Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeremy Blake.
Hi Jeremy, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Being able to repair instruments full time has been my dream since I was 12. I grew up around woodworking in my family’s cabinetry and construction business. When I started playing instruments the connection was easy to make. I wanted to repair stringed instruments.
I attended Brevard College where I earned a bachelors degree in Music and also came away with education and business minors. I had the great opportunity to learn to play almost all instruments but my primary instrument was Classical Guitar.
An injury in the construction business while working for the summer had me trapped in a cast. I could get my hand free enough to play bass guitar and continue creating music. I bonded with the bass guitar and it became my primary instrument after college. I still perform on bass guitar regularly.
During and after college I worked at Dewey’s Pawn Shop where I learned about selling and trading instruments and what issues used instruments could have. I then moved on and started working at Bernhardt House of Violins.
While at Bernhardt House of Violins (BHV) I worked my way from the front counter into the repair shop. During this time I had the chance to work closely with schools, teachers, and students to make sure instruments were ready for students to learn and grow on. The work was amazing and their craftmanship continues today. While at BHV I had the opportunity to train with Hans Nebel and learn from a truly masterful repairman.
After parting ways with BHV I went back to the family contruction business and geared up to launch Blake Guitar Company. When the time came to launch I went and studied with Brian Malone at Atlanta Guitar Works. Brian taught me time tested techniques, innovative repair methods, and common sense repairs.
I am married to my beautiful and supportive wife Meagan and I love spending time with our son Luke. My dog Weston can also be found most days keeping me company as the shop dog. Without my family’s support chasing this dream of full time instrument repair would not be possible.
In addition to instruments, I love college football and canteloupe.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has not been a smooth road. Being a luthier has been a very challenging field to get started in. There are plenty of resources and materials to learn how to do repairs but book knowledge and actually getting your hands dirty are very different. No two repairs are the same and reading about repairs can’t prepare you for real world problems. Luthiers operating their own shops tend to be very private and work alone. Getting real world experience as an apprentice or intern is not a path that is easily found. I had been reading up and learning about repairs for years. Even practicing on cheap instruments. When the time came to take the leap of faith and start full time it took a lot of guts and confidence in my abilities to make sure jobs were done correctly.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in repairing all stringed instruments. I have experience and training on orchestral instruments and I have been acquiring skills to repair fretted instruments for years. I would say my specialty is bass guitar repairs. As a bassist myself I have an understanding and familiarity with bass guitars that other luthiers may not have. I am most proud of my fretwork. Coming from a woodworking background and orchestral instrument repair, working with frets and learning about working with metal was a challenge. This pushed me to focus on this weak area and make it a strong part of my repair repertoire.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
The leap of faith to go full time and start my own repair business was very scary. It took a lot of confidence and support from my family. I did my research and thought that there was plenty of customers to support my business but you can never know that for sure. Getting started and purchasing my shop was a huge investment and a gamble on myself.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://blakeguitarco.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/blakeguitarco
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/blakeguitarco
