Monteleone LaCorsa Formal shots
 

Just received these yesterday from Rod Franklin. He'll be doing the photography for my next CD as well!

https://i.imgur.com/MeD8gXs.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/6ES0YC5.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/aP3ZuYr.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/MKId8NM.jpg

Regards,
Howard Emerson

A beautiful instrument! Thanks for sharing these stunning photos with us.

Wow, wow and wow!!!

He kept it simple but elegant. All the design elements wrork well together. Just beautiful.

Howard, that guitar just sings! And I’m sure it sounds great too. Seriously, all parts of the design work together, top to bottom. Especially love the headstock. —Richard

Just a beautiful guitar!! Great color and I love the purfling he did. Matches the rest of the guitar so nice. The printing inside the soundport is a neat touch too. Will this guitar be used on your next CD, Howard? When is the release date?

JR

Hello JR,
Thank you for the kind words!

Many years ago John made a mandola for the son of Elizabeth Taylor. Ever since there has been a picture of Liz, holding the mandola, dressed in red hanging in the shop, and I've fixated on that picture many times.
Yes, of course Liz was gorgeous, but the color of the mandola is what stole my heart. It's called violin-red, and I knew that would absolutely figure into my build.

After that it was easy because I knew what I wanted: A small, shallow body 12 fretter with a cutaway to negate lack of access. The mandola also had ebony binding so that was a given.
I knew I wanted an oval hole with an uninterrupted purfling, and a concentric fingerboard end to accent it.

12 fretters are always louder than the commensurate 14 fret counterparts, and having a shallow body takes NOTHING away from fullness, but ADDS so much in comfort under my arm.
It's 3 & 7/8" at the tail block. You'll notice the 2 holes: One is for a future pickup jack, but the other is for a very long hex wrench that releases the neck for quick removal in the event of a neck set, etc.

John gave me several choices of fingerboard and headstock overlay ebony pieces to choose from. I knew I wanted a sound-port and where it should be located given my ergonomics. That's a "Side-Sound' decal that he prints.
John also gave me a few headstock choices. Simpler is betterer so I went with straight sides, and supplied him with the Waverly tuners.

And to answer your last questions: I don't have a release date but if all goes well perhaps late September, and yes I did record with LaCorsa a week after I picked it up from John. It positively shone in the face of a pair of AKG 414's.
It actually sounds best with D'Addario Nickel Bronze when I'm at the wheel.

John sent me the first pictures of the bent sides on April 1st, while I was lying in bed with Covid19. You can not imagine the irony of thinking that here I had finally gotten John to build another guitar for me, but now there's a real chance I might not get to see it finished....(He built his #005 for me in 1976 when I was clueless about what I really needed, but I digress.......)

I appreciate it more at this age than I ever could have when I was younger.

Now we just have to get over the lack of electricity (since Tuesday). The generator has been going, literally, since then, but no air conditioning. 2 refrigerators, 2 microwaves, electric hospital bed for my sister-in-law, a couple of televisions, a few lights, the boiler, and we still have internet & phone service. Yeah, the action is a little high on the acoustics, but I'm doing electric slide overdubs on the title cut, The Ritalin Kid, so I'm ignoring all the others until, perhaps, 11:00PM this evening when they're threatening to have us up and running again.........

Best regards,
Howard Emerson

Great choices all around. I love the headstock he did on this one. Wow - 1976?? Do you still have that guitar? Now in 2020 getting one from the same builder. That’s pretty incredible.

I really enjoyed your album “Crossing Crystal Lake”, especially the title track. I’m looking forward to hearing this beauty on your next.

https://open.spotify.com/album/6wMWj...QySKujDDkHSBhg

JR

JR,
As I mentioned I had no clue as to what I really needed, wanted, preferred, etc back in 1976. Back then we learned by making mistakes.

Now you can put it up to committee and have a whole bunch of people to blame when it doesn’t play by itself, or sound like the angels, but I digress....

I sold it to a close friend at some point. I don’t miss it, but I’m better for having gone through the experience and subsequent lessons it taught me.

John and I have been friends since 1972 when he was the first repairman for The Mandolin Brothers, and of course Stan Jay wrote the liner notes for CCL, and A Tale To Tell.

It’s been a wonderful ride, and I’m still enjoying it!

Best,
Howard

JR,
Check your PM’s when you have a moment.
H

That's a very pretty guitar. I love the shape and the nice clean rosette, like Torres, and the oval soundhole.

I am a guitar amateur, but I'm surprised how thick the sides apparently are. Does the width of the wood in the soundport represent its width, or is it not so wide as the finishing wood?

[QUOTE=mc1;6462794]That's a very pretty guitar. I love the shape and the nice clean rosette, like Torres, and the oval soundhole.

I am a guitar amateur, but I'm surprised how thick the sides apparently are. Does the width of the wood in the soundport represent its width, or is it not so wide as the finishing wood?[/

The thickness of the wood around the Side-Sound port is NOT indicative of the general thickness of the sides. It needs to be reinforced in that area.

H

[QUOTE=Howard Emerson;6462806]Thanks. You're great, Howard, and that is a very fine guitar.

Ooooof! I felt that one!

What a gorgeous instrument Howard, sincere congratulations and not a little envy!

All the best

Michael

I can report that this guitar sounds every bit as nice as it looks! I hope you all get to hear it soon!

JR