Andy Manson

On the EGB symposium, during the Luthiers' Dinner, Andy Manson, one of the EGB's Old Hands has been bestowed the honor of becoming Honorary Member of the EGB.

Andy Manson has been building acoustic instruments since 1967. His work is firmly based in the classic methods, using hand tools wherever possible, and nowadays exclusively hide glue. He also in recent years uses natural oil finishes. The scope of his building includes flat top, arch top and Macaferri style guitars, the carved top mandolin family, Celtic bouzoukis, and various hybrid and multi necked instruments. Andy is now located in Portugal, sharing his workshop with his stepson Seth Baccus, who is proving to be a luthier of great talent.

"Building guitars is for me a way of life. I enjoy the particular disciplines; design, relationship with the materials, the tools, and of course ultimately the music. It is a very broad field, thoroughly dependent upon integrity in every way. A world where knowledge and intuition are inseparable. Sometimes it’s inspirational to hear music in the workshop, I also like to listen to the sound of the knife carving a heel, the chisel paring down a strut, the plane shooting a joint, a pencil drawing a line."

Andy Manson