59. John Monteleone (American, born 1947). Archtop mandolin, Grand Artist Deluxe model (serial number 185). Islip, New York, 2002. Spruce, maple, ebony, mother-ofpearl, celluloid; L. 28 in. (71.1 cm). Private collection. Monteleone introduced many innovations to
menting with creating a plastic violin. Maccaferri was winding down his plastics business when he met Monteleone in 1979. They immedi ately became friends and had long discussions about musical instrument making. Maccaferri had Monteleone build a guitar based on an old draw ing, and the two men worked together to refine Maccaferri’s design. After constructing the initial guitar they embarked on a project to build twelve guitars together — six classical and six archtop — over the next few years. The work greatly excited Maccaferri, who wanted to start a guitar building busi ness with Monteleone and offered the
the design of the mandolin, including a new outline, a hollow scroll, and string dampers behind the tailpiece, all of which can be found on this example.
use of his plant and his famous name. Monteleone recalls Maccaferri saying, “What do you want to do, do you want to make art or do you want to make money?” Like D’Angelico, Montele one decided he liked the freedom of working for himself, but he and Mac caferri remained friends and shared ideas until Maccaferri died in 1993 at the age of ninety-two. Although the early 1980s were a difficult time for guitar makers, Monteleone flourished as he built a reputation as one of the great man dolin makers. He continued to refine his skills, influenced by both James D’Aquisto and Mario Maccaferri. When toward the end of the 1980s the market for guitars, including high-end arch tops, experienced a great resurgence, Monteleone was well prepared to meet the demands of a new generation of players and collectors. Over the past twenty years he has continued to build the very finest of archtop guitars and mandolins. Like many modern build ers he has benefited from D’Aquisto’s groundbreaking designs, but he has also experimented with the aesthetic design of the guitar. One of his signa ture designs is his Grand Artist scroll guitar (fig. 61, and see front and back covers), with a large scroll that is an homage to his mandolin-making roots. Like the luthiers of D’Angelico’s generation Monteleone has included Art Deco elements on his guitars, drawing inspiration from such land marks as Radio City Music Hall and the Chrysler Building. His Radio City guitar and mandolin models (fig. 62)
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60. Mario Maccaferri (American, born Italy, 1900 – 1993), designer; Henri Selmer Paris, maker. Guitar, Jazz model (serial number 565). Paris, 1942. Spruce, rosewood; W. 16 in. (40.6 cm). Private collection. After Maccaferri left Selmer in 1934, his distinctive guitar, first created in 1932, was redesigned to change the large D-shaped sound hole to a smaller egg shape (as on this guitar).