Carsten Kobs

Hamburg, Germany

Few modern makers are as admired as Carsten Kobs of Hamburg, Germany. He completed his formal training between 1990 and 1993, worked alongside several master luthiers, and in 1999 passed his master examination and founded his workshop, Kobs Gitarrenbau. He has built classical double-top concert guitars almost exclusively ever since.

His instruments are played by artists such as David Russell, Zoran Dukić and Aniello Desiderio, and his waiting list is among the longest in the world. Each guitar is a complete artistic statement: a lightweight cedar or spruce Nomex double top, often over Brazilian rosewood, that feels alive the moment you touch it. The basses are deep and orchestral, the trebles sweet and endlessly colorful, with a halo of overtones around every note.

What sets Carsten apart is his obsessive final voicing. After construction, he adjusts tiny tonal aspects of every guitar by hand, listening for balance, sustain and response and fine-tuning the top and braces until each note rings exactly as he envisions. That extra layer of individual refinement is why players so often describe his guitars as living, breathing instruments.