Burton LeGeyt has been building acoustic guitars since 2005 in his small shop in Brookline, MA.
Burton works alone, on one project at a time, and greatly values the control he has over the entire process of building custom instruments. He is always looking towards refining aspects of the design, building process, and interaction with the guitar. This often involves looking to the past as well as to the future and finding common ground between new ideas and old.
He currently splits his working time between his personal shop and the Fabrication Lab at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. That diverse and stimulating environment has been an important influence on his approach to building and making in general. There he is continually exposed to new ideas, methods, and personalities; all of which help to broaden his ideas about what is possible and how best to approach it.
That space has inspired an interest in materials and methods of fabrication that directly informs his approach to guitarmaking. He maintains a small machine shop and prototyping facility to allow him to make and modify all parts of the instrument as well as make custom tooling. This allows a greater level of customization and, in expanding the material possibilities, removes practical limits to the design process.
What he appreciates in an acoustic guitar is a lightweight, balanced instrument with a wide dynamic range and a comfortable, inviting feel for the player. Aesthetically he prefers an instrument that is cohesive, rooted in classic design and has specific areas of complexity and interest that invite closer inspection.
