Stephan Connor is an American classical guitar maker in Cataumet, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod, known for his sound portal and his powerful lattice-braced guitars, played by Eliot Fisk, Angel Romero, the Assad brothers and Scott Tennant.
Stephan Connor at a Glance
- Workshops: Boston (labels of 2009–2016); now Cataumet, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
- Training: music at the College of Wooster, Ohio (1994); guitar making at Timeless Instruments, Saskatchewan
- Building since: 1994
- Signature: the sound portal in the side, facing the player (first made in 1993)
- Bracing: traditional fan bracing and lattice bracing, in patterns of his own
- Models: Signature, Portrait and Floresta
- Played by: Eliot Fisk, Angel Romero, Sergio and Odair Assad, Scott Tennant, Marco Tamayo, Anabel Montesinos
From Wooster to Cape Cod
Connor learned piano first, then played his mother’s 1957 Martin. He studied music at the College of Wooster in Ohio, where he also discovered woodworking, spent a semester studying guitar in Paris, and after graduating in 1994 took an intensive course at Timeless Instruments in Saskatchewan, using a Manuel Velázquez guitar as his reference. He worked in North Carolina, on Cape Cod and in Boston, where he opened his own shop in 2000, before returning to Cape Cod – his workshop in Cataumet overlooks a pond near a historic windmill.
The Sound Portal
In 1993 he drilled a hole in the side of an inexpensive guitar so the player could hear it better – and the sound portal facing the player became his signature. On his guitars it is often elliptical, reinforced with Spanish cedar and fitted with a magnetic cover, so the player can open or close it. It sends more sound to the player and also shapes the sound projected to the audience.
Power and a Traditional Voice
Connor’s guitars are sought by players who want maximum power while keeping a natural, traditional quality of sound: “I make instruments that have robust projection while maintaining a beautiful, versatile voice.” He builds traditional fan-braced tops as well as lattice-braced ones, often with a raised fingerboard and 20 or more frets and, on his “640” guitars, a 640 mm scale. He chooses his tonewoods himself – recently including “Bullrun” cedar from the Robert Ruck collection. Eliot Fisk was his breakthrough artist, and Grisha Goryachev played one during his studies at Yale.
Stephan Connor Guitars at GSI
Many Stephan Connor guitars have passed through our doors over the years. You’ll find guitars currently in stock by clicking the “Guitars In Stock” button in the header of this page as well as earlier examples in our Museum by clicking the “Guitars In Museum” button.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Stephan Connor?
An American classical guitar maker, building since 1994, now in Cataumet on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
What is the Connor sound portal?
A hole in the bass-side rib facing the player, which he first made in 1993; it lets the player hear the guitar as the audience does.
Does Stephan Connor build lattice guitars?
Yes – he builds lattice-braced tops as well as traditional fan-braced ones.
Who plays Connor guitars?
Eliot Fisk, Angel Romero, Sergio and Odair Assad, Scott Tennant and many others.
