I've been a longtime admirer of Michael's artistic sensibility, and tried to pay tribute to his art without blatantly copying all of his designs. Even though imitation is supposed to be the sincerest form of flattery, I found it more appropriate to take the classic Gurian body shape and build something different around it. The fact that this guitar was especially designed and made for Jim D'Addario, a longtime friend of Michael Gurian's made the result more satisfying than i could ever hope for. In a side note my first steel string guitar, made in 1980 under the tutelage of Božo Podunavac in San Diego, was made from wood supplied by Mr. Gurian. I still have this guitar and play it to this day; I'd like to think that this long link between my first guitar and this latest instrument is not totally coincidental.
