All musicians have a special bonding with their instruments.
For instance, if I tell you about a guitar called Lucille you will
automatically think of BB King. But it does not take to be a top musician to
have that bonding. No matter the instrument one plays, most of us keep the
first one that fell into our hands when we started, the one we produced the
first notes with (many times sounding like a very angry cat, or worse), or have
passed to someone with the wish that “it will serve them as good as it did to
me”. I keep my first plastic practice chanter and the first cheap whistle I
got, even if I don’t play them anymore because their sound does not cope my needs
anymore. Also, we may have a few instruments, but there is always one (or a
few) that we like to play the most and that we make sure we use in special
occasions; sometimes it is because it has a sweeter, more mellow sound,
sometimes is because you have been playing it for so long that you feel fully
comfortable with it. You know how to make it sound in such a special way, and
it knows you and makes it easy for you to play. You just go along well. You
spend time tuning, preparing the instrument, oiling bores, waxing, making it
yours. This is why if these instruments is stolen, it hurts way beyond the
material value loss. They are a partner in stage, rather than a tool you use to
make music.
It is not a coincidence that many times, most of these
instruments have a proper name associated: Ibanez, Gibson, Hardie, Graham, Overton,
Nebra, Varela, Seivane…Some of them are now well stablish companies, and some
are artisans that make instruments under commission. Nevertheless, they all
have something in common: the great care they have when making the instruments.
Because it is not only important to have a quality instrument, it is also
important to have someone to go to when you have any issue with the instrument,
someone who is experienced and, if possible, who has actually made the
instrument, as they will know better than anyone why each part has been made
the way it is, and the best way to solve any issue that may present. When you
are purchasing a new instrument that you know you will play for years, you do
not only want someone who provides quality stuff (although you certainly want
that, too!) but someone that will understand your needs as a musician and that
will make the best instrument for you; also, that person that will advise on
the best reeds/strings/etc. for their instrument. Because you are not only
choosing an instrument, you are choosing the post-sale service and the trust on
the luthier that will do any repairs needed with time, the trust of asking
“where this weird sound comes from?” and knowing they will know about the
instrument well enough to give you an answer or to fix whatever needed. And you
are also asking for some imagination: “What you are asking me is not the usual
stuff, let’s see how this can be done”. When you are buying an instrument you
are not only buying a well-shaped piece of wood or metal, you are buying all
the work behind it, and also all the work that will be done with it in the
future, for as long as you decide it will share your path.
