News about me, current topics, and some links I'd like you to visit ...

Why this new model top of range of my classical performance guitar ?

My recents thoughts and researches, within the context of the collective project "Lutherie Tools" (see other news below), lead me to think on the accoustic and physical main and judicious parameters about the guitar's body and more accurately about the top. Making rigid structures, to neutralize back and sides effects and so test only the top, I faced the very difficult issue of how to fix the top on this rigid structure. Having refused at first start the glue option to make the joint/unjoint operation easier, I've choosen a in press option, with at first wooden jaws and then with aluminium ones. Depending on the choosen option (wooden or aluminium jaws; screwed on, or bolted on), the results with regard to the top damping, have revealed a great disparity. Therefore I've decided to focus on boundaries conditions of the guitar's top, this very specific vibrating plate.
The model "Arche" is the first ending up of all my thoughts and researches.
For anyone trying to play this guitar, no speech is required to be convinced of the results.
- astonishing sustain
- dynamics and confounding easiness to project the sound
- marvelous timber and richness of sound

This project began in 2001 of a working group with research workers (acousticians, engineers, professors) (LAUM, ENST, ITEMM) and music instruments makers (UNFI members, professional bows ,violins and guitar makers). The goal is to give musical instrument makers measurement and analyser tools to help in making. Up to now are available a tool kit (Lutherie Tools) with an impact hammer, an accelerometer and a specific software. All this enabling the makers, amoung lots of things, to test their instruments with in low frequencies range(Helmholtz frequency, top frequencies) and so to have a very new look at the acouctic quality of their instruments.

See on this subject the issue "Musique et Technique" number 4:
http://www.itemm.fr/site2/page.php?pp=27
Also have a look at the site LAUM :
http://laum.univ-lemans.fr/spip/spip.php?rubrique107#guitar

I often make instrument specific for one musician. Some examples below :

For "Titi Robin"
http://www.thierrytitirobin.com/francais/proches.php
After having made a copy of his Di Mauro guitar, http://www.laguitare.com/2005/titi_robin_jmf.html
I've had the chance to make a Bouzouk for Titi Robin, instrument with specific fingerboard fretting for musical modes he likes to use in his music.

Micro-tonal guitar for Wim Hoogewerf
http://wim.hoogewerf.free.fr/
For this talented musician, found of Bach but also of micro-tonal music, I've made a specific guitar fretted each quarter of tone.

The "Romantic blues" model
http://www.laguitare.com/forum_laguitare_com/guitares-acoustiques/romantique-ls-jean-marie-fouilleul-t10243.html

One more in the range of folk guitars, for a passionated of beautiful instruments, this model is inspired, in shape, of a Grobert guitar of 1820 year. Astonishing richness sounding which shakes up some established ideas about the guitar (acoustic efficiency, timber richness, balance between low and high frequencies ….).

If you like french songs, with well written lyrics and beautiful guitars, have a look and drop your ear on :
http://pagesperso-orange.fr/andre.giroud/index.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcSnwSFMpTY

All about the guitar in france on :
http://www.laguitare.com/

A site for passionate person on "Early Music" guitars :
http://www.anselmus.ch/fr/guitares/guitare_general.htm
http://www.luthier.org/instrumentos.html

If you are expected to travel in France in Brittany, you can also visit :
http://www.archets-poidevin.com/violonre.html
http://www.olivierpont-luthier.com/microviolon.html
http://www.kopo.fr/creations.htm

Guitars of french luthiers currently available on site:
http://www.guitares-de-luthiers.com