Endorsements
Buying an expensive, hand-made guitar can more often than not be a stressful event. This section is provided in an attempt to help ease the fear and trepidation of such a purchase. Read what these happy customers have to say:
If you already own a Park Guitar and would like to offer a testimonial, please use the contact form. Select “to leave a testimonial” in the drop down menu.
Peter Miller – Devonshire, UK
I’m lucky enough to play with an eclectic mix of jazzers in Devon, England. I play a vintage French tenor guitar in re-entrant tuning and needed a powerful rhythm instrument in the Selmer style (archtops don’t really have the required grunt).
Shelley’s interest and attention to detail is quite outstanding and she raised practical questions over issues I hadn’t even considered. We exchanged lengthy emails for some weeks before she was happy that a workable design had been achieved. During the build programme I was regularly updated with photos of the instrument as it progressed so that, by the time it was complete, I was apoplectic with excitement!
The result almost beggars belief. The build-quality is superb, the tone deep and rich and the volume simply startling with huge upper register yelp even in re-entrant tuning. Most newly aquired instruments tend to be just slightly disappointing in one area or another. Not so my guitar from Shelley which exceeds expectations in every field.
Ed Peritore – Alachua, FL
Shelley, The Guitar arrived and it is a real work of art. It is everything I had expected and much, much more. The Guitar already feels like a part of me. When I opened the case I was in awe at how beautiful the guitar was. I immediately tuned it and play several songs. I put my ear over the soundport and I could actually hear all the nuances of my playing, it was great. The color of the finish is absolutely perfect. I am going to get a lot of enjoyment out of this Guitar, it has bright deep voice and is going to be perfect for my style of playing. The fit, the finish, and the feel of the Guitar are absolutely amazing. I cannot thank you enough and I will sing your praises every time the opportunity presents itself. You are a true artist and craftsperson. The pride you take in your craftsmanship is obvious, you have a gift that few possess, you have the ability to turn raw wood into a beautiful singing instrument, your ability to see into the mind of your customers and draw out what they are really looking for is almost scary. Working with you on this project was a real pleasure and you checked and doubled checked everything it left me with a feeling of great confidence. I have not plugged it into AER amp yet but you can bet I am going to.
I would tell anyone who is looking for a really good Gypsy Jazz Guitar have Shelley Park build it. I will point them in your direction without question or hesitation. You are absolutely remarkable and I don’t give compliments lightly. You should be a National treasure of Canada if you are not already!
Troy Chapman – Langley, WA
Shelley Park is one of the great luthiers of the world. Her instruments are the finest combination of craft and art to be found anywhere.
She has my love as a person and my deepest respect as an artist. You will find no better.
Paul Getty – San Francisco, CA
As an ex-rocker who once toured with Stevie Wonder, I struggled to find a luthier that could build a gypsy style guitar to match my demanding specs. I traditionally play ultra low action Les Pauls, Strats, and L5 type guitars with relatively thin fast necks. After talking to a number of gypsy players about my requirements for a “fast” rock style gypsy guitar including Robin Nolan, Andreas Oberg, and Paul Mehling, all referrals suggested that I contact Shelley. After a relatively short collaboration process with her to finalize the specs (including a personal visit to her very cool studio including some personal jamming), I was pleased to receive an incredible guitar which is now among the most favorite and most played instruments in my large collection. It has been played by Robin Nolan, Andreas Oberg, Bireli Lagrene, and Angelo Debarre, among others and all have commented very favorably on the quality and playability.
Robert Jackson – Edmond, OK
I am a recent convert to gypsy jazz, having played jazz archtops for decades. After spending countless hours searching the internet for gypsy guitars and talking to many builders, I picked Shelley to custom build one for me as I felt I could trust her to build the exact guitar I was looking for. I just had a good feeling about her and I liked what I saw on her website. After several months and many emails to Shelley my guitar finally arrived and was it worth the wait! It was everything plus much more than I had expected. It is a beautiful work of art and sounds wonderful. It just feels good to hold and play (those of you who have been playing for several years know what I mean). Shelley, you build a great guitar and I am very glad that I chose you to build mine. Thank You
Robert.
Ned Boynton – San Francisco, CA
The guitar Shelley built for me is evidence that not only is Shelley’s craft second to none but that she listens to what her clientel wants – and she delivers.
In this day and age of “artisans” it seems easy to find a guitar builder willing to build you a guitar that suits that builder’s temperament. To find someone as skilled as Shelley is one thing but for Shelley to contour her skills exactly to her client’s needs and for her expertise to shine in the glow of their specifications sets Shelley into a league above others and truly of her own.
Doug McKenna – Seattle, WA
My Park guitar is a work of art… for the eyes and hands as well as the ears. Its tone is deep, rich, and loud when playing Django style rhythm and clear as a bell in the Himalayas when playing lead. The level of workmanship exceeds all my other guitars, which includes a Selmer, a Favino, several Duponts, and even a 1934 D’Angelico. Order a guitar from Shelley and you’ll find her incredibly easy and fun to work with. Moreover, you’ll have a guitar that will draw you like a magnet and keep you playing all day. Perhaps the best thing I can say is that Shelley is already working on another guitar for me.
