The journey so far—
I grew up in a family of carpenters, designers, teachers and musicians, so construction and music have been constants in my life for as long as I can remember. I built my first guitar for my leaving certificate, a mahogany solid body electric. Plugging it in for the first time was a pivotal moment—the transformation of a lump of wood to a musical instrument felt like magic—and I’ve been obsessed with the process ever since.
I went on to study Architectural Technology at the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology. It didn’t take long for me to realise I could apply what I was learning about design, drafting, and construction to making instruments, and even wrote my dissertation about the acoustic properties of building materials used in recording studios and the viability of common construction materials if detailed correctly.
At the same time, I was apprenticing under Kieran Moloney at his music shop in Galway City. While on the sales floor Kieran allowed me the opportunity to play instruments from some of the foremost luthiers on the island and get acquainted with what quality craftsmanship looks, sounds, and feels like. Through working in the repair shop I learned how to solve problems methodically, how to adapt to customer’s differing playing preferences, and observed patterns in what commonly goes wrong with instruments—and why.
With sketchbooks full of plans and ideas, after two great years at Moloney Music I felt ready pursue my dream of building my own instruments. I enrolled in an intensive guitar construction course at the Lagan Lutherie School in Co. Down under the tutelage of veteran luthier Sam Irwin.
Studying at the Lagan Lutherie School was a dream come true, learning alongside students from all over the world in a facility shared with a great guitar company, Avalon Guitars. After finishing the course, I stayed on—first as an apprentice—and later as a teacher.
Kilcoyne guitar with a walnut, ebony, and zebrano faceplate and hand-cut mother-of-pearl inlay
Myself and Sam Irwin at his Lagan Lutherie School
Working up the grits on a Kilcoyne nylon string guitar
I worked with over 100 students on every stage of guitar making, learning about the characteristics of many species of wood as I went, not to mind the differences in the students and their levels of understanding, talent and unique ways of absorbing information.
The fact that every one of them was at a different stage in the building process meant that I had to keep a watchful eye, making sure I could spot serious mistakes before they happened. This truly refined my approach to teaching and instilled an importance in fragmenting a mammoth project into bite-size tasks, with a focus on the potential pitfalls at each stage and tips and tricks to mitigate them from occurring.
I went from being enthusiastic about the design/building process, to inspired about imparting that knowledge. When a student would complete their guitar, I would feel a great sense of achievement and it is something that I am going to do again, when the time is right.
The North also happens to be the place I met my wife, Basya, while she attended the school to build her first guitar.
When it was time to leave Co. Down, we set off on a three-month long tour of the western United States, meeting friends, musicians, luthiers and a host of other characters along the way. After a bit more back-and-forth across the Atlantic, we settled on the north shore of Clew Bay.
Creating a workshop suitable for building bespoke guitars is a labour of love and patience, and while I work towards it, I continue to design houses and stringed instruments, play music locally and teach a variety of subjects privately.
Mulranny is a place that I have the strongest personal connection with, not to mind genealogical. I am the chairman of ‘Mulranny Community Futures’, a community led initiative that strives to benefit the local area and its people.
Please get in touch if you have any questions or offers.
Go raibh míle!
Cónan