C.F. Martin and His Guitars, 1796-1873 (H. Eugene and Lillian Youngs Lehman Series)

Rating:
Summary: Charming book...well-researched...thoughtfully written
Review: Who was Christian Frederick Martin? By the time you finish reading "C.F. Martin and His Guitars 1976-1873," you'll have a keen appreciation of and better understanding about the German immigrant, cabinetmaker's son, craftsman, entrepreneur, and guitar maker. Because C. F. Martin left virtually no personal writings, you may not learn much about his personal life, but you will be presented with a fascinating view of American business during the first half of the 19th century.

Philip Gura, historian and Professor of English and American Studies at the University of North Carolina, has a lot of zeal for the history and culture of America's music industry. Gura's interest in the subject was explored in his 1999 award-winning book, "America's Instrument: The Banjo in the Nineteenth Century." Since then, Dr. Gura spent over a year reading and digesting Martin's letters, account books, inventories, and other unique archival documents that had not been previously examined in any thorough manner. Gura sets the stage by explaining the importance of music to antebellum Americans, along with the concomitant public infatuation ("guitarmania") with the guitar and guitarists. Early photographic processes documented the instrument and its players, and this book portrays many excellent illustrations of how Americans embraced the guitar. In fact, the book has 175 illustrations, many in color. Before the mid-1830s, there were few guitar makers in the U.S., and none had contributed significantly to the instrument's development. This changed when 37-year-old C.F. Martin arrived in New York in 1833 to find his opportunity under a free market system without restrictions.

Martin had learned the trade, in the European guild system, by studying for 14 years with Austrian guitar maker, Johann Georg Stauffer. During the 1830s in New York, Martin was a craftsman, importer, repairman, and merchant. It's interesting to read about the custom instruments he built, his business dealings, the kinds of items he stocked, his sources of income, and his expenses. Some of his employees and business acquaintances are also profiled. Martin was an astute and successful businessman, and he moved to Nazareth, Pennsylvania in 1839 to concentrate solely on guitar making. Unfortunately, his first decade in Pennsylvania is not well documented, but author Gura was able to find accounting journals and business letters from about 1850 on. There are interesting anecdotes about such characters as Ossian Dodge and Martin's guitar displayed at the Crystal Palace Exhibition which opened in 1853.

Gura writes about Martin's standardization of his instruments and how the guitar maker adapted to economic conditions and industrialization. By the late 1840s, for example, a steam engine ran Martin's equipment for sawing and shaping lumber. I found it fascinating to read about Martin's emphasis on quality hand craftsmanship and business independence, while other makers (like James Ashborn and William B. Tilton) used other approaches. Another well-researched chapter in Martin's history is the importance of C.A. Zoebisch & Sons, who eventually became Martin's wholesaler for his guitars. The author points out that some unscrupulous people even attempted to build forgeries of Martin's guitars during his lifetime. By the time of his death in 1873, C.F. Martin had built an excellent reputation as a master, and the company continued to successfully thrive under the direction of Martin's son. Today, the company still produces some of the best guitars in the world....under the able direction and oversight of C.F. Martin IV.

There are other fine books that deal with the guitars themselves. Philip Gura, however, has successfully painted an insightful portrait of C.F. Martin, a man with vision and keen business acumen. If only more of Martin's personal letters survived, we would've been given a very unique glimpse at that side of the expert craftsman. There is little offered about his family, pets, hobbies, interests and beliefs. While some biographical information is presented, this book's central theme is a historical one about music business and culture in 19th Century America, as illustrated by one seminal man's involvement in it. Philip Gura's charming book is well-researched, thoughtfully written, beautifully illustrated, and professionally executed.
There is still considerable mystique about C.F. Martin, his instruments and the company he built, but this historical perspective captures the American spirit of this legendary merchant and artisan. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)