Marcus Dominelli

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

Marcus Dominelli has been building guitars full time since 1998 in Victoria, British Columbia, where he has run Dominelli Guitars for more than two decades. He came to lutherie after years as a mechanic, woodworker, and traveler, training at the Timeless Instruments School of Lutherie in Saskatchewan under David Freeman, himself a student of the American pioneer Charles Fox. He sharpened his hands afterward at a Victoria instrument repair shop alongside veteran craftsmen, and later studied French polishing with the Hungarian-Canadian luthier Geza Burhardt.

Dominelli specializes in double top concert guitars alongside hybrid lattice-braced and traditional instruments, blending traditional sound quality with modern innovations in design. Everything on his guitars is his own: he designs and makes his rosettes, purflings, bindings, and inlays rather than using catalog parts, and he joins his headstocks with the old v-joint, a stronger and handsomer connection than the common scarf joint. Working largely by hand keeps him in direct contact with each piece of wood, letting him adjust every build toward the sound he is after, guided by decades of studying the great makers past and present.

Our first hands-on encounter with Marcus's guitars came at the Classical Guitar Corner Summer Camp, where we played several of his instruments, including a traditional build and a double top. We came away thoroughly impressed in every aspect. The rosettes and countless small details are fantastic, and the double top impressed us most of all, complete with the magnetic soundport covers we especially appreciate. That experience led directly to a collaboration, and Marcus is preparing the first guitar built specifically for us. Our expert team can share timing and specifications as the build progresses.