Angelo Vailati

About the Luthier

I was born on November 28, 1977, in Treviglio (Bergamo), located in the northern region of Italy.

First Guitar and Early Curiosity

At the age of 16, I acquired my first guitar. However, instead of practicing scales and chords, I was far more intrigued by building one. During that year, I spent my summer crafting a guitar as a pastime, with no knowledge of guitar making or tools. I used wood pieces (2mm thick beech plywood) recycled from cinema chairs owned by my father. The instrument turned out to be quite bizarre, featuring screws instead of tuning pegs, lacking a fingerboard, and incorporating aluminum pieces resembling frets. When I strung the guitar with steel strings, its body began to warp. I vividly recall how disappointed I felt; the guitar ended up discarded.

A Gift and a Pause

One day, my father brought me a gift from Cremona: a spruce soundboard and a set of maple for a small guitar. It’s likely my father foresaw that this hobby would become my path. I’m immensely grateful to him for this gift. After the failure of my first guitar, which warped due to string tension, I abandoned my hobby for years, leaving my kit on a shelf in my room, patiently awaiting my return.

Professional Education in Luthiery

In 2001, I finally decided to rekindle my passion and enrolled in the Civica Scuola di Liuteria di Milano, specializing in plucked instruments. It was a professional course spanning four years, blending practical lessons with theory (chemistry, acoustic physics, instrument history, music, restoration). In the first year, I built a small guitar inspired by a Torres small guitar from 1890, SE141. In the second year, I began crafting classical guitars at home, starting with a copy of a Hermanos Conde cypress guitar, which I sold shortly thereafter. From that point, I couldn’t wait to start a new guitar each time I completed one.

Mentorship and Artistic Influence

Towards the end of my studies, I learned from guitar maker Enrico Bottelli, who imparted valuable lessons. Most importantly, he instilled in me a passion for this craft and taught me to handle details with precision. I learned his taste for ornamentation and wood combinations, as well as an elegant style in shaping. Through listening to recorded guitar music with Enrico, I discovered the breadth and diversity of sounds encompassed within the classical guitar concept. During this time, my preference and admiration for the sound and aesthetics of traditional Spanish guitars by Antonio de Torres, Enrique Garcia, Manuel Ramirez, Santos Hernandez, and Domingo Esteso developed.

Further Study and International Experience

In 2006, I attended the José Romanillos Guitar Making Course in Sigüenza, Spain, and in 2008, I traveled to Granada, Spain, to work for Daniele Chiesa during the summer. From Daniele, I learned much about the profession of guitar making and the traditional techniques of Granada’s guitar craft. Daniele also emphasized the importance of professional reliability and meticulous adherence to a construction method to ensure consistent quality across all instruments.

Sound as a Creative Goal

With every new guitar, my goal is to discover an expressive and evocative sound capable of conveying musical emotions.

Philosophy of the Ideal Guitar

In my view, a guitar is exceptional when playing a few notes here and there makes you feel that these notes are already creating music and suggesting more. I believe a good guitar should possess deep and distant sounds with mysterious echoes that evoke images and emotions. The sounds must be alive, warm, and capable of inspiring music. My aim is to craft guitars that embody this sonic vision.

The Craft and Its Complexity

In practical terms, this means mastering the world of guitar making with all its variables (woods, thicknesses, gluing techniques, tensions, etc.) and understanding the relationship between these parameters and the final acoustic result. It involves improving oneself as a craftsman and gaining empirical knowledge, leaning slightly toward science, achieved through the day-to-day experience of work.

The Ongoing Pursuit of Perfection

While this may seem straightforward, I believe that not even all the guitars built by any guitar maker of the past during their lifetimes would be sufficient to achieve the ideal instrument they envisioned.