Biography
Kazuo Sato was born in Tokyo in 1946. In 1965 he began his training with the master luthier Kuniharu Nobe. In 1971 he continued his studies in Oxford with the renowned maker David Rubio, where he spent more than four years refining his craftsmanship while building guitars and lutes under Rubio’s guidance. After opening his first workshop in Belgium in 1974, he moved to Germany two years later. Since then he has continued to advance the development of the traditional classical guitar through ongoing ideas and innovations.
His son Hideo Sato, who studied classical guitar with Prof. Ansgar Krause like his brother, developed a strong interest in guitar making from an early age. In 2011, despite a promising career in the software industry in Japan, he decided to dedicate himself fully to the craft. After several years of apprenticeship, he now builds classical concert guitars together with his father, drawing on Kazuo’s extensive experience while incorporating his own concepts. Even his early instruments were played and appreciated by respected guitarists and professors.
The Sato workshop is dedicated to guitar culture, contributing through the founding of the classical concert series Best of Guitar, through board work within the association Kultur und Gitarre e.V., and by supporting the International Guitar Festival Augsburg.
For the refinement of sound and playability, Kazuo and Hideo collaborate regularly with international artists. Since the beginning of his career, the internationally acclaimed concert guitarist and professor Takeo has been one of their most important advisors.
The Craft
Classical guitar construction at concert level demands years of accumulated knowledge: how individual pieces of timber vibrate, how bracing patterns affect tonal balance, how small changes in geometry shift the character of an instrument. A finished concert guitar typically represents several hundred hours of hand work. Every decision — wood selection, arch height, brace dimensions — shapes what a player can do with the finished instrument.
