including Segovia's Hauser, employ a similar resonance distribution.

Resonances are so important to the character and success of a guitar that I’m writing a small essay on them, which you will be able to read here.

November, 2004, update: On recent instruments I've set the top's fundamental resonance at F#, and I like the increased richness and fullness that is the result. Read more here.

When do you plan to retire? I'm wondering how long my warranty will last.

I have no plans yet to retire, and if guitarbuilding continues to be this interesting, I may never do so. But, realistically, I'm 58 now, and if I build guitars until I'm 75, then that's a 17-year warranty.

Are you a scientific builder or an intuitive builder?

Both and neither. I’m quite happy to use any approach that helps me understand how guitars work and that improves my instruments. Science and intuition are both very important, but the best way to improve, as always, is to constantly test the instruments against the music. After they’re built, I like to play them a lot, and I like to hear them a lot. Somehow from that I form an impression, and even a judgment, and usually a direction in which to proceed. It’s somewhat chaotic, I suppose, but it keeps what’s musically interesting and exciting in the forefront.

People often ask me if I have in mind a particular sound as I’m developing my instruments, and I do, although it would be hard to describe -- equal parts of clarity and fullness and magic, perhaps. Really, it's an experience that I'm after. There’s an amazing experience of beauty that the guitar can give, and it's that that I’m seeking.

How have your double-tops changed in the last few years?

November, 2004, update: There have been several changes, some of them quite recent.

I've made improvements in the graduation of the top that strengthen the treble strings, in particular the 1st string from the 10th to the 20th frets.

I've made some modifications to the back graduation and barring that allow the back and top to work together more easily and that better bring the resonant qualities of the back wood into the voice of the instrument.

I've experimented with a deeper body and a lower fundamental resonance for the top (down from G to F#) and am happy enough with the results that I've adopted both changes as a standard on my instruments. Both of these improvements increase the richness of the sound, while the resonance drop to F# (which is the result of a decrease in the stiffness of the top) makes for noticeably less tension in the strings -- easier to play!

And I've added some new features to improve the functionality of the instrument -- an adjustable neck rod, an armrest, and a removable access panel. Read about these features here.

What famous players use your instruments?

No famous players have seen my guitars, but there are now a few almost-famous players using them.

Why are there so few testimonials on your website?

I've thought of creating a page of comments from players about my guitars, but have yet to do so, probably from inertia, but also from a distrust of that sort of marketing. This question is somewhat like the preceding one, and generally, I like to let players make up their own minds about my instruments.

I also appreciate Richard Brune's comment that it's dangerous for a builder to base his business on the name of a famous player. What happens when the famous player begins playing someone else's instrument, as will inevitably happen one day?

But I do get many positive comments from players. They receive their guitar, rightfully expecting a loud instrument, and they're overwhelmed by the extremely musical quality of the sound.

Some of the best comments are also the simplest. Here's one of my favourites, from a very happy customer who also understood how hard I've worked to understand and exceed what the German builder Matthias Dammann is doing: "Fritz, you are da man!"

Do you offer an apprenticeship or teach guitar-building?

At the present time, no. In the future I hope to create some instructional materials, probably simply as a self-published binder, but perhaps as an online course. Write if you are interested.

With all the options and variations possible in one of your guitars, what is your favourite combination?

I thought you would never ask! Go here for a brief discussion.

What is the name of your cat?

Obviously no one asked this question, so I asked it myself. The answer is: Hauser.

Hauser die Katze

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