My Story

I was born in Connecticut, USA, and was lucky enough to have a background in music from a young age. Like many kids, I started out with piano lessons. Around 10, I picked up the French horn, which I played for several years in school and various other local bands. I started playing guitar at age 13, first on a steel string acoustic, then electric.

In January 2009, when I was 15, my family and I moved to Rotorua, New Zealand. It was initially going to be for 6 months, but we liked it so decided to stay. There, I completed my final three years of high school, and then moved to Wellington, where I studied Music Composition at New Zealand School of Music, Victoria University.

While in Wellington, in 2015, I got a job working for a local guitar tech, doing mostly setups, and fretwork. I learned a lot while there, and became curious about the possibility of making a guitar. My father, whose hobby is woodworking, had a well equiped workshop in his shed. I enlisted his help, and together we made a guitar.

Right after finishing that first build, I went overseas for 7 months, travelling around Central and South America. Somewhere along the way, I decided that when I came back to New Zealand, I’d start making guitars full time. Dad’s workshop was there, that’s where I could work, while living at home at first to keep expenses down. I had the experience from doing the setups, I’d already made one guitar, what more did I need?

I arrived back in New Zealand in January 2018, and started building guitars pretty much straight away. In February 2019 I created my company, Hamurana Guitar Works. I continued making guitars full time under the name Hamurana Guitar Works through 2023, when I applied for and was accepted as an apprentice with Ervin Somogyi. Up to that point, I was self taught.

In February 2024, I relocated to Oakland to begin the two year apprenticeship.