Lakewood Guitars

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lakewood Manufactory in the building of a former cigar factory in Gießen-Rödgen

Lakewood Guitars is the brand name of a German guitar manufacturer in Rödgen near Gießen ( Central Hesse ). From the beginning, the company has mainly specialized in the construction of high-quality acoustic guitars . The instruments are entirely handmade in Germany . Accordingly, the products are in a fairly high price segment (around € 1400 to € 9500).

Foundation, history and naming

The company was founded in 1986 by Martin Seeliger, who is still managing director today. The company is based on the search for a name that sounds "really like western guitar" and can also be pronounced for foreigners. When searching a map, Seeliger found Lakewood near Cleveland on Lake Erie, and so the name “Lakewood Guitars” was born.

In 1979, Seeliger became an employee of a music shop in Kassel , where he met the later owner of his teaching company. From 1981 to 1983 he completed an apprenticeship as a plucked instrument maker at the Manfred Pletz guitar manufacturer . Shortly after his apprenticeship examination, he opened a guitar shop in Giessen. In addition, he passed his master's examination as a plucked instrument maker in 1984. Some classical concert guitars date from this period (i.e. the late 1970s and early 1980s) . As the shop and workshop space of his guitar shop became too small over time, he finally sold the shop to move into larger workshop space in the Giessen district of Rödgen. The building was previously a former cigar factory. This is how Lakewood Guitars was founded in 1986.

Lakewood guitars

Steel string guitars / Western guitars

In the beginning only dreadnought models were built that were based on the body shape invented by Martin Guitars in 1916 . The first models were the D-14, D-18, D-22, D-32, D-46 and D-54. From 1988 to 1992 Lakewood also built the D-12 and the D-12-12 (12-string), guitars that are almost legendary today.

Lakewood guitar model D-12 from 1991. The pickguard was added later for protection (original Lakewood)

With the exception of the 46 and 54 models, the equipment was generally rather simple - but these instruments paved the way for Lakewood in terms of sound and made this guitar maker so independent today. In the late 1990s, Lakewood also built nor the D-10 and the M-10 guitar with sides and base in mahogany and a ceiling made of spruce . In the mid-1990s (approx. 1992–1997) a number of Lakewood guitars were built over a period of approx. 5 years that only had an "L" inserted in the headstock. These guitars are the only ones in history that were ever built outside the workshop in Giessen. They came from Markneukirchen in Vogtland , from Musima . As a former operation in the GDR, Musima had an impeccable reputation and after the fall of the Wall, capacities were free, which made it possible to offer the Lakewood guitars manufactured there at a somewhat cheaper price and in larger numbers. About 2000 guitars were manufactured there within 5 years, which can definitely be regarded as "real Lakewoods", as they were built strictly according to the specifications and concept of Martin Seeliger. The D-8 (mahogany / spruce) and the D-12 ( maple / spruce) were built in Markneukirchen .

In 1991 the “Grand Concert” body shape joined the series of Lakewood series models. It is also referred to as "M". Initially there was the M-18, M-22 - but the most famous guitar is the M-32. The meaning of the names of the models is described below.

The jumbo model followed in the mid-1990s, and the auditorium guitar was the last at the end of the 1990s. This instrument has a much smaller body shape and has the neck-body connection at the 12th fret . These characteristics make it a popular fingerstyle guitar. There are both, Jumbo and Auditorium, in different types of wood and fittings.

The headstock of all Lakewood guitars had rounded corners until 1999 and has only been a bit more angular since then. The head plates are based on those of Martin Guitars , as Martin Seeliger liked this typical and simple design.

Today the guitars are accepted by an acceptance system that was developed in collaboration with the Shadow company and specially designed for Lakewood. The name of this pickup system is Lakewood Sonic System . There is no need to integrate the tone and volume control into the frame, the controls can be reached through the sound hole . Two pickups are operated here, the piezo pickup sits in the usual way under the bridge inlay in the bridge , the second pickup is a magnetic pickup and is hidden in the guitar's fingerboard . Together with the construction of the guitar, an unmistakable sound - amplified and unamplified - is created. Earlier acceptance systems built into Lakewood guitars were also of very good quality.

