 Musical Instruments: What do Eric Clapton, Nancy Wilson, Johnny Cash, Sting, Roy Rogers, Tom Petty, Steve Howe Judy Collins, Cathy Fink, Gene Autry, Lester Flatt, and Woody Guthrie all have in common? Each of these artists has at least one signature-edition guitar made in their honor by the Martin Guitar Company. Since 1833, this company has produced some of the greatest acoustic guitars ever made. A listing of the musicians who own a Martin guitar would be among the largest list of Who's Who in the History of Music. Free of stereotypical classifications, owners of Martin acoustic guitars are a diverse group who stem from all musical genres. Elvis Presley played a D-28 while making all of the famous Sun Record recording sessions. Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds has a signature-edition guitar in his honor. It is the quality of the sound that has hooked all of them.
Many of Martin's stock-model guitars were made of Brazilian rosewood until 1969. Due to the scarcity of the wood and an embargo imposed by Brazil, Martin switched to East Indian rosewood. The one-millionth guitar manufactured by Martin, which was made in 2004, consists of rare Brazilian rosewood, straight-grained Adirondack spruce, ebony, mother-of-pearl, abalone, fossilized ivory, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, aquamarine, copper, platinum, silver, and white and yellow gold. The "bling-o-meter" reading of this six-string extravaganza is unquestionably off the hook.
The Martin Guitar Company is a family-owned business that has had at the helm six generation of Martins. It makes acoustic guitars for players of all levels. Prices do vary based upon the materials used, but the devotion to achieving the highest sound quality is found in all of Martin's acoustic guitars.
The Hidden Treasures section of the firm's website has a listing of out-of-stock, limited-edition guitars and the locations where these beauties are available for sale. The company's website contains various sections that guitar aficionado should visit. The Martin Guitar Museum, which opened in February 2006, can be seen while touring the manufacturing plant in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
For LxM James Rothaar |
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