Claremont Folk Music Center Museum Knutsen Harp Hawaiian Guitar

One word: WOW!
This harp-Hawaiian guitar is exquisite – from its condition, to its craftsmanship, to its unique and startling features.

Click on a picture to enlarge
(all images copyright Gregg Miner)

I have to start with the most striking feature: an original "floating back" stand-off panel, attached and held away from the back by three points and presumably created to support the instrument on the lap or a table without dampening the vibration of the back. An inlay matching those on the top in style and materials verifies the authenticity. Made of mahogany and nicely bound. What a fascinating new Knutsen (or customer-commissioned) feature!

The next most obvious feature is the spectacular decoration: a spruce top adorned with inlaid areas of mahogany (strangely grained) and "ebonized" walnut. These are further inlaid with new Knutsen designs of flowers and acorns of pearl and abalone, along with other pearl designs. The fingerboard features similarly extravagant inlays.

The back & sides are (believed to be) made of cypress - a rare choice - as is the neck/headstock. And look at how thin the headstock gets! The size is also a bit unusual: the large body size of 16" wide, with a slightly shortened 24" scale, makes this a dramatic, large, but short and squat, instrument. The bass arm tuners are the rarer (but more practical) "buck tooth" geared tuners.

Finally, we have a strange situation with the (missing) treble strings. The typical 4 pin holes near the bridge look right (authentic) – and there is a mark from a little mini-bridge as is seen on some specimens. But there are no matching tuner holes at the other end. Instead, there are 2 screw holes on the side of the upper bout – as if Knutsen had a second arm to hold the trebles, similar to the typical bass arm. There is a chance that the trebles were added later by someone else, but I suspect they were original. It certainly wouldn’t be out of character for Knutsen to come up with the "second harp arm bracket" option.

Update, June, 2008: In fact, it is becoming more likely, with the discovery of HHW22 and HHW23 - nearly identical specimens, each missing the treble tuners section. They could have a replacement insert where the tuners were - but one also has mysterious screw holes on the side of the neck.

The label has been covered with some sort of chord/fret position "cheat sheet" – underneath is a label of the same dimensions as the McDuff St. label, a good candidate – as the instrument shares much in common with the other fancy McDuff-era instruments (HHW7 & HHW8).

Knutsen Archives Inventory Number		HHW16
Category		Hollow Neck Hawaiian Guitars
Body Style		"'Weissenborn-shaped' Harp Hawaiian"
Current or last known owner		Folk Music Center, Claremont, CA / Ben Harper
Year (approx)		1927-1930?
Label		unknown - possibly McDuff address label
Label Code		LA11?
Courses / Strings		12 course: 6 strings on neck, 2 bass, 4 treble (missing arm)
Frets		inlaid wood
Scale length		24"
Neck Joint		hollow, square, taper begins at about the fourth fret
Woods	Top	spruce with mahogany and walnut inlays
	Back & Sides	cypress?
	Neck	cypress?
	Fingerboard	mahogany
	Bridge	mahogany
	Headstock veneer	none
Binding, trim	Top	rope
	Back	rope
	Fingerboard	rope
	Headstock(s)	none
	Soundhole	double rope
Inlay		see text above
Pickguard		see text above
Dimensions	Upper Bout	10-3/8"
	Lower Bout	16"
	Body at endpin	3-7/8"
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