MASTERCLASSES/WORKSHOPS AT THE ACOUSTIC GUITAR VILLAGE in contemporary of CREMONA MUSICA INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS – CREMONA FAIR
October 2^nd-3^rd-4^th

info: info@armadilloclub.org

Masterclass of Lutherie for Acoustic Guitar, classical and modern

Friday 2^nd, Saturday 3^rd, Sunday 4^th October 2026
Masterclass room 1 at the Cremona Fair Offices

Teachers: DOUG PROPER (US) – SHARON PROPER (US) – IAN DAVLIN (US)
translation and assistence by Max Monterosso, Mirko Borghino

open to all luthiers and guitar maker lovers – total registration price: € 280,00
DOWNLOAD APPLICATION FORM

Program:

Master Luthiers DOUG PROPER and SHARON PROPER (US)
Doug and Sharon Proper are the owners and operators of The Guitar Specialist, Inc., a renowned repair and restoration shop in Westchester County, New York. Since 1985, they have been professionally restoring and repairing fretted instruments, earning a reputation among their peers as two of the finest craftspeople in the field.
Over the decades, their bench has welcomed instruments from an impressive roster of artists, including Paul Simon, John Scofield, Glen Hansard, Rob Thomas, John Abercrombie, Joe Beck, Chris Brubeck, Jerry Silverman, Tisziji Muñoz, Andy Powell (Wishbone Ash), Chris Jasper (The Isley Brothers), Dave Fisher (The Highwaymen), and Andrew Gold, among many others. Among their recent honors was the restoration of Elvis Presley’s 1964 Gretsch Country Gentleman, famously played during his 1969 comeback tour at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. Another standout project was the rescue and restoration of Styx bassist Chuck Panozzo’s first guitar, a Gibson ES-125.
Their work and shop have been featured in Vintage Guitar Magazine, American Lutherie, and Guitarmaker Magazine. Doug has also appeared on Michael Bashkin’s Luthier on Luthier podcast. Together, Doug and Sharon have served as masterclass clinicians for the Luthiers Interactive of North Texas (LINT) and have presented at the Northwoods Seminars, where they taught advanced French-polishing techniques for repair and restoration.
The Guitar Specialist has served as an authorized warranty center for many major manufacturers, including Gibson, Fender, Taylor, Guild, C.F. Martin, Gretsch, American Archtop, Jackson/Charvel, Santa Cruz Guitar Company, Epiphone, Ovation, Takamine, Hamer, and Tacoma Guitars.
Doug is also well known as a tool designer for Total Vise who manufactures Doug’s innovative “Proper’s Guitar Workstation” and in recent years he has collaborated with StewMac to develop specialized tools for the repair and restoration trade.
https://www.guitarspecialist.com/

1^st Day – Friday 2^nd October, from 10am to 1pm:
Fingerboard Prep.
Working from the principle that fretwork is only as good as the fingerboard preparation done before fretting, we’ll be walking through our process for profiling and preparing the fingerboard for frets. This includes Propers’ geometric sanding approach for controlling relief and the fingerboard radius; the differences between compound and cylindrical radii; fret‑slot preparation; and anticipating the effects of fret‑tang compression and string tension on the fingerboard during a refret.

2^nd Day – Saturday 3^rd October, from 10am to 1pm:
Fret Installation
Continuing from the fingerboard‑prep stage on day one, we’ll move on to fret installation, focusing on Propers’ signature “Two‑Hammer” technique and on matching the fret‑tang size to the fret slot. Working from the belief that every refret is a compression refret, we will demonstrate his fret‑installation method, along with his process for controlling fret compression and manipulating fingerboard relief throughout the procedure.

