D'Aquisto 7 and 12-String Masterpieces
by George Gruhn for Guitar Player Magazine's Rare Bird Column, April 1983



James L. D'Aquisto, a master in his own time, shown carving the top of a Solo archtop guitar in 1992 at his workshop in Long Island.
Only nine Solo's had been built when James (Jimmy) D'Aquisto unfortunately passed away in April 1995.

Greenport, Long Island - James L. D'Aquisto was considered a modern day Stradivarious of sorts, a genius at carving archtop guitars favored by jazz virtuosos. Even though his guitars cost as much as a midsize Mercedes, Mr. D'Aquisto, whose shop was in Farmingdale, Long Island, had a waiting list a decade long when he died in April 1995 at the age of 59. In the rare field world of expensive guitars, none were more coveted than Mr. D'Aquisto's. Prices for the D'Aquisto guitars had skyrocketed since the builders death, with millionaire collectors in Japan and the United States paying upward of $100,00.00 for deluxe models. Even the craftsman's tools and his workbench, which became icons to guitar connoisseurs, sold for tens of thousands of dollars. "Once every 300 or 400 years, somebody comes along who happens to find the key to making a particular instrument," "For the violin, it was Stradivarius; for the archtop guitar it was Jimmy."

Certainly the D'Aquisto guitars are rare specimens of exceptionally fine quality. James D'Aquisto produced custom historically interesting instruments that are no longer in production. Ordinarily any instrument that can still be ordered new is not considered to be a collector's item but D'Aquisto presented an exception to this rule at the time.




D'Aquisto's work with guitars began in 1953, when he apprenticed to master builder John D'Angelico in New York. For some years prior to his death in l964, D'Angelico suffered from ill health. During this period D'Aquisto did much of the heavy work involved in guitar construction while D'Angelico did the final graduation of tops and backs, fitting of necks and final finishing.

D'Aquisto first began to produce guitars under his own name eight or nine months after D'Angelico's death. According to D'Aquisto the first ten or so guitars he built had almost exactly the same appearance as D'Angelico's including the distinctive D'Angelico peghead shape, f-holes, and art deco-pattern pickguard and tailpiece. In 1966 or '67, D'Aquisto began using his own experimental concepts: the step-pattern metal tailpiece was replaced with an S-pattern one, small pickguards were introduced, the f-holes were redesigned, the carving pattern was changed, and the body shape on the 17" model was slightly altered. In1971 the adjustable ebony tailpiece so typical of D'Aquisto instruments had been incorporated. These tailpieces adjust up and down in order to vary string tension on the bridge. While string length is not adjustable, each tailpiece is custom-made to produce the maximum tonal output from the instrument to which it is matched.

With the exception of the tuning gears, all components used on D'Aquisto guitars are designed expressly and uniquely for that particular instrument.

D'Aquisto claimed that the archtop design is superior to other acoustic guitar designs. In his opinion, a properly constructed arch-top guitar could be equally appropriate for classical, jazz, country or any other form of music. The arch-top design permits both great dynamic range and a broad palette of tonal color. Rather than trying to build guitars of traditional design, D'Aquisto claimed that he was attempting to reinvent the guitar as a modern instrument capable of outperforming currently available ones. He claimed to have many new ideas yet untried but that he must move gradually, since the mentality of the market will not accept too many radical challenges at once. Certainly D'Aquisto instruments had shown revolutionary changes over the years and many new innovations.

Jimmy said he had only made half a dozen 7-string guitars and only one other 12-string (the other 12-string has an f-hole top and a 17" wide body, 1" wider than the first one) in spite of their many unusual features, these two guitars (not shown) are excellent examples of the maker's work and are typical of his innovative approach to guitar construction.


The 7-string, Van Eps-style guitar (not shown) features an 18" wide body, typical D'Aquisto modernistic f-holes and the standard D'Aquisto ebony tailpiece. The absence of pearl inlay and other ornamentation is not a cost-saving measure--in Jimmy D'Aquisto's opinion, inlays and any other artificial materials added to an instrument detract from its tone. The sunburst finish is a light chocolate-brown color. This instrument is an acoustic guitar--the removable DeArmond pickup is a later addition, though D'Aquisto had built many guitars with floating pickups. Essentially this guitar is very much like the typical 18" wide D'Aquisto jazz models with the exception of the wider 7-string neck.




The 12-string too, (not shown) is a most unusual piece. Jimmy had built only one other guitar in this body shape. The arched oval-hole top is finished in clear lacquer while the back, sides and neck are finished in a chocolate brown color. While most D'Aquisto instruments have solid headstocks and 14 frets clear of the body, this guitar has a slot-head neck with 19 frets clear of the body. The 16" wide body is smaller than most D'Aquistos, giving a treble sound especially well suited to a 12-string. While this instrument sounds quite different from other 12-strings, the tonal quality is excellent--its handling characteristics, too, are superb.

Since each D'Aquisto guitar was individually handmade, the total output was very low. Jimmy stated that he worked on only six guitars in 1982, although his pace over the last five or six years had been 10 to 15 instruments per year. Prior to that period, he said he produced eight or nine guitars per year, but was taking in some repair work as well--particularly on D'Angelico instruments. Due to his long association with D'Angelico and his intimate involvement in the production of these guitars, D'Aquisto was undoubtedly the foremost authority on these instruments.


D'Aquisto built only custom-order guitars, with specifications tailored to suit the needs of the purchaser. He said he particularly enjoyed working on new designs, although he would not accept an order unless he believed that the design had genuine merit. These instruments are expensive, but their quality places them among an elite group of the finest fretted instruments ever made.

 
 



 

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