Holy Grail Show feature - Tom Sands Guitars - Apprentice to mentor.
The world of high end steel string luthiery is a deep pool of almost unfathomable talent. The bar has been set so high that it's difficult to imagine how you could even begin to be unique, how you could float to the top of that innovative and highly skilled pool. But Tom Sands has managed it, and set about proving it by launching his latest two designs at this year's Holy Grail Guitar Show, both of which wonderfully different to one another only tied by Tom's distinct style coming through and seemingly infinite abilities in luthiery.
In Tom's recent 'Meet the Maker' interview for us, he touched upon his design processes, influences and the release of his more refined, personal models. So I was incredibly excited to see them for myself at the Holy Grail Show, and felt the trip to Berlin was worth making to experience these new designs in this setting.
The MODEL_S. This wonderfully petite design is as comfortable on the eyes as it is on your lap. I'm 6'5" tall and despite my stature, felt more than at home the moment I sat to make my maiden sounds with it. I must admit, I haven't ever played an instrument that felt like this. I was speechless. Completely numb of words to justify what I experienced from simply playing a few menial notes and chords on this incredible guitar. The bar that I mentioned in my opening paragraph? Well, it has been raised by Tom, who only relatively speaking is in his early years as a solo luthier after his time learning from Ervin Somogyi.
I can only imagine what an instrument like this would be like to open the case to every day, it possessed a very organic feel that despite my brief time playing it, felt it's responsiveness to be inspiring. Tom is still so early on in his career, if this is the start of his journey, then it is of no wonder why luthier's from all over the Holy Grail Show were making their way over to his table to see it for themselves. In the multiple times I spent at his table enjoying his company, I lost count of how many luthiers came over to look at the guitars and play. The smiles of disbelief and admiration were apparent every time, and this surely is a sign of special things to come for Tom's career.
Sitting to the right of the MODEL_S, was it's bigger brother, the true statement piece, the MODEL_L.
This is a stunning multi-scale guitar and demanded your attention the moment you see it. We had seen a brief preview of this build in a photo on our Meet the Maker interview with Tom, so I was very excited to meet the final instrument at the show.
The MODEL_L was designed with low, open tuning's in mind. Allowing string tension to balance and feel perfect via it's Multi-scale design, and from those first few notes played I quickly cast aside the notion that multi-scale 'fan frets' would feel alien, as everything about this instrument just felt stunning. Both guitars felt alive in your hands, the basses hitting your chest, and the trebles singing beautifully. It was an eye opening experience for me, the guitar will remain valid in this world with work like this being produced at the hand of raw talents like Tom's.
For more information about Tom Sands Guitars, please visit his website http://www.tomsandsguitars.com/
James.
In Tom's recent 'Meet the Maker' interview for us, he touched upon his design processes, influences and the release of his more refined, personal models. So I was incredibly excited to see them for myself at the Holy Grail Show, and felt the trip to Berlin was worth making to experience these new designs in this setting.
The MODEL_S. This wonderfully petite design is as comfortable on the eyes as it is on your lap. I'm 6'5" tall and despite my stature, felt more than at home the moment I sat to make my maiden sounds with it. I must admit, I haven't ever played an instrument that felt like this. I was speechless. Completely numb of words to justify what I experienced from simply playing a few menial notes and chords on this incredible guitar. The bar that I mentioned in my opening paragraph? Well, it has been raised by Tom, who only relatively speaking is in his early years as a solo luthier after his time learning from Ervin Somogyi.
I can only imagine what an instrument like this would be like to open the case to every day, it possessed a very organic feel that despite my brief time playing it, felt it's responsiveness to be inspiring. Tom is still so early on in his career, if this is the start of his journey, then it is of no wonder why luthier's from all over the Holy Grail Show were making their way over to his table to see it for themselves. In the multiple times I spent at his table enjoying his company, I lost count of how many luthiers came over to look at the guitars and play. The smiles of disbelief and admiration were apparent every time, and this surely is a sign of special things to come for Tom's career.
Sitting to the right of the MODEL_S, was it's bigger brother, the true statement piece, the MODEL_L.
This is a stunning multi-scale guitar and demanded your attention the moment you see it. We had seen a brief preview of this build in a photo on our Meet the Maker interview with Tom, so I was very excited to meet the final instrument at the show.
The MODEL_L was designed with low, open tuning's in mind. Allowing string tension to balance and feel perfect via it's Multi-scale design, and from those first few notes played I quickly cast aside the notion that multi-scale 'fan frets' would feel alien, as everything about this instrument just felt stunning. Both guitars felt alive in your hands, the basses hitting your chest, and the trebles singing beautifully. It was an eye opening experience for me, the guitar will remain valid in this world with work like this being produced at the hand of raw talents like Tom's.
For more information about Tom Sands Guitars, please visit his website http://www.tomsandsguitars.com/
James.
