Daniel Friederich

Daniel Friederich (1932 – 2020) – Master Luthier

Daniel Friederich, born in 1932 in Paris, is one of the great French guitar makers of the 20th century. His grandparents, of German descent, were skilled cabinetmakers who migrated from Luxembourg to France. Friederich began his apprenticeship in the family business at the age of 13, learning the art of furniture making. In 1954, he attended a concert by French guitarist Ida Presti, was captivated by the guitar, and began studying under Christian Aubin at the Académie de Guitare on Rue Descartes in Paris. When the student couldn’t afford a new guitar, Aubin suggested building one. Thus, in 1955, Friederich completed his first guitar. In 1959, he began building instruments professionally. By 1960, Friederich had crafted 15 guitars and took the last one to show his colleague, Robert Bouchet, who was very encouraging. In 1962, he met the Presti-Lagoya Duo for the first time when he visited Canada, as he told the Guitar Magazine in 1985. “At the time, Ida Presti played a Bouchet when Robert Bouchet was at his best,” Friederich said. “Ida was very impressed with my guitar, which was important for me. Ida Presti’s partner Alexandre Lagoya suggested that I build a guitar for her, but something different, and asked if I could build it more like a violin, so that the part of the fingerboard that sits above the soundboard should be free and not glued down. On the boat heading home, I made plans and built the guitar when I returned.”

Daniel Friederich approached his work with a highly analytical and scientific mindset. He meticulously documented all his adjustments and variations in guitar construction in his workshop journal to achieve a consistent outcome with his guitars. He maintained a log for each of his guitars, documenting construction methods, wood types used, thickness of back and soundboard. This logbook became his “database,” a resource he frequently referred to during the guitar-making process. From the 1980s onwards, he ceased making major modifications to his guitars, but the journey leading up to that point was long and painstaking. In the 1960s, Daniel Friederich developed three guitar models: The Recital Model, the Arpege Model, and a Flamenco Model. These models allowed Daniel Friederich to experiment significantly.

Lagoya provided Daniel Friederich with much encouragement and practical advice. The Presti-Lagoya Duo also recommended his guitars to Sophocles Papas at the Columbia Music Company in 1964, thereby ensuring a strong distribution of his instruments in the United States.

In 1967, Friederich’s reputation reached an international level when he won the Silver Medal at a guitar maker competition in Liège, Belgium (Gold went to the Japanese maker Kohno). But Friederich also received a Gold Medal for the quality of craftsmanship.

Julian Bream praised the “round and warm quality of articulation” of a Friederich guitar that he had played on a U.S. tour in 1969. From then on, many international recitalists were eager to acquire a Friederich guitar.

Between 1960 and 1970, Daniel Friederich marketed his Concert Guitar, with a serial number on the label, as the most expensive and advanced version, and the Recital and Arpége models, less costly instruments without a serial number on the label. Starting in 1970, Friederich only made Concert Guitars, with serial numbers and dates on the label. Over the years, he meticulously kept records of all his guitars, noting their dimensions and bracing patterns, as well as serial numbers and subsequent owners.

Friederich also engaged in extensive scientific research on various aspects of guitar making at the Laboratoire d’Acoustique at the University of Paris. In 1977, he delivered a lecture at the university on the history and function of the guitar. He continued to explore the acoustic properties of the guitar, always mindful of individual preferences.

“Over the years, I have tried to master the different qualities that various guitarists seek,” he told Roy Courtnall in the early 1990s. “Some players attack the strings strongly and want a long sustain. This contrasts with Latin Americans like Alvaro Pierri, Roberto Aussel, and Eduardo Fernandez, who want a more explosive, fuller, more contrasting, and highly colorful sound because they play with a lighter touch. Lagoya’s students seek a sound that is powerful and sustained, with very consistent articulation. My personal taste and playing style tend toward a sound that is full-bodied, charming, and deep, more like a piano than a harpsichord.”