Oliver Manning

featured guitarist and julian bream trust scholar

Evan’s guitars are without a doubt the most colourful, responsive, and inspiring guitars I have had the pleasure of performing with. The combination of brilliant playability, paired with the extreme accuracy of Evan’s craftsmanship makes for an incredibly impressive experience for both the player and listener alike! As a concert performer, I have the experience of pushing my Kingma guitar to its limits in terms of projection in halls and breadth of tonal palette - of which the guitar consistently delivers with ease. The guitar paints with colours that can conjure imagery such as a wart ridden witch brewing bubbling potions in her cobbled cottage, hidden away in the misty woods… or I am completely losing my marbles? (Probably a bit of both!)

Evan’s world class craftsmanship comes hand-in-hand with his highly refined aesthetic design style. He personalised my rosette, which we designed together online, and he later explained how he makes the rosettes. Evan was happy to answer any questions I had and always communicates with patience, clarity, and reassurance; he had my full trust throughout the whole process. My rosette has become a real feature that audiences ask to view up-close after concerts!

I travelled 3500 miles from London, UK to Ontario, Canada to collect my guitar from Evan himself, visiting the workshop and soaking in the inspiration of being able to see the birthplace of Evan’s guitars. We spent years discussing the creation of a new guitar, and I am incredibly grateful to Evan for delivering more than what I ever expected. The process of Evan building me a guitar was a highly personal experience. Evan took the time to learn about me, and to ultimately create me an instrument that makes me happy and I am proud to share my experience and friendship with him! 

Alberto Cuellar

founder & director of jitamen and madera

I very much love the guitars made by the talented guitar maker, Evan Kingma. I have already ordered several guitars and our cooperation is successfully continuing year by year. He loves his job very much, and you can see in every guitar he makes that he is putting all of himself into it. The craftsmanship, materials, sound, balance, and playability are all very good. But above all, Evan manages to accomplish something much more difficult and rare to find: his guitars, when played, transmit deep, nice emotions. That is something very unique. And probably no one can ever learn from others how to build it into a guitar.

Paul A.

I love spruce topped guitars. What particularly appeals to me is that they change over time in a way that reflects the guitar wood’s maturation, and the instrument’s developing a voice as a result of an ongoing interaction between player and the construction of the guitar. A well made spruce guitar has the quality, like a new fine wine, of reflecting its musical qualities from the start, but also contains the sonic pointer to where it’s headed as it matures: it will increase in sustain, the essential balance of the guitar will become more pronounced over time, and ability to draw from a range of tonal colours will expand with playing. A great new spruce topped guitar comes with a promise of possibility.

Recently I received one of Evan’s classical guitars. The top is spruce and the back and sides are made from ziricote, a wood that has beautiful texture and deep resonance. Although only a few weeks old, the guitar already has a voice that is a compelling mixture of clarity, tonal balance, and warmth. This is a difficult combination to achieve, but Evan accomplished this splendidly. It is already a joy to play and to hear. Additionally, the level of Evan’s workmanship is fantastic. The guitar is flawlessly built and is stunning to see.

An essential aspect of Evan’s building approach is to interact with his clients. These interactions are reflected in every aspect of the completed instrument and are visually marked in the rosette. Each rosette reflects something of the client and Evan’s inspiration of his relationship with the client. I got to know Evan when he was apprentice to Stephen Hill, a master guitar builder in La Herradura Spain. I went to La Herradura to participate in a course on building your own guitar (in my case a cedar topped flamenco blanca). Evan and I spent a lot of time discussing many different topics, one of which was a mutual love for astronomy and physics. The guitar Evan built for me is named ‘Sunbeam’ and the rosette that has a beautiful multi-coloured star pattern on it.

The personalized rosette is a reflection of Evan’s relationship with the client, but it also is a reflection of his building philosophy, which is that as a builder he is charged with taking the raw materials of wood and crafting an instrument that will go on to have a long life as a musical conduit for the player and hence the building process is the first opportunity for the guitar to become itself.

I am thrilled with this guitar. Working with Evan has been a joy and the guitar shows the highest level of artisanship and skill. If you are considering ordering a new guitar, Evan is someone you should speak with. I have no doubt than anyone ordering an instrument will relish both the experience and the resulting instrument.

Patrick M.

guitarist

For me, it is simply not enough to receive just any beautiful sounding and looking instrument. I believe it is the responsibility of a luthier to assemble a guitar that naturally intermingles with the spirit of the player. This is exactly what Evan excels at. When I reached out to commission a guitar, Evan went out of his way to understand who I was as a musician and this resulted in a guitar that feels like an extension of who I am. This approach alone sets Evan apart from other builders. However, the fact that his considerate designs are paired with an arsenal of world-class materials and then executed with an astronomical attention to detail marks Evan as a formidable presence in the world of guitar crafting. 

These days, you'll find me grinning from behind a robust and articulate spruce/ebony 7-string. Atropos and I are bound to be thick as thieves as we set out on our musical journey together. All thanks to Mr. Kingma and his dedication to providing the guitarists around the world with a worthy companion. I am very grateful. 

Tristan K.

Easy stuff - legendary build, fit and finish.  Love the frets and really love the neck; it's got a great feel, one of the nicest.  Great set-up and easy to play.  Rosette is amazing and to me armrests should be standard issue.  There's no reason not to have one.  Tuners work great and look great.  Fine woods.

Harder to describe - the sound.  It's got it's own unique voice that's for sure, unlike any classical I've played.  The note separation is superior and the guitar has plenty of sustain and volume.  The tone is very alluring.  The trebles are sweet and the first string really sings.  The basses are firm and thick but not dark - they have a quality that I can only describe as "supportively transparent".   The guitar is very resonate especially as you go up the neck it rings like crazy.

Thanks for a great guitar!

Martin C.

It is challenging to find a good guitar, let alone an exceptional one. When I realized that I had outgrown my previous guitar, I waited patiently to find the best guitar I could get my hands on.  When I had the opportunity to purchase the Day/Night guitar from Evan, I took it. The guitar delivered everything I hoped for, and even more. It is a spectacular instrument, with a deep natural reverb that fills the whole room. The guitar itself feels light, but very robust and is an absolute delight to play. Evan was so pleasant to work with. He is very communicative, kind, and was always available to answer my questions and concerns. Thank you, Evan, for building this guitar!

Daniel Huschert

composer and guitarist

In 2019, I decided to buy a high-class handmade guitar from a luthier. Soon after, Evan’s guitars caught my interest for their stunning beauty, traditional approach, and masterful execution of his craft. I fell in love with 'geo', his No. 13, which was for sale at Siccas at that time. Without having played the instrument (Coronavirus lockdown stopped me from visiting the shop) I bought it over the internet – and have been more than happy with it ever since. It has a sweet and clear sound with brilliant trebles and a juicy bass, and for me as a composer it is just so inspiring to play on. Plus, Evan is about the nicest person you can think of. He helped me out with all the questions I had, and I surely can refer to him whenever I need his advice in the future.

John K.

Having spent a month in a guitar workshop under Evan Kingma’s supervision, I came to appreciate his love, knowledge, and handling of the wood with which he works, as well as his obsessive attention to detail in his approach to guitar-making, qualities which are clearly evident in his finished guitars. I didn’t need another guitar, but having held and played ‘Earth’ a beautiful cedar classical, I had to buy it! It has a wonderful rounded and balanced tonal quality, excellent volume, and beautiful workmanship. I just love holding and playing this guitar whether I am alone or playing to an audience!