THE AMERICAN GUITAR MUSEUM Colonial farm house, complete with a picket fence accentuated by a swinging gate embossed with guitars, this engaging museum offers visitors all of the curiosity-teasing clutter of grandma’s attic. Operating under the management of Executive Director and guitarmeister Chris Ambadjes, the museum is over flowing from floor to ceiling with one-ofa-kind vintage guitars, mandolins, ukuleles, sitars, banjos and other assorted musical treasures and devices. A native New Yorker, Ambadjes also offers guitar lessons at this establishment and operates a guitar repair shop in the museum’s basement. Underscoring the pride and passion he takes in his work, he says, “I love guitars and the opportunity to show them to other people. I learn something new about these instruments every day and I never get tired of them.”
tar. Les is the only person thus far to be included in both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the National Inventors Hall of Fame.” One of the more high profile instruments on display at the museum is the Rickenbacker Electro A-22 guitar, commonly known among guitar aficionados as “The Frying Pan.” Aptly named because of its long, narrow neck and skillet-shaped metal sound box, it was invented in 1931 by the pioneering musical innovator George Beauchamp. Made of aluminum and acoustically designed to mimic the sound of Hawaiian music, which was popular in the early 1930s, it was the first electric steel guitar ever made. Produced by the guitar manufacturer Adolph Rickenbacker, a cousin of World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker, this device created something
Adolph Rickenbacker’s “Frying Pan Electro-22.” Scrambled eggs anyone?
For the thousands of guitar enthusiasts who visit the museum annually, Ambadjes makes them an offer they can’t refuse—an opportunity to see the guitar used in The Godfather. “If you’re a fan of the movie, like I am,” Ambadjes notes, “You may remember that this beautiful instrument was prominently seen and played at the beginning of the film, in Connie Corleone’s outdoor wedding scene. In fact, it was also used to create the musical soundtrack heard throughout the entire movie.” Maintained in flawless condition and boasting a six figure price tag, this 1945 D’ Angelico Excel guitar, designed by jazz legend Benny Mortel, is considered to be in the Rolls Royce class of stringed instruments. Hand crafted and extremely rare, it is one of only 1,100 D’Angelico Museum Main Display Room
Dominating the museum’s central show room, in what would be the traditional living room for this type of structure, is an 11-foot-long guitar Ambadjes fondly refers to as “Les Paul’s bunion.” Over half a ton in weight and supported by massive wooden braces, this fully operational mega device is a tribute to the late Les Paul, a guitarist and inventor Ambadjes describes as an artist who was a close friend and an innovative force in the development of modern day guitar technology. “Keep in mind,” Ambadjes notes, “Besides being a great entertainer who sold millions of records, Les Paul also played a critical role in creating what is today’s solid body electric gui-
of a problem for government bureaucrats. “The folks who worked in the United States Patent Office didn’t know what to make of the Frying Pan guitar,” explains Ambadjes. “One group of people considered it strictly an electrical device because of its technological electronic innovations and wanted to register it as such; another faction insisted it was a guitar and needed to be defined and registered as a musical instrument.”
Country singer/songwriter Billy Joe Conor (left) plays Benny Mortel’s guitar used in “The Godfather.” Executive Director Chris Ambadjes (right) displays a one of a kind D’Angelico jazz ukulele.
COLLECTIBLEGUITAR.COM :: JAN/FEB 15 :: 39