Neil Anderson – Tacoma, WA
Recently, someone wrote to me asking me about Shelley’s guitars. Here are some excerpts from my reply:
I think that the key is that she is a player and understands the guitar as a functioning instrument. She also takes great care in the appearance of the instruments, as well as the construction, and I think that care is a reflection of who she is – her sensibilities regarding design, color and wood. I have two of Shelley’s guitars, both are the Modele Encores – one has Macassar Ebony sides and back, ebony fingerboard, and bear claw Spruce top (a picture of that instrument appears in Acoustic Guitar, May 1998, p. 77). It is very rich in the mid-range, almost like a classical, and has a strong high end – it’s the one I used on New Metropolitan Swing, Mystery Pacific, and Souvenirs. My most recent guitar is a very special instrument. I wanted a guitar that was all Brazilian rosewood. She used several sources of wood until we had matching Brazilian rosewood neck, back and sides. In keeping with the traditional appearance of this instrument, we chose German spruce for the top. The result is a guitar that is absolutely exquisite. Naturally, the sound is different than the Ebony guitar. It think it has more punch, a bit dryer sound and a tremendous high end. It’s remarkable. I used it recently on a session and it was just beautiful everyone was remarking about how great it sounded.
Regardless of the choice of woods, Shelley’s guitars have something that keeps you playing them. I think I would call it ‘response.’ There’s something in the way she makes her guitars that allows for a wide range of playing — from soft, sonorous tones to hard, biting sounds that cut through when you really attack the strings. In terms of playability, they’re exquisite. She has a standard string height that I find just right (of course, it can be modified for playing style).
Her guitars have allowed me to grow as a guitar player to become a better musician and a more expressive instrumentalist. I feel like I’m improving because I really enjoy playing her guitars, because they feel so great and have such a rich sound. They’re like magnets that always draw me to them.
Ed Parsons – Colorado Springs, CO
I recently purchased a Selmer-style guitar from Shelley D. Park and with it’s Macassar Ebony back and sides and gold hardware, it is an absolute beauty! The craftsmanship is the best of any guitar I own, and the attention to the detail and spirit of a Selmer guitar are drop-dead perfect.
As a recent Djangophile, I depended greatly on Shelley’s knowledge to put me on the right track to a proper gypsy-style guitar. Additionally, I requested my guitar to be built left-handed and chocked-full of special considerations (exotic woods, neck proportions, string-spacing, finishing details, etc.). Shelley met each request magnificently. With her extensive counselling on each detail (as well as her respect for my needs as a player), she provided me with a very high-level of comfort during the instrument’s construction. Upon delivery, the guitar more than met my demanding expectations.
The tone is rich and authentic, the action is perfect, and the appearance is majestic and demanding of admiration. I highly recommend anyone interested in Selmer-style guitars to purchase a Park. You won’t be disappointed. Perhaps it’s because Shelley is more than just the builder. As a player, she knows what it means to play these guitars, and her fiery love of manouche music allows her to produce nothing less than the best.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, Shelley!
E. B. Davis Ph.D. – Seattle, WA
What can I say about my Shelley D. Park guitar?
It is magnificent! I have a Modele Encore with a Koa neck, back and sides complimented by an Engleman spruce top. It is my main guitar and I play it every day. This instrument was a labour of love and this shows in the quality of the construction and the tone of the completed instrument. One expects this style of guitar to match the rapid-fire midrange tone of the Reinhardt gypsy sound but one might not expect the wide tone colors the instrument produces. A Park guitar can be finger picked and put a Martin to shame much to the surprise of my finger picking friends. If you want to play a bass heavy bluegrass first-position G-chord this is not your guitar, yet.
Who am I? What do I know about guitars?
I feel I own the definitive collection of acoustic jazz guitars hand-built by Canadian female luthiers. The other guitar in this collection is a Linda Manzer archtop, built for me in 1991. The Manzer Archtop and the Park Selmer style guitar were commissions in the early part of both of these builders’ jazz guitar careers. I feel I have an ear for genuine talent. I hold a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of Washington on guitar soundboard design. I am also the editor for guitar acoustics for the Catgut Acoustical Society, periodically asked to review guitar acoustics articles for the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America and have a long association with guitar builders across North America.
How did I specify the features of my Park guitar?
I didn’t. I asked Shelley what she wanted to build, over beer and a pizza, and she told me of her desire to build an all Koa instrument. Being very familiar with the science and folklore about tone wood selection and instrument design, I have found that letting the luthier do what they do best yields the superior instruments. I commissioned the Koa guitar out of a desire to let Shelley create the guitar of her dreams for me. The outcome was wonderful.
If the gypsy jazz or swing guitar style bug has bitten you, a Shelley D. Park Guitar is your next instrument. The clear tone will guarantee you will be heard in your next jam session.
Charlie Ayers – Salt Lake City, UT
I am a lucky, recent recipient of a Park Encore, in Engleman spruce and Indian rosewood. It’s a beautiful instrument featuring impeccable workmanship, and great tone and responsiveness.
Shelley Park is amiable, communicative and a pleasure to work with. She was fully responsive to my many detail-oriented requests during the construction of the guitar and committed to building just what I wanted. I couldn’t be happier with the process or the results.
Dylan Fowler – Wales, UK
I am the lucky owner of a beautiful Shelley Park D Hole. As far as I know I’m the only European player playing finger style on one of these instruments. Shelley heard me play in Vancouver last year (supporting the great Don Ross) and she seemed very interested that I was playing finger-style on a D hole instrument. I explained that I’m not naturally drawn to a steel strung acoustic but somehow the D hole has a middle register that works with the kind of material I play. In a way it is taking the D hole back to its original concept as a classical guitar. Shelley went away and built this great instrument (Cedar top/Brazilian back and sides) and presented it to me at the Vancouver festival this year. I just took to it straight away and without a second thought used on the gigs – that’s how confident I was with her instrument. The sound and look of the guitar continues to turn heads wherever I play and for me I now feel I have an an instrument which can match the music that lies in front of me. Thanks Shelley – Diolch yn fawr iawn i ti!!
