Master luthier John Monteleone created a series of four archtop guitars, one for each season. Anthony Wilson of The Met shows how and why each sounds different than the others.
Here’s the description for the Spring guitar:
The “Four Seasons” guitars are a complete musical ensemble conceived and built by the master luthier John Monteleone between 2002 and 2006. Each instrument is a beautiful sounding guitar with its own individual voice that also functions musically with the other members of the ensemble. Spring was built in 2006 and was the final instrument in the quartet. The top is carved out of two pieces of bookmatched quartersawn spruce with a bear claw pattern. It has a cutout on the treble side allowing players to access higher frets on the instrument. The body has a sunburst white to light blue nitrocellulose finish. The soundholes on the top of the instrument are unusual, with three small soundholes on each side of the guitar where traditionally would be found f-holes. The back is carved out of two bookmatched pieces of slab sawn maple with an irregular curly pattern. The bridge is made of two pieces of Macassar ebony with two set screws that allow for adjustment. The fingerboard, headstock veneer, and binding for the body are made of Macassar ebony. Mother-of-pearl and reconstituted turquoise stone are inlaid in floral petal motifs on the pickguard, headstock, and tailpiece. The same materials in triangles are inlaid on the fingerboard as position markers as well as used for the truss rod cover on the headstock. Inlaid diamonds on the side of the neck mark the positions above the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 17th, and 19th frets. The bass side rib, which faces the player, has two elliptical sound holes that give the musician a better sound experience while playing. Inside, opposite the sound holes, are inlaid flowers of mother-of-pearl and reconstituted turquoise.
Learn about The Four Seasons and the songs they inspired on The Met’s website. MetCollects is a lovely series worth checking out.
• MetCollects—Episode 7 / 2017: “The Four Seasons” Guitars (YouTube / TheMet)