Nestled in the forests of the Eastern Townships in Quebec, Canada, there is a small village name La Patrie. What started as a small lithier shop about fiteen years ago has grown into a town of guitar builders. Today there are over 200 people in La Patrie dedicated to the art of hand crafting guitars. In honor of that tradidion, our new classical guitars have been named after the village where they were created.

      The La Patrie series of classical guitars consists of three models. The Etude, the Concert and the Collection. The Etude combines mahogany back and sides with a solid cedar top and a real laquer satin finish. The Concert model also combines mahogany and cedar, but with a high gloss laquer finish. Our Collection model features solid rosewood back and sides and a select spruce top. All La Patrie guitars are crafted from top quality tone woods to produce instruments of exceptional resonance and structural integrity.

800 Year Old Trees
      All La Patrie guitars feature either solid cedar or spruce tops. The wood used in these tops can be found only in cedar and spruce trees that have an average age of about 800 years. The tight straight grain in this wood makes it strong in the direction of the string tension while at the same time flexible across the grain lines. It is also this combination of rigidity and flexibility that gives the top its resonance. The vibration of the guitar top is the most crucial element of the sound.

Alcohol Lacquer
      La Patrie guitars are finished with a special alcohol laquer formula. This finish is light enough to allow the wood to breathe and vibrate freely. The tops resonating capacity actually improves as the guitar is played over and extended period of time. This graduel improvement in the response of the top of the guitar is often referred to as "aging". Poly finishes inhibit top vibration and are therefore never used on La Patrie guitars.

Real Hardwood
      Only hard reflective wood is used in the back and sides of La Patrie guitars. The Etude and Concert models feature back and sides made from the superior technique of two layers of mahogany with a maple center. The Collection model features solid rosewood back and sides.

Classics that are comfortable to play
      Classical guitars of the past have typically been made with thick neck dimensions, while this promoted a certain amount of neck stability, it often made certain playing aspects difficult to execute. It is for this reason that special attention was devoted to the neck design of the La Patrie guitars. Neck width and string spacing conform to classical standards, but a new truss rod system allows the profile of the neck to be reduced producing a neck of extraordinary comfort, while increasing stability. The La Patrie necks are carved from Honduras mahogany. The Etude and Concery models feature Indian rosewood fingerboard and bridge while the Collection model features an ebony fretboard and bridge.