Cyndy Burton, USA
In the late '70s while visiting the guitar shop where she had bought her first guitar for $60, Cyndy Burton learned that the best guitars are made by hand. "Why not these hands?" she remarked, and the store owner told her about a class being taught by William Cumpiano in N. Adams, Massachusetts that summer. Excited at the opportunity, she arranged her vacation time to coincide with the class. The building experience was so intriguing, satisfying, and just plain fun that she quit her editing job the following year, and began making guitars in earnest.
In 1980 she joined forces with Jeffrey Elliott in life and lutherie in Portland, Oregon a year after meeting him in Boston at a Guild of American Luthiers Convention and discovering their shared interest in traditional classical guitars, especially those in the Torres/Hauser tradition. Although they have made several guitars jointly, the emphasis has always been on the independence of their work, with the exception of the finish. Cyndy discovered early on that she loved French polishing, and soon took over that responsibility on Jeff's guitars as well as her own. In addition she began to work for the Guild of American Luthiers as a contributing editor, a job she continues to find stimulating and rewarding. She has conducted workshops at several Guild of American Luthiers conventions, taught at the American School of Lutherie, and recently has devoted more time to privately teaching her "no oil, no-fault" method of French polishing.
The Pacific Northwest is blessed with an abundance of fine instrument makers, and for the last twenty-plus years Cyndy has helped to foster a spirit of cooperation, information-sharing, and camaraderie through the NW Handmade Musical Instrument Exhibit, an annual event that she coordinates with the assistance of Jeff and several others. In addition she has been very active in the Portland Guitar Society, a vibrant group that meets monthly to encourage performers of all levels and styles to enjoy the guitar and play for each other.