2023 Kris Barnett CD/EB

Kris Barnett grew up in the United States and his story is very unique. In 2004, he began building guitars as a hobby while working full-time as a mental health therapist in Atlanta, GA. Initially, he converted his own bedroom into a workshop and within two years started receiving enough commissions to work full-time as a classical guitar maker. Throughout the years he has continuously developed his craftsmanship following the simple philosophy that "the goal is to continue the history, not simply repeat it." Kris moved his workshop to Berlin, Germany in the summer of 2018 where he joined a small community of luthiers who call themselves the "Berlin Luthiers" - this group of colleagues and friends find their collective to be a fertile ground for mutual inspiration and the genuine exchange of experience and insights into their shared craft. To us, the most remarkable aspect of this group is the diversity of styles each of the makers exhibits. Kris' self-directed approach has allowed him to build unique guitars, such as the ones he creates today. He started building traditional Torres-style instruments, and later started working with lattice, double top and numerous other designs of his own making. Nowadays, his instruments borrow from both modern and traditional concepts of guitar construction.

This instrument features a new lattice system recently developed by Kris which is based on the golden ratio of the Fibonacci sequence. The lengths and spacing between the braces, as well as the frequencies of the back and soundboard, are related to this sequence. The result is the production of great amount of power, without the typically boomy (in the basses) and tinky (in the trebles) sound that many lattice guitars typically produce. Rather it simply has the added power with a balanced and consistent quality of tone up the entire register. The dynamic range and color palette is astounding, especially considering that it is a cedar top. It's possible to produce sparkling, bright tone from a ponticello right hand position only to have creamy, luminous tone with the right hand over the soundhole. This instrument provides the player with an enormous range of sonic possibilities to play virtually any style of music. Additionally, it is impeccably built with a bold, unique style including various decorative elements in the headstock, top purfling and new rosette design. It is also fitted with Kris' own precision tuning machines, which are extremely easy and accurate to use - also made in Berlin. It also has an armrest and elevated fingerboard for easier playability and 20th fret for repertoire requiring a high c natural. All-in, this is a fantastic instrument and we are thrilled to be working with this talented maker from the "Berlin Luthiers"!

Photos of this guitar taken during construction.