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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 is a 15" (380mm) concert-scale paper ukulele. The back and sides were

cut from black mat board left over from a photo framing project, and covered

with veneers made from an old Taylor guitar catalog to give the illusion of

Macassar ebony on the sides and maple on the back. The top was cut from

spruce left over from a mandolin rebuild, and was finished with expired shellac

and stain. The neck was made from black and white mat board laminated

together and stiffened with a jatoba floorboard scrap. The fretboard was

also cut from jatoba floorboard scrap and fretted with vintage brass frets

pulled from an old Kraftsman archtop. A piece of Koa scrap was added

to the headplate for a touch of island mojo. The tuners and bushings were

reclaimed from an old Yamaha acoustic.

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Handmade Music FactorY