I really wanted to travel and I was thinking of buying a classical guitar when I heard about Stephen’s course at The European Institute of Guitar Making. I had practically no woodworking experience, but I’m a pretty creative person and I was really excited about the idea of building my own classical guitar. So I contacted Stephen and the next day I was booking my flight to Spain to be a part of his September 2015 course.It was one of the best and most impulsive decisions I ever made.
I was blown away by how beautiful La Herradura was when I got off the bus, and quickly fell in love with guitar making from the first day of the course. Within a week, I didn’t want to go back to Canada. I had no idea how to use a block plane or a chisel, but Stephen was extremely effective at teaching me how to use all the tools and equipment. I ended up making a beautiful classical guitar out of Cedar and Padauk, and the guitar is above and beyond all my expectations in terms of visual beauty, sound quality, and playability. On top of that, I also made new friendships with amazing people from all over the world.
I talked to Stephen about halfway through my course and we came to an agreement of letting me stay longer and build a second guitar, a decision that led to me becoming his apprentice.
The courses Stephen runs at The European Institute of Guitar Making are incredible, life-changing events and I would recommend them to anyone, especially guitarists or anyone wanting to build their own guitar.
Go to his website www.evankingmaguitars.com