About JM

I have been making and playing lutes ever since I  made my first one when I was 18; many years ago it feels! The sound and the look of such an unusual instrument just drew me in, charming me with its music.

I first bought an 8 course Renaisssance lute by Arthur Robb from the Festival of Early Music to get me started; its quality craftsmanship was an inspiration and helped my interest grow. I started collecting tablature and soon realised the wealth of surviving music which has been made more accessible today with free tablature on websites and through the Lute Societies' regular newsletter.

While I was obsessing over tablature acquisitions I was becoming drawn to beauty of the Baroque lute after listening to Silvius Leopold Weiss' music being played by Nigel North. I did not have a Baroque lute at that time,  so I began studying every lute making article or book I could find. Also, I learnt the basics from long conversations with a luthier called  Tim Thurston (and some other makers) on the finer points of lute making based on their experience, it was interesting to see the variations of techniques. This is when I built my first Baroque 13 course lute at school. A few years later I performed at the local radio station and gave recital at lunch time at the University of Derby.

While studying Contemporary Furniture Design at College I also wanted to dig deeper into the history of the lute to understand how it evolved (or devolved in some cases).I wanted to know more about the Chitarrone with its entrancing re-entrant tuning. During this time I was making an Archlute which is like a Chitarrone except that it is tuned like a Renaissance lute and it has a smaller body and extended neck. I played this instrument at my graduation show.

After graduation, I became a buyer and manager in contemporary lighting which was a total contrast to the lute world. It was all about knowing what good contemporary design and manufacture were and trips to Milan to buy the latest designs. During this time I regularly performed at Bartok Bar in Chalk Farm on Renaissance Lute, Baroque Lute, Archlute and Theorbo. I thought the hard-socialising atmosphere could be 'tamed' with calming lute music!

Once I had moved to a place large enough for a workshop,  I started making Renaissance lutes for the Early Music Shops outlet in London (The Early Recorder Centre). I also made a Chitarrone and a Baroque Guitar during this time. The parchment rose of the Baroque guitar was time consuming but the most rewarding, almost as much as the beautiful sound it makes.

Today, I make a variety of custom made lutes and stock ready to buy. The student lute range is designed to make attractive lutes more affordable to a wider or new audience. This year the Student Chitarrone will allow existing lute players to indulge themselves in continuo without spending too much. The large Chitarrone is a copy of the RCM Tieffenbrucker but with 17 ribs instead of the usual 51! which helps reduce the price!