Watch Pat Kelley Demo the 2017 Amati
In May of 2017 I met with Pat Kelley at Tritone Studios in Burbank, California. Pat is a world class musician, composer, educator, and wonderful human being who plays guitar through his heart. I walked into the studio, having only spoken to Pat through email and phone conversations, and Pat greeted me like we had known each other for years. I was nervous going into a recording studio with a new guitar and without Pat seeing it or playing it, and Pat instantly made me feel calm and cool. I then met Talley Sherwood, the owner and engineer at Tritone Studios. We chatted for 15 minutes or so about guitars and music before we uncased the Amati. As Pat checked it out, Talley and I listened closely. Talley moved around, put his head in different locations and then pulled out two Schoeps CMC 6 condenser microphones and an AEA N8 Ribbon mic. As Talley moved in and out of the control room, Pat got acquainted with the Amati and I sat there on the floor listening to the Amati warming up.
I was amazed at how quickly Pat got used to the guitar. This Amati had a slightly wider nut width (1.8125″) and it didn’t slow Pat down one bit. As I slated a video recorder and my phone to the recording, Pat put the Amati through such a variety of playing styles and tunes. I hadn’t said a word to Pat about what to play and the guitar seemed to dictate exactly where he wanted to go with it. I couldn’t be happier with how it came out (although next time I’ll show up with a better camera).
If you haven’t checked out Pat’s work, do yourself a favor and dig in to his catalogue and his videos, you’ll be happy you did! www.PatKelley.com
Plug in your good headphones or turn on your monitor speakers.
Tags: acoustic archtop, acoustic jazz guitar, Amati, Amati archtop, archtop, archtop guitar, CA, fhole, french polish, Guitar, Guitar making, jazz guitar, Koentopp Guitars, Los Angeles, Luthier, luthiery, mahogany, Pat Kelley, The art of Lutherie, Varnish, Violin tradition, woodworking
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