Montreal guitar maker Greenfield handcrafts himself to success

By Mike Cohen, August 31st, 2012

When Michael Greenfield was six years old, his parents Ted and Betty, thought that it was important to provide him with an opportunity to take some kind of music lessons. So he tried the accordion, the piano and the violin, before settling on guitar.
Michael loved the guitar, but well before he even dreamed of making a full-time career of repairing and actually building the instruments for clients around the world,  he worked  in the restaurant business.  He had graduated from the George Brown College of Applied Arts and Technology, with a degree in culinary management.
One day Greenfield took one of his many guitars to a luthier, someone who repairs string instruments. “The gentleman rendered my guitar not playable,” he recalls. “I decided to learn how to fix it myself and so began a new hobby of mine.”
Greenfield continued to work in the restaurant industry. However, while doing some consulting work in Israel he decided to take some time to take a look at where his life was headed. “I knew that making a living as a musician would not be easy,” he said. “Guitar repair, though, was an option and I went for it.”
That was more than 20 years ago. Greenfield gravitated from repairing guitars
 to crafting and constructing new acoustic models in his very private Montreal studio. Word of his talents travelled fast and his client list includes the likes of Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, jazz icons Pat Martino and Charlie Hunter, standout  acoustic soloist Andy McKee (the first person to have a YouTube video go viral) and Celtic legend Tony McManus just to name a few.  Noted Jewish clients include Pierre Bensusan of France and Melissa Greener of Nashville.
“Each Greenfield Guitar is crafted and constructed by me, in my Montreal shop.” says the father of three grown children. “They incorporate many of the latest techniques and proprietary design features while still being handcrafted in the time honoured tradition of the master guitarmakers of generations past. It is my philosophy that a truly extraordinary instrument is the result of the meticulous selection of the finest woods, materials and careful construction; along with a clear vision of the end result and a consistency of skills and techniques throughout.”
When Greenfield describes his instruments as being  “hand crafted,”  he refers to  the process of building non-cookie-cutter, individually tailored instruments, with the skilful use of traditional hand tools. Braces are shaped and plates voiced using knives, gouges and chisels. Fingerboards are leveled with hand planes. Necks are individually carved using spoke shaves, rasps, files, scrapers and lots of hand sanding. Archtop plates are carved and graduated using palm and then finger planes.
“While these methods take longer, I chose to limit my yearly production and concentrate on making each instrument the best one I am capable of,” Greenfield says. “I assemble my instruments with hot, animal hide glue. This natural glue has been used for centuries by makers of the finest musical instruments, for its superior acoustic properties and resistance to ‘creep.’”
Greenfield crafts about 15 top of the line guitars a year,  priced between $20,000 to $30,000 each.  Last year he introduced a new less expensive model priced at $9,000 and he is training some new staff to work with him.
For more information log on to www.greenfieldguitars.com. Requests for guitars are by appointment only.