XXX
BY RICH OSWEILER
Combining his passions for music and design, guitarist and
architect Harvey Citron creates his distinctive hollowbody
basses and guitars that incorporate his own custom-built
pickups, as well as his most groundbreaking invention to
date—an intonation-adjustable wooden bridge.
Photo by Janet Perr
Working out of a one- man workshop in Woodstock, New
York, Harvey Citron has been
a respected member of the
boutique luthier community for
close to 40 years. Though best
known for his hollowbody basses, Citron’s distinctively handcrafted instruments include
solidbody basses, as well as a
variety of guitars and baritones
that have drawn the attention of artists across the genre
spectrum, from Steve Swallow
to John Sebastian to Doug
Wimbish, among others.
With a background as both a
guitarist and an architect, Citron
is able to draw on his passion for
both music and design when creating his absolutely unique offering of instruments. Aesthetically
unique, yes. But he is also part
of a very small group of guitar
craftsmen with expertise in making their own pickups, and he
winds, voices, and positions each
one to complement the individual instrument. A true innovator,
Citron’s distinctive, piezo-loaded
and intonation-adjustable wooden bridge defines the combination of science and art.
Citron got his start as a
luthier in 1974. Co-founding a
partnership with Joe Veillette the
following year, Veillette-Citron
had an eight-year run during
which a few hundred handcrafted guitars were produced.
But eventually, Citron felt like a
factory worker in his own business, putting in too many hours
just to pay the bills. A desire to
return to designing his instruments led him to set up shop as
an independent luthier.
Premier Guitar recently caught
up with Citron as he prepared
to exhibit at the 2012 Montreal
Guitar Show. Here he discusses
his background and building
philosophies, gives insights into
modern lutherie trends, and even
shares his thoughts on building a
traditional acoustic guitar.
