Laurie Williams Tui Acoustic Guitar with Swiss Spruce and Madagascar Rosewood

Spec Sheet for Laurie Williams Tui Acoustic Guitar with Swiss Spruce and Madagascar Rosewood

Case for Laurie Williams Tui Acoustic Guitar with Swiss Spruce and Madagascar Rosewood

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Some guitars draw you in with their beauty, then hold you there with a voice that seems to unfold long after the strings have been struck. This Laurie Williams Tui in Swiss Spruce and Madagascar Rosewood possesses precisely that kind of presence. Luminous, richly ornamented, and wonderfully expressive, it brings together the intimacy of a handcrafted instrument and the expansive sound of a guitar with seemingly endless colors waiting beneath the fingertips.

A native New Zealander, master luthier Laurie Williams creates his instruments in the Paraoanui Valley in the far north of the North Island. Building professionally since 1993, Laurie has devoted more than three decades to developing a deeply personal approach to the acoustic guitar. His work reflects both an artist’s sensitivity and an enduring interest in physics, informed by an intimate understanding of wood that begins with selecting, milling, and seasoning his own native timbers. Each instrument passes through his hands individually, carrying the unmistakable character of a builder whose relationship with his materials is as thoughtful as his approach to sound.

Here, Swiss spruce and Madagascar rosewood provide a beautiful setting for that musical vision. The voice is lush and enveloping, with rich overtones rising around each note and sustain that allows a phrase to linger gracefully in the air. There is depth beneath the melody and a luminous shimmer above it, giving even a simple chord a wonderful sense of dimension. The spruce brings freshness and definition to the presentation, while the rosewood contributes a sumptuous harmonic backdrop. Notes bloom into one another with an almost orchestral fullness, inviting the player to listen as closely to their decay as to their initial articulation.

That richness is especially rewarding in a guitar with the Tui’s versatility. Designed with fingerstyle expression, balance, and dynamic range in mind, the model offers a generous canvas for everything from delicate passages to broad, ringing accompaniment. Fingerpicked arrangements reveal its layers of color, melodic lines benefit from its lingering sustain, and strummed chords make beautiful use of its expansive resonance. It is a compelling companion for a player who moves freely between techniques, allowing subtle changes in touch to become meaningful changes in the music.

Visually, this example is extraordinary. The Swiss spruce top has a pale golden glow, its fine grain and delicate crosswise silking providing a serene backdrop for the intricate appointments. Turn the guitar over, and the Madagascar rosewood reveals an entirely different landscape: deep amber and chocolate hues threaded with dramatic black grain, sweeping lines, and pools of darker figure. The gloss finish lends these surfaces remarkable depth, emphasizing the contrast between the quiet radiance of the top and the richly patterned back and sides.

At the center of the design, the paua abalone peacock feather rosette rewards close inspection. Slender, individually articulated feather forms shimmer with blue, green, violet, and pearl, their luminous eyes arranged around the soundhole like a miniature piece of jewelry. Paua purflings trace the top, back, sides, and headstock, while reconstituted turquoise diamond inlays place bright accents along the ebony fingerboard. Motuhake tanekaha bindings and the sculpted arm bevel introduce a warm, dark wood frame. Drawn from Laurie’s distinctive stock of river recovered tanekaha, these appointments carry a particularly personal connection to his New Zealand materials.

The totara neck supports an ebony fingerboard fitted with stainless steel frets, while the ebony bridge continues the instrument’s clean, sculptural lines. A 25.5 inch scale, 1 3/4 inch nut, and 2 1/4 inch bridge spacing offer a welcoming layout for articulate fretting and expressive picking. The neck meets the body at the 14th fret, and the flowing Venetian cutaway provides access to the upper register. Gold Gotoh 510 tuning machines with matching Motuhake tanekaha buttons and a paua headstock logo complete the presentation with beautifully coordinated detail.

Weighing 4 pounds 12 ounces and accompanied by a carbon fiber Hoffee flight case, this Tui is an exceptional expression of Laurie Williams’ craft. Its intricate beauty invites a closer look; its rich, sustaining voice invites another phrase. This is a guitar to settle into, to explore slowly, and to let ring until the last overtone disappears.

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