Great find—thanks for sharing it! It’s amusing, because in the older threads about Kavouras, most people were simply trying to find out how to get hold of one of his instruments, and someone wrote that you “couldn’t find craftsmen like that even with a votive offering”. So an interview with the man himself about the secrets of the craft is a rare opportunity to hear how he thinks.
If you feel like it, tell us a few words: which of the things he says made the greatest impression on you? That way, anyone who doesn’t have time to watch the whole video can join in the conversation too.
Related threads:
The old discussion about the luthier, the waiting list and his preference for four-string instruments:
Here, Kavouras is included in the “lists” of the best makers, sparking a lively back-and-forth about what makes a good luthier:
Does anyone here have an instrument from his workshop? What did you think of its sound and playability, and does it confirm what he says in the interview?
I think it would be best if someone took the time to listen to the whole interview, rather than me trying to convey parts of it in my own way.
What I would like to point out, though, is the simplicity with which he speaks, without any fanfare or “swagger”, as though he were the only person who knows what he is talking about — unlike many well-known instrument makers you visit who talk as if you’re supposed to know who they are.
You go to buy instruments from some people and they size you up from head to toe to see how they can rip you off.
Especially when someone is just starting out, they should be able to find friendly people who are ready to answer any question, whether silly or intelligent, rather than having some idiot in front of them who genuinely just wants to grab their money.
Politeness, simplicity and the ability to communicate make it possible for the world of instrument making to continue in the long term.
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Personally, I didn’t watch the whole interview. I’ll try to watch it. However, I prefer someone who has a certain style to someone who doesn’t have a phone number or address posted. In short, do you go through personal recommendations, or is the craftsman only for a select few? That’s how I see it.
As for Christos, who asked about his instruments: I happened to hear one up close at another instrument maker’s workshop, as he owned one. Aesthetically, I didn’t like it at all. It was a three-course instrument and had those designs on the fingerboard that some four-course ones have. Not clarinets, but something similar. I didn’t hold it myself; I heard the instrument maker play it a little, but I can’t really form an opinion because it was a relatively new instrument and therefore still unplayed.
Personally, I understand what you wrote about the craftsmen. All the ones I’ve visited so far—which aren’t very many—spoke to me perfectly well. I’m sure there are also some who are rather odd in terms of their behaviour, I imagine.
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