8 - Ukulele Builders, Luthiers and Manufactures: E

Kevin Enoch, founder of Enoch instruments, has been making and playing banjos and other stringed instruments since 1984. Enoch Instruments was formally established in 1990.

"EARNEST INSTRUMENTS" are created for musicians who require functional, distinctive, high quality tools for making music. These are not your garden variety music store axes, but uncommon musical instruments designed to meet the needs of innovative players looking for something a little different. Rather than build reproductions of standard manufactured items, EARNEST combines time-tested styles and designs to create unique, original instruments with a classic appearance.

In 1992, Qian Ni, who had come to the United States from China to study music, founded Eastman Strings. In the beginning, he and his two musician colleagues bought instruments from Western-trained violin makers from their home town in China, but before long, they saw that a different approach was needed.

From the distinctive soundhole resonance to the exotic woods used to hand craft each one to tonal perfection, every one has a song waiting to be played. Pick up an Eddy Finn and it's like a blast of warm sea air hitting your senses. Hand set ocean abalone, fishbone, herringbone's all here. But the truth? It has to sound great first or it's just a decoration hanging on a wall. Nobody wants that. At the core it has to be musical. It has to breathe.

No matter how you travel, it's still you going.

No matter how you travel, it's still you going.

Epiphone is one of American’s oldest and most revered instrument makers. Since 1873, Epiphone has made instruments for every style of popular music and in 2013 will celebrate its 140th anniversary.

I began making instruments with my dad as a means to pay off my law school loans and ended up loving it so much I decided to put a pin in me endeavors to pursue a career in environmental law and instead learn all I can from my dad in order to preserve and carry on his incredible trade. I had no idea I would enjoy making instruments for people as much as I do, but since it has become such an exciting pastime I have decided to try my hand at being a luthier. Nestled here in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, I am surround by incredibly talented musicians and instrument builders, the most talented of which being my dad, Wayne Henderson.