Now 35 years into his career as a luthier, Dana Bourgeois (pantheonguitars.com ) is one of the most successful and respected makers of contemporary steel-string guitars. Working in a small-production environment rather than building guitars by himself has enabled Bourgeois to put his name on the headstocks of an impressive number of guitars, and last year the odometer at his Lewiston, Maine, shop hit the 5,000 mark. This clearly was an achievement to commemorate, and what better way than with a very special and unique guitar that perfectly illustrates Bourgeois’s ongoing quest to fuse vintage designs with fresh ideas. The result is the Bourgeois Victoria, a one-of-a-kind, sub-parlor-size custom 12-fret instrument inspired by American guitars made during the Victorian era (1837–1901), matched with a period-style wooden “coffin” case.
In recent years, Bourgeois has become known for his dreadnoughts, in no small part due to the fact that they’ve become the guitar of choice for pickers such as Bryan Sutton, Ricky Skaggs, and Scott Fore. But Bourgeois’s building hasn’t always been about large powerhouse guitars. What really put him on the map in the mid-’80s was the collaboration with fingerstyle guitarist Eric Schoenberg and the C.F. Martin and Co. that created the Schoenberg Soloist OM, a project that ultimately lead to Martin’s own re-creations of vintage-style OM models. Besides dreadnoughts and OM’s, Bourgeois has built his own versions of various classic flattop designs, but models such as the Jumbo OM and the DB Jumbo demonstrate that he’s also capable of designing original guitar models himself. Bourgeois has even applied his design skills to archtop guitars, and last year, he introduced a pair of new 0 and 00 flattop models. But Bourgeois didn’t want to use an existing template to mark the occasion of his 5,000th guitar. Instead, he chose to continue combining vintage inspiration with contemporary design, but in the most extreme way yet.
Materials Fit for a Queen
Bourgeois No. 5,000 goes back a few more years for its inspiration than 1930s dreadnoughts or OMs. The guitar’s body size, which has a width of 11.5 inches at the lower bout, corresponds with Martin’s size 4, which was introduced in the mid-1800s. Befitting a commemorative instrument, Bourgeois built the guitar from the finest materials: Brazilian rosewood for the back and sides and Adirondack spruce for the top. The neck, which features a 13 /4
The quality of these materials indicates that Bourgeois went looking deep into his legendary wood stash—the Adirondack is incredibly even-grained, and the Brazilian rosewood has the beautiful figure and coloring generally seen only on vintage instruments. Because it wasn’t wide enough for the construction of a larger guitar, Bourgeois had saved this set of wood for years, occasionally considering cutting it up for headstock overlays, but then thinking that some day, a special project could come along. But Bourgeois resisted the temptation to go overboard with the Victoria’s appointments. The instrument’s natural beauty is accented with abalone purfling, a matching abalone rosette, and a snowflake-inspired fretboard and headstock inlay originally designed for the Ricky Skaggs signature models. Speaking of the headstock, while many 12-fret parlor guitars have a slotted design, Bourgeois chose a solid headstock for the Victoria, with the relatively steep angle typical of Bourgeois guitars. A set of gold Waverly tuners with pearloid buttons ensures that the guitar is easy to tune.
Like all Bourgeois guitars built since the early ’90s, the Victoria uses an advanced neck design in which the neck is bolted to the guitar’s body at both the heel and the fretboard extension, allowing for precise manufacturing and easy removal for future repairs. Inside the top, the guitar features lightly scalloped X-bracing and similarly delicate back bracing. As a nice touch visible only to those who stick a mirror inside the instrument, Victoria’s top is signed by Dana Bourgeois and the entire team of luthiers involved with the guitar’s construction.
Balanced and Complex Tone
Admiring the Bourgeois Victoria visually is one thing—and yes, the craftsmanship is impeccable—but the real beauty is found when playing the guitar. Players who have tried vintage sub-parlor guitars will find that the Victoria has a similarly delicate, yet fantastically quick response with an overall tone that is incredibly rich in detail. Considering its size, the guitar’s bass is surprisingly pronounced, with great clarity that avoids any boominess that might muddy its defined character. Combined with the Victoria’s punchy trebles, the overall frequency spectrum appears somewhat compressed, leading to an authoritative voice.
The cool thing is that all this tonal mojo comes in a package that feels contemporary. While the body’s small size means that tall players will want to use a foot-stool, guitar rest, or strap to get into a comfortable position, once properly situated, the guitar impresses with playability that couldn’t be easier on the fingers. The guitar’s neck profile exhibits a slight V shape but is far less pronounced than many vintage necks. The instrument’s 25-inch scale is longer than most guitars this size (a Martin size 4 would be a “terz” guitar with a short scale and tuned a third higher than standard tuning), contributing to a more contemporary feel and excellent intonation. The Victoria excels when played with a relatively soft touch, whether fingerstyle or with a pick, singing with a voice that will be as friendly to microphones as it is to living-room ears.
Resting Its Case
You might expect such an exquisite guitar to live in a fiberglass flight case, but that would clash with the instrument’s Victorian theme. Instead, Bourgeois decided to build a 19th century–style “coffin” case. With its beautifully figured mahogany, brass hardware, and lush padding, the case wouldn’t be out of place in Fine Woodworking magazine.
The Victoria is a one-of-a-kind milestone in Bourgeois’s career. However, Bourgeois has already built another version of the Victoria (this time using mahogany for the back and sides and plainer appointments), and he hopes that the body size will eventually become one of his standard models. For now, the Victoria is an extremely cool representation of Bourgeois’s approach to building distinctively American guitars.