3^rd Day – Sunday 4^th October, from 10am to 1pm:
The Fret Level and Crown
On day three, we’ll move on to the all‑critical fret‑leveling and crowning process. While there are countless tools and methods available for fret crowning, we will unpack and demonstrate his approach to leveling and crowning frets, favoring his unique take on the traditional triangle file. We’ll discuss the geometry of fingerboards, frets, and the file, while uncovering the often‑overlooked insights that make this his preferred method for bringing every refret to a perfect finish.
Questions & Answers

Master Luthier IAN DAVLIN (US)
Ian Davlin is the founder of The Looth Group, an online community and educational platform for guitar builders, repair professionals, and toolmakers. Known online as @ianhatesguitars, he produces instructional content, hosts discussions with industry experts, and organizes workshops and live events focused on the craft, design, and business of guitar making.
Davlin began working in guitar repair in 1993 as an apprentice to Ken Cartwright and has since worked with respected companies including Gruhn Guitars and the Breedlove Guitar Company. Through The Looth Group’s programs, videos, and member events, he focuses on connecting experienced professionals with emerging builders and sharing practical knowledge across the lutherie community.
https://www.instagram.com/ianhatesguitars

1^st Day – Friday 2_^nd October, from 2pm to 5pm:
Introduction to 3D printing, hardware and software
-Why 3D printing used to be frustrating
-What actually changed (the appliance shift)
-Basic filaments (what is at stake)
-Ventilation and exhaust (safety and quality)
-Why enclosures matter
-Bambu printers as a system, not a kit
-Ownership is optional (including print services)

2^nd Day – Saturday 3^rd October, from 2pm to 5pm:
Introduction to 3D modelling
-The Modelling software
-Working in a 3d space, XYZ coordinates and planes
-Autodesk Fusion setup
-Sketches, constraints, dimensioning, parameters
-Creating solids, extrusions, revolve, loft

3^rd Day – Sunday 4^th October, from 2pm to 5pm:
Repositories, slicer and practical uses
-3D model repositories and sourcing files
-Spatial navigation (no printing yet)
-Transform tools (still no slicing)
-Object logic (split / merge)
-First slice (intentionally wrong)
-Grain orientation and failure
-Correct orientation and layer preview
-Speed vs strength: high-leverage settings
-Supports (when they are actually needed)
-Final plate setup (proof by comparison)
Questions & Answers

Masterclass in mandolin specialisation

Sunday 4^th October, from 10am to 12:30pm
Masterclass room 2 offices of Cremona Fiere

Teacher:  M° CARLO AONZO (Ita)
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Cost euro 50,00, (includes 3-day admission to Cremona Musica Exibhitions & Festival)
To register: giulia.alliri@gmail.com
info@accademiamandolino.com

M° CARLO AONZO
Carlo Aonzo is a worldwide known Italian mandolin performer, teacher at the Conservatory of Bari and winner of several prestigious awards; during his long career he has played in all continents for such institutions as the Philharmonic Orchestra of La Scala in Milan, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, the Teatro Massimo V. Bellini of Catania, the Sicilian Symphony Orchestra (Italy), the Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Museum of New York, the Nashville Chamber Orchestra (USA), the McGill Chamber Orchestra in Montreal (Canada), the Philharmonia of San Petersburg (Russia), the Minsk Chamber Soloists (Belarus), the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival (Germany).
Carlo is often invited as musical director and visiting faculty by the most important international mandolin institutions namely the Classical Mandolin Society of America, the Federation of Australasian Mandolin Ensemble, the European Guitar and Mandolin Association, the Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Kamp (Tennessee), the River of the West Mandolin Camp (Oregon), the Zupfmusik-verband Schweiz (Switzerland), the Mandolin Festival in Berlin, the Saigon Guitar Festival, the Goa Mando Fest (India), the Osaka International Mandolin Competition (Japan), the Yasuo-Kuwahara Competition Schweinfurt (Germany) and he regularly teaches seminars and workshops worldwide.
Since 2000 he leads his annual “Carlo Aonzo Mandolin Workshop” in New York and Milwaukee In 2006 he creates the International Italian Mandolin Accademia that he is still successfully directing and constantly expanding with new activities among which the production in 2020 of the short-documentary series “L’Italia dei 1000 Mandolini” (the 1000 mandolins of Italy) on the mandolin and its fascinating world. He has released several albums covering different musical genres, made research on the history of his instrument collaborating also with the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians and published for MelBay, Hal Leonard (USA) and Les Productions d’Oz (Canada). He often appears in national Radio and TV programs in Italy and abroad, he has recently toured Japan, USA, Australia, India, Switzerland, France and Norway and has lately worked with the conductor Enrico Maria Sardelli and the legendary master pianist Bruno Canino.
www.carloaonzo.com
www.accademiamandolino.com