About the Luthiers Journey article series
Richard Morgan is a maker (luthier) from Australia and a member of theMandolinTuner community. From the moment that Richard joined theMandolinTuner we started exchanging e-mails and I was very happy to read about his work, especially as Richard mandolins (and mandolas, mandocellos, etc.) are truly innovative, featuring a unique sound-board design and lots of other innovations as well.
Soon, I start thinking of Richard as a friend of mine and I shared with him my vision of creating a section for luthiers within theMandolinTuner, something I believe would be very interesting for theMandolinTuner community. I am happy to say that Richard liked my idea and what you read now is a series of articles we have planned as the first step towards realizing this vision. I named this article series “A Luthiers Journey”.
So, enjoy Richard describing his journey as an instrument maker.
– Chris Rizos
All Luthiers Journey Articles by Mandolin Luthier Richard Morgan
Thank god for luggage handlers
Watching the plane next to ours being loaded It became clear how and why musical instruments often turn up damaged. The acoustic bass guitar which I created in 2009 did not survive the flight [...]
One small double shot Cafe Late please. . . . . Thankyou. . . ahhhhhh
When I finally found the courage to start build guitars and mandolins I made a point of visiting a number of established makers to ask for advice and hopefully some support or mentor ship. Since [...]
To fix or not to fix. That was the question
It has been said that mandolin players spend half their time tuning up and the the other half playing out of tune. I guess at this point I may be loosing some readers but [...]
Radiant Instrument Necks and Neck Joins
Christos: It's been a while since I published the last post by Richard, so I was very happy to receive this article, which provides insight in the importance of radiant instrument necks for the produced [...]
Too Much Coffee
If I had to choose listening to an average instrument played by a master or vice versa I would choose the former. Of course a masterful musician may simply choose not to play a [...]
A good haircut
I can remember as a child the pleasure of my monthly haircut. My mum would drop me off at the hairdresser and go shopping. I would often fall asleep as it was a very [...]
A Rough Diamond
Anyone who visits my home country, Australia, will be astonished by the huge distances between the towns and cities. Australia does have a relatively low population. For example, the island state where I live [...]
Bed time story for insomniacs with no interest in lutherie
The Wikipedia definition of a Luthier is someone who repairs or builds string instruments. Wikipedia should also say that Luthiers spend most of their time cutting big bits of wood into smaller bits of [...]
Synchronicity
Probably the most enjoyable part of my journey as a luthier has been of recent years. It all started with attempts at building timber resonator cones. I was looking for warmer tone. The "National" [...]
Windy Strings
As a maker I have found discussions with other makers extremely useful. The exchange of ideas, philosophies and techniques is a big part of keeping the learning curve steep. Also feedback from players is [...]
Pure Honey
This is second article of the Luthiers Journey series, titled Pure Honey. In this article, Richard Morgan begins with the hazards and suggested basic precautions in the art of luthiery, and then describes with a [...]
The Patient Dies
Richard Morgan is a maker (luthier) from Australia and a member of theMandolinTuner community. From the moment that Richard joined theMandolinTuner we started exchanging e-mails and I was very happy to read about his [...]
Richard Morgan
My name is Richard and I am an Australian designer and maker of mandolins. I live with my partner in a small coastal town in Tasmania and work at home. [...]
Instruments by Richard Morgan
Instruments by Richard Morgan are featured at www.extraordinaryinstruments.com
