I’m Gus Guthrie. Around 2000, I was playing in a band with too many guitars. I decided to take up the mandolin. I started out with a cheap Kentucky A style, upgraded a couple of times to increasingly more expensive instruments, but was never satisfied with the tone or playability. Having a good bit of woodworking experience, I decided to try to build one myself. With Roger Siminoff’s book How to Build a Bluegrass Mandolin in hand, I started on the journey. Twenty-one instruments later, I’m still at it, still learning, and still playing Guthrie G5 number 1.
Handmade to be played in Richmond VA
