With over 30 years experience as an accomplished luthier, Charles Sanzone's custom made musical instruments are enjoyed by some of the world's finest musicians. Most notably - David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, whose wife, Polly Samson, gifted him a Sanzone guitar for his 72nd birthday.  Kim Thayil of Soundgarden, Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons, and Irish Mandolinist John Colfer . 

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Relying on simple hand tools and natural finishes, he carefully crafts each instrument to suit the needs of the player. Very limited production of 1-3 pieces per year ensures the highest quality, and only the finest materials are used. Archtop guitars, flat top guitars, and mandolins are available for custom order - or skip the line and inquire about our spec builds in process!

 

A career in lutherie. Armed with a BA in philosophy from Boston College, Chuck travelled to Arizona to study guitarmaking under William Eaton at the Roberto-Venn School on Lutherie in 1995. After completing a repair apprenticeship at the Music Emporium, he joined forces with master luthier Bill Tippin - honing in on the finer points of Martin-style guitars as head builder. When the economic crash of 2008 left his young family on uncertain footing, Charles sucessfully made the transition into the steady world of string instrument repair. Passion for the craft and highest attention to detail led to management roles, traveling the world sharing knowledge of the craft through skill set training and QI/product development at various factories in Asia and Mexico. He has instructed advanced guitar repair/restoration at the university level in New Hampshire. More recentlly, he streamlined and set production records as VP of Manufacturing/Master Luthier for Guild/Cordoba Guitars- a legacy brand based in Southern California until its buy-out to Yamaha.

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Throughout the years, Charles has enjoyed giving back to charitable organizations doing amazing work - custom handcrafted guitar contributions have been presented to Mariska Hartigay's (Law & Order: SVU)  Joyful Heart Foundation, the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism, and Soundscape Galway Music Therapy. 
     
While all of these professional accomplishments have been exciting, rediscovering roots in historic New England is a full-circle moment. With historic Holliston Massachusetts as the backdrop, The Commonwealth Luthier LLC is a family-owned gallery/workshop offering high end vintage restoration and custom instrument builds.