Classical Guitar Making DVD Coming
Writing the book was a monumental project and after it was over I needed to rest a bit, and then return to my usual building schedule. Since then I have heard from hundreds of people all over the world regarding the book and almost everyone had the same question, will there be DVD?
At first the idea of yet another major project was not appealing to me, also I did not want to merely repeat the same material over again. As the requests piled up I rethought the idea of a DVD series and began to realize that it would not be necessary to repeat the same material, or use the same techniques. I could make a DVD series on making a true concert classical guitar, using my current guitar design, and implementing different techniques along the way.
So I did some research and found that there were no classical guitar making videos available, and the other guitar making videos were way too long and difficult to watch because of that, for starters. So I put together a production crew and set out to make a video series on building a concert classical guitar. The idea being the book showed how to make a classical guitar, the DVD series will show how to make a concert quality instrument, a better guitar if you will. In this video series different techniques will be used which may be more appealing to some people, and every step of the way is clearly demonstrated without being unnecessarily long by editing to maximize flow.
Shooting for the video series began in October of 2008 and was completed in July of 2009. The entire video series was shot by a highly skilled camera crew in HD using two cameras to capture all the action and provide close tight shots where necessary. Sample footage will soon be available for viewing, so please check back. The release for the series is tentatively set for late fall of '09.
The video was shot as if the viewer is looking over my shoulder as I build the instrument. Everything is not only clearly presented visually but explained in detail as it is taking place. The series will include video of the entire process from boards to finished guitar, on screen drawings and graphics, some animated in 3D for clarity, and the finished guitar being played by professional players both in the shop and in a studio.
The guitar being built in the video is the exact design I currently used on all my guitars. This design is a bit more challenging than the design used in the book. The intent here is now that you have built a guitar, try building a better, more elegant one. The configuration is Indian rosewood back and sides, European spruce top, with a completely new and different detail scheme including a new rosette design. Even a different type of finish is applied to the instrument.
The number of DVD's in the package is not known at this time but the intent is to try and keep it under 10. This way a lot of unnecessary footage will be edited down making a more interesting and nicely flowing viewing experience. Free downloads of some of the fixtures and tools used in the video will be available on the site. Also, full size plans and acetate for this design will also be available at reasonable prices. The templates and molds sold on the site for use with the book design will also work for this design.
Since the media technology at the present time makes it economically impractical to release in HD, the series will be released in SD 16:9 wide screen until the technology makes it affordable for HD release.
Check back occasionally for new information on the release of this DVD series. More will be known in the coming months.
