Whiteman Concert Guitar

This is the standard workshop guitar. It is a full size instrument and players will feel at home with the physical dimensions of this guitar. Materials used are Indian rosewood for the back and ribs, European spruce soundboard, Honduras cedar for the neck and an ebony fingerboard. Machine heads are either Sloane, Alessi or Rodgers. David makes subtle changes to the rosettes, bindings and headstocks on his guitars, making each instrument unique. . Guitars are hand finished with French polish.

Options include Brazilian rosewood for the back and ribs and western red cedar for the soundboard.

David aims to produce a guitar that has balance and clarity with an incisive, strong treble and a firm powerful bass response. These guitars have volume but not at the expense of tonality and they have considerable ‘cut’ and projection.

Specifications

Body length 490 mm
Width at lower bout 366 mm
Width at waist 248 mm
Width at upper bout 286mm
Body depth 89mm increasing to 98mm
Width of fingerboard at nut 52 mm
Scale length 650 mm

Scale length and fingerboard width can be altered to order.

Prices from £3200

Guitar after Herman Hauser

Slightly smaller bodied than the Whiteman concert guitar, this guitar is based closely on a guitar David Whiteman restored by the great German maker Herman Hauser. The original guitar was made in 1941 and displayed many of the characteristics of the great Hauser guitars. The decorative motifs such as the rosette, headstock and bridge inlays are copied from the original.

The guitar is offered with a European spruce soundboard, Indian or Brazilian rosewood back and ribs and Central American mahogany neck. The head is fitted with a V joint, as was the original.

This guitar has a clearly focused sound with a depth to the bass and a lyriscm in the treble, and will appeal to those players who like the traditional classical guitar sound.

Specifications

Body length 486mm
Width at lower bout 366 mm
Width at waist 240 mm
Width at upper bout 282 mm
Body depth 89mm increasing to 98 mm
Width of fingerboard at nut 50 mm
Scale length 650 mm

Scale length and fingerboard width can be altered to order.

Price from £3200

Drop Shoulder Cutaway Guitar

This guitar was developed in 2004 in conjunction with guitarist Richard Chapman. Dissatisfied with conventional cutaway configurations but requiring clear access to the upper frets, Richard and David settled on the offset shouldered design as being both practical and aesthetically in keeping with the traditional form of the guitar. An important design criteria was to respect the traditions of the classical guitar whilst progressing the guitar forward in a genuinely useful way.

Richard Chapman plays this guitar with a plectrum and has the instrument set with an ultra low action. However this guitar works wonderfully with a conventional string height. See Richard’s website for his comments on the guitar.

Specifications

Body length 497 mm
Width at lower bout 379 mm
Width at waist 252mm
Width at upper bout 290 mm
Body depth 86mm increasing to 94 mm
Width at nut 48mm
Scale length 650mm

Scale length and fingerboard width can be altered to order.

Price starting at £3400