There is also a so-called custom shop where you can put together “your” guitar individually. Lakewood has specialized in building custom-made products with increasing intensity, as this is still easy to implement given the company's size. It is worth mentioning a special tool offered by Lakewood on its website. It's called “Guitar Designer” and it's a configuration tool that works on a 3D basis. This is an impressive way to simulate guitars before they are built. You can virtually "touch" the guitar and move it around freely and change any equipment.

Today Lakewood guitars are among the best guitars produced in Germany and can be found in music stores in most European countries. Lakewood also exports its instruments to North America , Japan , Taiwan , Singapore , New Zealand and South Korea .

Lakewood guitars are made with the help of two CNC milling machines , but otherwise generally by hand . The guitars are varnished in the in-house UV varnishing facility. This system offers paints that are much thinner, more flexible and more susceptible to vibrations than conventional paints.

In 1999 about 12 guitars could be produced per week. The production numbers could be increased in the course of time, so the average in 2000 was around 18 guitars. Thanks to the technology used and the increased number of employees (currently 12), around 20 guitars are manufactured today, i.e. around 1000 guitars per year.

Concert guitars

From the end of the 1970s to the mid-1980s, Martin Seeliger also produced concert guitars that were labeled with his name. These guitar models have a very typical head shape that looks almost like a hole in the headstock, but has an opening at the top. The models were named Picea , Cordia , Kahya and Ocotea and were made of maple with a spruce top or rosewood with a spruce or cedar top. They can still be found in some private households today. At that time they cost between 450 and 2500 DM .

Since 2011 classical concert guitars from our own production have been produced again under the brand name "Khaya".

Exotics and special models from Lakewood

Over the years, instruments at Lakewood that were outside of the regular series were built again and again. This includes, for example, the “Stage Guitar” , which was built in the mid-1990s. This instrument had a very deep cutaway and a standard pickup system (which was not common at the time). About 30-40 pieces of this model were built, mainly from padouk . Some were also made from Rio rosewood ( Dalbergia nigra ) and a single one from maple (this guitar is played by Thorsten Wingenfelder from Fury in the Slaughterhouse ). The archetype of this guitar, however, belongs to Stefan Zobeley, the guitarist of Herbert Grönemeyer . This is made of bubinga . More guitars of "Stage Series" was a stage -Classic, a Stage bass and the Stage - mandolins . About 8-10 mandolins were built, which also had a built-in pickup and had the typical wide cutaway.

Another special series were the Alien basses, which were developed by Martin Seeliger on behalf of Warwick . The first 40 to 50 pieces of these basses were also built in Gießen in the Lakewood workshop. The final example of a special model is the guitar for Ritchie Blackmore . The former Deep Purple guitarist has been a solo artist with his project Blackmore's Night for many years now . For this he had a "moon guitar" built by Lakewood . This guitar has its very own body shape, a very narrow frame and two very typical crescent moons in the top (where the F-holes are on archtops and semi-resonance guitars ). Ritchie Blackmore also plays a 12-string Lakewood guitar, but it has a lute-shaped body.

Naming convention, serial numbers and exceptions in model naming

The serial numbers of the guitars are sequential numbers. Until 2001, the year of production was placed in front of the serial number and separated by a period. Lakewood operates a registration for all customers on its own website, older guitars can also be registered. This has the background of the symbolic welcome in the Lakewood family and is at the same time a kind of serial number collection point that can provide valuable background information on the guitar's history for service purposes and repairs.

current Lakewood guitar model M-32cp from 2008

The naming of the Lakewood series models is basically quite clear and easy to understand. The first letter describes the body shape of the guitar. There are five shapes from Lakewood:

  • M: Grand Concert
  • D: Dreadnought
  • A: Auditorium
  • J: Jumbo
  • C: Concert (since 2019)

The number after the letter is separated by a hyphen. It describes the type of wood from which the back and sides of the guitar are made.

Some guitars have additional additions to the model description after the number, separated by a space.

