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Feature Article July 31

Feature Article July 31, 2003

LAND O' LAKES NewsWeb Home

30 Years Later, Oskar Graf is Still Working on Those GuitarsOskar Graf describes himself as a bit of a hermit living in the wilds of eastern Ontario, although you would think differently if you took a drive down the Clarendon road this weekend and saw hundreds of cars parked on the road and in makeshift parking lots, and thousands of people milling about in a back field on his property.

The Blue Skies Music Festival and Oskar Grafs career as a guitar builder both began 30 years ago. While music is a common thread, the festival and Oskars occupation could not be more different. The festival, from the start, has been organized by a group, with much boisterous debate over every aspect of its growth and maintenance as an event.

Building guitars, on the other hand, has always been a solitary pursuit for Oskar Graf. His shop is set up for one person; he does not use apprentices of employees, and only produces the number of instruments, about 10 a year, that can be made slowly and carefully by a solitary artisan.

Oskar moved to Toronto from his native Berlin in 1968. While in Toronto he worked as a furniture designer, and began meeting people involved in the music scene, including musician Eric Nagler and his wife Marty, who established the Toronto folklore Centre. Somehow, the call of the country led Oskar to eastern Ontario and he bought land in Clarendon, off highway 509 north of Sharbot Lake, in 1971.

After arriving in Clarendon, he spent time building a house, and then began putting his woodworking and design skills to work by making Appalchian dulcimers, which were sold at the Toronto Follklore Centre, before beginning to make guitars in 1973.

Oskar describes himself as a self-taught builder who read as many books as he could find on building and acoustic instruments. After working for a few years, he recalls taking a guitar building course by David Rubio at a Toronto Guitar Festival.

Two things came from that workshop for Oskar. For one thing, he saw that he was basically on the right track. The building techniques he had stumbled upon were comparable to what Rubio was doing. The other thing that Rubio said that hit home had to do with the builder having an ideal sound in their mind (ear) and working towards it. Even though this sounds hopelessly metaphysical, it is something Oskar ultimately agrees with.

However, there is more to a guitar than its acoustic properties. It has a shape and a feel, and for players there is a matter of the ease of playing, their comfort level with the instrument.

This is where exposure to music has played a large role in Oskar Grafs development as an artisan.

The Blue Skies Festival took off quickly, and throughout its history musicians have come forward wanting to play. This brought guitarists and other musicians to Oskars back yard, albeit only once a year. Exposure to different musicians, especially different kinds of guitarists, has been crucial to his development as an artist, and Oskar travels throughout the region to see and hear music being played.

An example is the Toronto guitarist Don Ross. When Oskar saw Don Ross playing, he was struck by his powerful dynamic sound, and he thought he could try to make a guitar that would work better for his style of playing than the one Ross was using.

This began a collaboration between maker and player that culminated in a custom seven-string guitar that was made for Don in 1995. It is an instrument that Don unabashedly says must be one of the worlds seven wonders.

There have been other such collaborations, with well known and lesser known players, including diverse players such as Dave MacIssac and Jason Fowler. Oskar Graf has written that attention to each individual instrument and my traditional techniques allow for greater flexibility in building. Custom building can involve as small a change as the width of a finger board - or a complete designing of the shape and size of a guitar. While I have developed a standard line of instruments, I am happy to collaborate with a player to build an instrument that is uniquely personal.

Another factor at play is personal and artistic development. Never having a desire to repeat himself, Oskar has been making alterations to his technique, constantly, throughout his career. Hopefully, Oskar says, the instruments are getting better and not worse.

Over the years, Oskar has done special projects. To celebrate his 30th year as a builder, this year he made an arched top, jazz guitar. It has given him an opportunity to extend his craft, and he has had to make or alter tools and to rethink what he is doing as a builder

It has taken a certain skill set, an appreciation for sound, music and needs of musicians, and the time to concentrate on solving problems and seek out new challenges, that has enabled Oskar Graf to become a top notch builder of guitars.

With the participation of the Government of Canada