Gypsy Jazz Guitars

For the past three years, I have had the pleasure of working with and learning from Michael Collins. He is truly a master of the Selmer-Maccaferri style guitar, and he created a wonderful environment in which to learn and grow as a luthier. Michael Collins has relocated to Houston, TX, and he is missed by his Arizona friends. But fear not. Both Michael and I still build gypsy jazz guitars from our Phoenix and Houston areas, so look forward to a new and exciting future for Michael Collins guitars. Feel free to contact Michael or I for any information regarding a custom build, repair services, or parts.

What is a gypsy jazz guitar?

Gypsy jazz guitars are played exclusively in gypsy jazz, or manouche jazz, music popularized by Django Reinshardt in the 1930s-1950s. The guitars have a very distinctive “growl” that has defined the gypsy jazz sound. This growl is largely due to its design and construction first created by the Selmer-Maccaferri company in the 1930s. The guitars’ distinctive features include either a D-hole or an Oval-hole, a sharply bent soundboard, and a floating bridge and brass tailpiece. The guitars are extraordinarily lightweight and extremely loud. Check out our gallery below to see and hear for yourself. You should also visit the following links for more information on the gypsy jazz style music and guitars:

Michael Collins Guitars

Selmer-Maccaferri style Gypsy Jazz Guitars

Michael Collins graduated from the Roberto Venn School of Luthiery in 1992. He built Harpsichords and Fortepianos for the firm of Hubbard & Broekman Harpsichords in Boston for seven years before resuming his love for guitar building. He began making reproductions of Selmer-style instruments in 2002, and he wrote a book describing that process, which was published in 2006.
(Information complements of collinsguitar.com.)

Visit collinsguitar.com for more informaton.