The Steel Guitar Forum

I've been trying to find current contact info for luthier Joe Yanuziello with no luck. anyone know if he's still in business in toronto and making the Hawaiian King guitars? Thanks.

Try asking the London Resonator Centre; they stock his stuff.

sales@resocentre.com

This is the contact information I have for him:
Yanuziello Stringed Instruments
442 Dufferin St., Studio H
Toronto, Ontario M6K 2A3
Canada
Telephone: 416/535-6018
Fax: 416/535-1858


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Brad's Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars

Seems to besame for me, Brad. Seems to be wrong. toronto directory assistance doesn't list him. LRS was my next move.

You might try e-mailing him at: ysi@interlog.com (It may not work; his web site on the same domain is "404")

Did so. It bounced back as undeliverable.

Andy: Joe is very much still in business. His web site was down for some time because he had a problem with his server, and as far as I know he hasn't yet got it up and running again. If you've been having trouble reaching him either by email or at the business address Brad listed it's because he's in the process of setting up a new shop.

For those who haven't had the pleasure of playing any of Joe's instruments, I can recommend them highly. His respohonics and Hawaiian King hollow-necks are superb, and he also makes gorgeous electric guitars and mandolins, all at extremely reasonable prices. To this point, he's made instruments only on an occasional basis because he's been in such demand as a high-end furniture builder, a far more lucrative trade than luthiery. With the move to a new shop, however, I know he was hoping to go into instrument building full time.

I'll try to get in touch with him this weekend and will post the updated information as soon as I do.

Many thanks Ian. I didn't want to leave Joe out of my book. If this is what his guitars are like I'd like to see his furniture!

Hmmmm, what a great idea. You can get a matching hollow neck and dining room table at the same time!

Yes! A Weissenborn-shaped dinning room table just in time for the holidays. The only downside is if you're seated at the headstock and someone seated at the lower bout has the cranberry sauce.

I just talked to Joe. He's alive and well and eager to get back to instrument building full time as soon as he clears away the rest of the renovation work in his new home and shop. He has one koa Hawaiian King in stock, the one I've lusted after since I first laid eyes on it. It's in mint condition, but since it's been his display instrument, he's selling it for $3500 Canadian, which I guess will work out to something like $2400 or so U.S. This is truly the finest and most beautiful acoustic lap instrument of any sort I've ever played, and at this price I'm seriously tempted to put my 1915 Knutsen on the auction block to grab it for my own.
He says he expects to have a few resophonics ready in the new year. The current base price on those is $3500 Canadian for the square neck and $3850 for the round neck.

Joe's new address is 81A Parkway Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario M6R 1T6.

His phone number is 416-534-0419, and his email address ysi@inter.net.ca. The web site's still down for a few weeks, and that and the email address will probably be changing. If you're unable to reach him by email, contact me and I'll be glad to pass on whatever information you wish.

Ian, many thanks for your detective work.

Dropped 'round to see Joe's new shop today and got a bit more info. about his plans for the next few months. He's taking orders now, and hopes to be back into instrument building full-time by early March.