Simon Wilkins and Ian Stehlik of Capital Vintage Guitars preparing for this year’s National Guitar Show. Photo: Region
Ever wanted to hold a guitar that was made a hundred years ago, or to quiz artisans who are crafting instruments today by honouring the time-tested methods of decades past?
Perhaps checking out vintage collections from across the country sounds appealing. Or maybe it’s searching for that guitar of your dreams.
How about a workshop or two on these fine instruments; a concert played on vintage guitars; or crate-digging for the very best of vinyl records by guitar greats from all eras and styles?
If any of that sounds like your thing, save the date because the National Guitar Show is back in town on Saturday, 3 October.
Formerly known as the National Vintage Guitar Expo, the event is in its fourth year at the Harmonie German Club, and this year it’s taking a somewhat new turn.
Organisers have swapped out ‘Expo’ for ‘Show’ and added a subheading to the name to call it the National Guitar Show – Vintage and Boutique.
They’re going big on boutique this year – in addition to the massive vintage vibe the show is always praised for.
There will be dozens of exhibitors from Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and the ACT, as well as enthusiasts from all over Australia.
This year, the guitar show will offer a pretty even mix of dealers and makers, as well as rooms full of exhibits and displays of stunning instruments.
Previously, a separately ticketed concert took place in the evening, when the expo closed shop, but this year, a mini concert at no extra charge will be held inside the main exhibit hall during the day.
Local and visiting musicians will be performing on vintage instruments for everyone to enjoy – and there could be a very special guest or two turn up.
That’s in addition to the workshop discussions held throughout the day showcasing some of the best guitars in the room.
The show is presented by Capital Vintage Guitars.
Proprietors Ian Stehlik and Simon Wilkins have spent the past 12 months preparing for the event’s biggest show yet – and that includes scouring the country to bring the very best exhibits to Canberra.
“There is a cadre of makers around Australia who are building some really beautiful instruments, acoustic and electric,” says Stehlik.
“We want to promote them and show them off as much as we want to have the lovely older instruments available too.
“The show has established itself as somewhat of a Canberra institution now and has been consistently successful. We are very excited about this year’s event.
“For a lot of people, guitars are a lifetime passion and we celebrate that. Guitars offer something for everyone.”
The event is being held on the Saturday of the long weekend during the Floriade season, which never fails to draw a healthy number of interstate visitors making a sidetrip from the flower show to check out the guitars.
Canberra is lucky to be home to some of the country’s best guitar shops and one of them, DW Music, will be returning this year with the best of its stock in a show of support.
And talking about supporting the local community, Capital Vintage Guitars has invited the Canberra Veterans Guitar Group (formerly the Canberra Soldier On Music Group) to have a presence at this year’s show.
“We’ve had people come to us with cheaper guitar collections they want to donate to worthy causes, and we have passed a few onto this wonderful veterans’ group,” says Wilkins.
“This year we’ve asked them to be on display at the show. We think they are well worth supporting.
“They help veterans struggling with PTSD or those just seeking a sense of community and connection through music.”
The Guitar Gods on Vinyl record stall will be back this year too, with crateloads of cool guitar music to search through.
There will also be at least one complete guitar-making bench on display, thanks to local luthier Michael Hargeaves’ Things with Strings boutique workshop.
He is very keen to talk to those attending the show about how he crafts, restores and repairs stringed instruments.
“I’ve been doing guitars for over 20 years and orchestral instruments for about five years,” he says with a smile.
“I started with repairs when I was a teenager and then that developed into making guitars.
“I’ve got a preference for 19th and early 20th century instruments. I work predominantly on steel-stringed guitars, but I actually prefer nylon.
“Once you start getting into guitars, you get the bug, and you can’t put them down. I just love them.”
Luthier Michael Hargreaves will be bringing his workshop to this year’s National Guitar Show.
Numerous craftspeople with similar passion and expertise will be available to the show’s attendees, and that’s what Stehlik says is unique about boutique guitar makers.
“You can actually have a personal relationship with the person who has made your guitar,” he says.
Guitars are coming to Canberra from all over Australia. Photos: Region.
Michael Hargreaves works on restoring guitars from all eras, but he really loves the very old ones.
Ian Stehlik and Simon Wilkins are digging deep to bring the very best guitars and exhibits to Canberra for this year’s show.
For Wilkins, a love of guitars is very much about the sound and how it can make you feel.
“Vintage instruments really created the sound we grew up with,” he says.
“It was the soundtrack to all those parties, the road trips, the records, radio and concerts.
“It’s a distinct sound and some boutique guitars today are genuinely recapturing that sound with how makers are crafting instruments with similar specifications.
“But really, whether it’s vintage, boutique, retail, new, secondhand, acoustic or electric, you can do a lot worse than spending some time and money on guitars. It’s a beautiful instrument.”
The National Guitar Show – Vintage and Boutique is on Saturday, 3 October from 10 am to 6 pm at Harmonie German Club, Narrabundah. All-day come-and-go tickets are $20 presale and $25 at the door. Tickets are available through the CVG website.
