2017 Vladimir Druzhinin SP/AR

This 2017 Vladimir Druzhinin is a classical guitar with a spruce top and African rosewood back and sides, built near Moscow, Russia, our second guitar from him and the first with a spruce top.

Our First Spruce-Top Druzhinin

On a trip to Russia we met several of the country's leading young makers, and Vladimir stood out as showing exceptional promise. Some years later we met him again in Germany, tried his newest guitars and were so impressed that we placed an order on the spot.

His tasteful and skillful style is evident at first glance, in the classic rosette, the elegantly carved headstock and the beautiful selection of materials.

Light and Focused, After Torres

The dimensions and plantilla reveal Vladimir's love of the masters of the past, particularly Torres. Like a Torres it is light and efficient in construction, with very focused, fast attack; trebles sing, basses are smooth, lush and firm, and there is plenty of volume for the concert stage, solo or in ensemble. We are very pleased to be working with this fine young maker as his exclusive representatives in the US.

Vladimir Druzhinin: From Physics to Guitar Making

Vladimir Druzhinin was born in 1983 in Novosibirsk, Russia, into a family of scientists. He earned his Bachelor's (2004) and Master's (2006) degrees in physics at Novosibirsk State University, specializing in accelerator physics, and worked at the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics from 2002 to 2008. At the same time he studied the double bass at the Novosibirsk Music College and played in the local philharmonic big band, on the city's jazz scene and as a studio musician.

Timofey Tkach and the Moscow School

In 2010 Vladimir moved to Moscow, where he was accepted as an apprentice guitar maker by Timofey Tkach (1966–2026), considered the leading teacher of lutherie in Russia, and from 2011 he worked in the Liuteria workshop, a luthiers' union founded by Tkach. Today he builds in his own workshop in Sereda, outside Moscow. His focus is the classical Spanish school, which he approaches both historically and with a physicist's understanding of how sound is produced. GSI is his exclusive dealer in the USA.