Sold Spalt Instruments

Like many others I started working on guitars as a teenager, playing in bands, customizing and modifying. It was still a time where a custom guitar was way cooler than a stock model. At the time stock instruments were also rather lacking in quality. A few early 70’s SG’s, Strats and Les Pauls received added pickups, stereo wiring, new finishes and similar treatments, which would make today’s vintage-crazed guitar lover shudder. But we relished the individuality of our guitars and obsessed about improving them and obtaining optimum playability. From this I took a basic understanding of guitar craft and a view towards designing guitars that don’t necessarily follow the conventional mold.

Eventually I started developing new concepts. My background in the arts led me to develop the ‘resinTop’ line of guitars: Totemguitars. A more sculptural and materials-oriented approach resulted in the development of the hybrid line, combining metalwork with woodworking. Exploring new venues and concepts while strinking a balance between functionality and aesthetics proved to be a fertile field.

As much as I enjoy making a “traditional” instrument out of the finest “tonewoods”, I also love making instruments which push the boundaries and open new possibilities to musicians willing to explore and expand the scope of their music. To me the prime quality of “tone” is not its more or less successful replication of some previous tonal fingerprint. It is the richness, definition, liveliness, transparency and balance present in the sound of the instrument. And even though each of my instruments has its own tonal identity, they all share these qualities and will offer them to the musician willing to listen. -Michael Spalt