It was close to 3am on the last day of our month long course that I finished my guitar. Flight home reservations were 1 o clock that afternoon but the guitar was strung and playable.

My internal body clock had been programmed for a 30 day sojourn and despite the incredibly long workday/nites and precious few sleep hours.. the guitar was complete! Looking back I remember complete exhaustion. My body and accompanying faculties were shutting down. I can remember Sergei and other members of the group playing the guitar and oddly I was very distant from the results. What was directly foremost in my mind was the fact that I got to spend this incredible amount of time with Sergei and his family; and I was rather sad that the sessions were ending. Its been over two years since the Oshawa episodes and back home in my workshop I continue to make guitars and ukuleles. I have now made both other latticed braced guitars and Kasha/Schneider guitars as well as ukuleles. In fact the norm is to alternate construction of either modified Kasha/Schneider guitars or modified latticed braced guitars. Actually I'm also starting a traditional fan braced classical guitar based on a soundboard layout by luthier Carlos Caruncho...



Its very late in the evening and I happen to pull out the lattice braced guitar and play a few notes and chords and the reason why I continue to make instruments becomes clear. It never fails to bring a smile to my lips to hear an instrument that you have lovingly handcrafted actually respond to your touch and produce clear and articulate notes. I'll then inspect the guitar again,checking out the purflin lines and bindings..the shape and neck contours..the whole nine yards and yup ...a few synapses fire back twixt one another and the slight stirrings in my brain confirm that I am off to the shop in the morning; recharged and ready to improve upon my work.

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