  • Cut: guitar has a cutaway
  • P: guitar has a pickup
  • CP: The guitar has a cutaway and a pickup
  • Custom: The guitar is not a production model, but a custom shop guitar, i. H. a unique piece. There are certainly many special features with these guitars, which of course cannot all be listed in the name.
  • E / A: There are very few guitars of this type. But "E / O" was initially, when pickup installations were still relatively new, a description for electro-acoustic and means that the guitar has a pickup and usually a cutaway. This designation was later replaced by "CP". The name does not contain any further information, which is absolutely sufficient for a rough assignment of the instruments. It remains to be seen whether the order in which the numbers are assigned is understandable for everyone. A fixed naming convention was only really enforced at the turn of the millennium.

For some models, there were exceptions to the model name:

  • 1-series: The so-called 1-series are also made of mahogany (frame and back). They were in the Lakewood series as an entry-level model from 1999 to 2005 and are easily recognizable by the typical tortoiseshell imitation plastic edges. The 1 series was available as Grand Concert, Dreadnought and Jumbo in various configurations (with and without cutaway or pickup).
  • 46: The 46 models were also made from East Indian rosewood and should actually have been called 32 models. But Lakewood had this model with mother of pearl - deposits revalued in the ceiling and edges on the top plate as a premium guitar and so established as a separate model. This model was discontinued in 2004.
  • 54: The 54 wasn't always an indicator of a Riopalisander guitar. In the 1990s, the 54 stood more as a number for premium equipment, similar to the "46". This is why there were Lakewood models with a 54 from the beginning to the mid-1990s, which were also made of maple or rosewood. But these guitars definitely have a mother-of-pearl bezel and a mother-of-pearl rosette around the sound hole .

In general, it may be that here or there a guitar appears that has an unknown number - in such a case it is a rare specimen and is certainly due to a whim of Martin Seeliger, who has always liked something “besides the Series ”.

Today three model series are manufactured, which are called Natural , Deluxe and Premium . This subdivision was introduced in 2005 and is initially intended to provide an overview. Furthermore, the guitar models in these three model series each have distinctive features. In each of the three model series there are all four body shapes (D-Dreadnought, M-Grand Concert, A-Auditorium, J-Jumbo) in different configurations. The models are available as purely acoustic versions or as a so-called CP version (with cutaway / pickup). Overall, the share of CP versions has increased sharply due to trends in recent years.

Musicians playing Lakewood guitars

Ritchie Blackmore is certainly the most famous musician here, who had a custom shop guitar made by Lakewood and which he also regularly plays on stage. He also plays a 12-string model in the shape of a lute. Next to him are names like Dave Matthews , Wolf Maahn , Stefan Zobeley ( Herbert Grönemeyer ), Thom Yorke ( Radiohead ), Eric Bazilian ( Hooters ), Thorsten Wingenfelder ( Fury in the Slaughterhouse ), Julian Dawson , Glen Phillips , Nils Lofgren , Thomas Lindner (Schandmaul) and the late Kevin Coyne .

But more and more new, young artists are playing Lakewood guitars. Mainly Gregor Meyle , Wallis Bird , Jade Gallagher , Sarah Brendel , Claas-P are here. Jambor , Christina Lux , Norman Keil or Angelo Kelly .

Products are particularly popular with musicians who specialize in so-called “ fingerpicking ” or, in other words, “fingerstyle” guitar playing, which is a genre of its own . These musicians are z. B. Ulli Bögershausen , Peter Finger , the late Chris Jones , Eric Lugosch , Tim Sparks , Werner Hucks , Sungha Jung or David Qualey , to name just a few. They prefer the guitars mainly because of their balanced and differentiated sound, which is ideal for fingerpicking .

literature

  • Teja Gerken, Michael Simmons, Frank Ford, Richard Johnston: Acoustic guitars: Everything about construction and history , Munich 2003, ISBN 3-910098-24-X

Web links

Commons : Lakewood Guitars  - collection of images, videos and audio files
Wikibooks: Guitar  - Learning and Teaching Materials

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ www.khaya-guitars.de , accessed on October 27, 2011