Handmade Music Factory. Mike Orr

66). Then, when you’re

      comfortable with all the ins and outs of guitar building,

      take a crack at creating a more complex fretted guitar

      (page 78) or lap steel guitar (page 94). Be sure to visit

      the chapter on Electrifying Your Instruments (page 106)

      for detailed instructions on adding electricity to the

      10

      Handmade Music FactorY

      Fret Length

      Frets

      Nut

      Tuning Pegs

      Headstock

      Neck

      Wires

      projects

      —

      and don’t forget to make your own amp by

      upcycling an old tape deck (page 112).

      Along the way, you’ll discover lots of interesting

      music tidbits, scattered on the bottoms of the pages and

      throughout as sidebars. Keep your eye out for photos of

      professional musicians jamming on their own handmade

      instruments, info about other simple instruments you can

      cobble together, and who knows what else? The King of

      the Cigar Box Guitar, Shane Speal, chips in periodically

      with fascinating historical information and other rubber-

      meets-the-road experiences with the instruments. Don’t

      forget to flip through the amazing galleries of handmade

      music instruments near the front (page 10) and the

      back (page 118)

      —

      there’s plenty of inspiration to get you

      going! Before you dive in, take a moment to familiarize

      yourself with the Anatomy of a Guitar, below

      —

      it’ll help

      you keep your bearings when you get into the thick of

      building. Let’s get started

      —

      and remember, there are

      no rules! Build it ’til you like it.

      11

      Introduction

      You may not have realized it, but there is a revolution

      unfolding right now in the world of music. For many years,

      it seemed that music was a thing to be purchased

      —

      a thing

      that came in shiny packages, ensconced in CD sleeves

      and mass-produced guitar cases. Music was something

      other people did, or something you created on instruments

      strangers made. The revolution happening right now is

      taking music off its pedestal and making it accessible to

      everyone and anyone who is willing to spend a little time

      with their hands, simple tools, and approachable materials.

      No longer must you go out to a store to buy your music

      makers

      —

      you can create them right in your own home.

      This innovative movement grows in numbers every day,

      as people across the world

      —

      hobbyists and professional

      musicians alike

      —

      reconsider their conceptions about music

      and embark into the world of handmade instruments.

      Amazing work is happening, as you’ll see when you flip

      through the following pages

      —

      each instrument you’ll see

      in this introduction was created for the MacGyver building

      contest on

       cigarboxnation.com

      , where the sole rule

      was that only 100% recycled materials could be used.

      Handmade music builders are creative and ingenious.

      They know that just because standard factory-made guitars

      have six strings doesn’t mean their guitar can’t have three,

      or four, or seven. Instruments can be crafted from old cigar

      boxes, cookie tins, bedpans, and whatever else you can

      think of. While today’s subversive music makers are blazing

      a new trail forward, they’re also hearkening back to their

      roots. Before it was common for the average person to be

      able to afford a manufactured guitar, musicians built their

      own creations, scraping together whatever they could find

      to squeeze a note out of. Many famous blues musicians

      got their starts stretching a screen door wire between

      two nails hammered into the side of a barn, or on a guitar

      fashioned from a cigar box and a broomstick handle. So,

      as you wade into this world of handmade music, remember

      that all you need is your imagination and whatever scraps

      you can find

      —

      there’s no place here for expensive lutherie

      tools and hi-tech tuning equipment. Don’t be afraid to

      upcycle, recycle, customize, and deconstruct. The sounds

      you’ll tease out of these instruments will be rough, and

      strange, and beautiful

      —

      but one thing’s for certain

      —

      they

      will be sounds YOU made.

      Papier Mache Guitar

      BY DUSTIN BROWN OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

      This