March 21, 2013 Volume 12 • Number 12 50¢ Newsstand Price
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Revolutionizing the acoustic guitar Ask Mike Miltimore about Riversong Guitars and he lights up like a little boy who has been asked about his prize go-cart. “It’s been a really fun project,” said the self-proclaimed passion igniter. His grin rarely fades as he tells the story of how his idea to innovate one of the world’s most popular instruments came to life. “Almost every guitar on the market is over-braced,” says Mike, who ought to know: he’s been playing and fixing guitars for most of his life. The son of Lee’s Music founder has been a fixture in the guitar shop since he could walk. He was working alongside his dad, customizing and repairing guitars, by the age of twelve. “By running the neck all the way to the back end, we’ve eliminated all of the structural bracing from the top so the sound is freer to resonate, giving more variations in tone, and allowing massive sound and tons and tons of sustain.” This single innovation has meant huge improvements to this comSPH - Fr Earlug Mar 22.indd 1 mon instrument. Everything can be adjusted while under string tension; the neck angle is independent of the saddle, meaning the components of the guitars body can all expand and contract at the same rate; and it allows the player to control all Mike Miltmore and Lee Manson, head of production at Riversong Guitars have variables, such as mass, tension and been on a quest to to remove the “bad stress” from the guitar body. The local, deflection, to achieve the precise custom shop builds progressive guitars and has gained international notoriety.
sound they’re looking for. The shop where these guitars are made reveals one innovation after another, from patent-pending process and structural improvements to jimmy-rigged pressing and clamping techniques. “Necessity really is the mother of all invention,” quipped Mike. Since earning second place last year in the Business Development Bank of Canada Young Entrepreneur of the Year competition last year, his business has grown rapidly. “I really think it was a good thing we got second place,” concludes Mike. “Cash is good, but the $25,000 in coaching and consultation from BDC has been key in Riversong going from zero to the brink of international distribution in under a year.” The coaching was specifically in the area of Internet strategy planning, and has helped them reach markets in China, Singapore and Europe. Musicians are lining up. Blue Rodeo’s Jim Cuddy plays one, and they’ve even passed the test of Canadian musician and tone-stickler Gary Fjellgard. “Gary is famous for measuring everything against the sound of his prized 1950s Martin D18. He played one of our guitars and was visibly shocked by what he heard.” – continued on page 2
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