Welcome to Part 1 of the new web based version of my Archtop Guitar book, “The Creation Of the Natura Elite Archtop Guitar“. I will be posting a new chapter every week or so from now through the end of the year to allow you to more easily read and enjoy it online and to see some of the many photos and other media that we were not able to include in the printed version.

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Achtop Guitar Book

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The Creation Of The Natura Elite Archtop Guitar

By Tom Bills

Preface:

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A player’s dream……

I believe the art of guitar-making (like many other arts..) is God’s gift given to few.. you are either blessed with it or not. The builder’s personality, emotions, and values flow into the instrument and remain there forever.
Close attention to detail in the building process assures that as time passes the voice of the instrument will grow toward the desired direction….toward that searched sound that can be a companion for life….. a player’s dream.
However, to make all this come true it takes a long time, it takes a lot of dedicated time for the creation of all the components of the instrument and the ability to make them play like in the dream.
After over 30 years of guitar playing and collecting, I found Tom in my search for the perfect archtop, a fine guitar maker in St. Louis. His attention to detail and the gift he is blessed with, make his archtops the most responsive guitars I have ever played, so far. That’s why after purchasing the first archtop named Natura, I decided to have him make me another one according to my specifications, and the result was truly breathtaking.

The acoustic sound is so gentle and the appointments so perfectly laid, that although I own more than 20 archtops…. I end up picking this Natura (Elite..that is the correct name of the new jewel) most of the time. And to avoid losing this great sound when using one of my vintage amplifiers, I requested a floating pickup made by the great Jason Lollar (of Lollar Pickups) another gifted person… when it comes to pickups.

Therefore Tom, thank you for your creation and your efforts in making my dream come true…it took me a long time but I finally found what I was looking for…

Roberto Pagnotta

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The Art of Listening

One of the most important parts of creating a truly great instrument, or any other great work of art, is fighting and winning the battle to get quiet inside oneself. Finding and staying in a place of peace is essential to being able to listen. When we begin to listen, we move from the stress-filled, pressurized responsibility to come up with a solution or direction, to the peaceful and exciting adventure of being part of something larger than ourselves – simply following that leading we hear deep inside. When I’m building a guitar, it’s as if I know someone who already has the perfect instrument in His hands. He is the Master Builder; He cares about me, and wants me to understand its mysteries. These mysteries of the guitar are not hidden from me, but hidden for me to seek out and discover. If I can stay out of the way, keeping my own ego and other motives in check, and assume a posture in my heart of listening and seeking after the truth, I can simply ask Him, and it’s His pleasure to share the answers with me.

This same leading, drew me to guitar making, guides me through the building of each guitar, and has helped me to choose and stay on the path of lutherie that was right for me. I realized that when I work with my simple hand tools I’m forced to trust in the gifts and talents that I have been given, instead of trusting in power tools or jigs. I also have to trust in my ability to stay in that place of quietness so I can hear that leading, and see what to do next on every guitar, because it’s different every time. I must have the quiet to stay sensitive and to force myself into the sometimes uncomfortable situation of relying on my own hands and heart to do the work perfectly – now and every time in the future.

There is another core aspect to my methods and my guitars that, at first glance, may not seem very important to many, but, in my opinion, is crucial to making sure we don’t miss a vital aspect of hand crafting custom guitars.

I have observed that musical notes are containers. When we create a note, we fill it either consciously or unconsciously and then release it in an instant. The listener hears the note, receiving its contents, whether good or bad. The guitar itself is the point of genesis where the idea and thought behind the note gets translated into this physical world, and thus, adds its own fingerprint during translation. Understanding the fact that musical notes and guitars themselves are containers, or vehicles to convey something, helps me stay conscious of what I’m filling those containers with as I’m creating the instrument.

It’s when my heart is filled with care for the customer that my best work is done. I just like people. I can relate, and I care about their situation. I want to make sure their experience with me is about more than just a possession, but maybe even a life changing event, a turning point, at least a point in their life that was positive and uplifting, and of course, resulted in an amazing, unique guitar they can treasure for a lifetime.

Fortunately for me, this approach is a two way street, and my life has been deeply impacted and blessed by many of my customers whom I consider some of my closest and dearest friends. With nearly every guitar I have made, there has been a wonderful connection for which I feel very grateful. Because I truly care about my customers, I want to make sure they have an instrument that embodies the highest level of excellence I am capable of producing. That genuine care goes into the guitar, permeating every atom and stays there.

Working with Roberto to design this guitar was a truly wonderful experience that I will never forget. Roberto and I seem to share very similar ideas and personal preferences as to what our dream archtop guitar should look and sound like. This provided us both with a great advantage to being able to communicate well and to easily collaborate on the design of a guitar that we can both be very proud of.

Up until this guitar, my top of the line handmade archtop guitar model was the Natura Deluxe. However, with the new aesthetic treatments and appointments that we chose for this guitar, I felt that I needed a brand new name to symbolize its ultra high level of quality and style. And so the Natura Elite was born.

Once Roberto and I decided on the heart and vision of the guitar, we were ready to begin the exhilarating and amazing journey of bringing something of true excellence from the intangible realm into the physical world – where we can hold it in our hands, see it with our eyes, and hear it with our ears.

You might also be interested in:

• Archtop Guitar Book Series  Part 2 – Tone Woods
• Subscribe to the Newsletter to get the next edition in your inbox.
• Used Tom Bills Guitar For Sale
• Download Full PDF eBook version
• View the full online Preview
• Buy the Hard or Soft Cover Print Edition

Audio Clip: Impromptu living room recording by Roberto Pagnotta and Enrico Bracco enjoying two Tom Bills Archtop  Guitars.