About Stromberg Guitars

To tell the story of Stromberg Guitars you have to start at the beginning. Stromberg's were originally made in Boston by Elmer Stromberg. Building by hand, he made around 650 guitars throughout the thirties, forties, and early fifties. They quickly became prized instruments by the likes of Count Basie guitarist Freddie Green, and Country & Jazz legend Hank Garland. Original Stromberg's are still considered to be among the finest jazz guitars made, and are highly collectible due to the relatively small numbers that were produced.

The New Stromberg's

WD Music revived the Stromberg name, not in an effort to replicate the work of Elmer Stromberg, but to fill a niche in the jazz guitar market: an affordable instrument to rival much more expensive designs in tone, quality, and playability. Judging from player response we've hit a home run. The instruments have been embraced by students and hobbyists who were formerly unable to afford an instrument of this quality, and we're proud to include professionals like Fareed Haque and Kenny Gill as Stromberg endorsers and enthusiasts.

Customer Feedback

Here are a few of the kind words that our customers have shared with us.

Fareed Haque: Moving easily between jazz and classical guitar, Fareed's versatility has created a demand for him with prominent jazz and classical artists including Paquito D'Rivera, Dave Holland, Sting, Joe Henderson, Joe Zawinul, Javon Jackson, Cassandra Wilson, Kurt Elling, Lester Bowie, Arturo Sandoval, Robert Walter, Carl Denson, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Kahil el Zabar, Defunckt, Ramsey Lewis, Nigel Kennedy, Edgar Meyer, Robert Conant, Stephen Stubbs, Frank Bungarten, members of the Vermeer Quartet and many symphony orchestras in the U.S. and abroad. In addition, he has seven releases as a leader.

Fareed had this to say about Stromberg Guitars: "I'm blown away by my Montreux! For years I've played old Gibson's for straight ahead jazz, and I think I'll be selling them all and replacing them with Stromberg's.

The playability is excellent, the acoustic sound is strong, even and has excellent sustain. The Kent Armstrong pickup is bright, clear and still very warm, well balanced and has a strong output. I've played the guitar in VERY high volume situations with my group Garaj Mahal, with NO feedback problems.

Most of all this guitar has that classic jazz guitar sound, feel and look."

Kenny Gill: A world class Jazz guitarist, Kenny has performed and recorded with some of the biggest names in the entertainment field, Kenny is capable of performing any and all types of music from classical, jazz, finger style, gospel, blues or hard driving country.

Residing in the "Guitar Beltway" of the world, Nashville, Tennessee, Kenny stays much in demand for sessions, performing concerts, writing, producing and teaching.

Among his many attributes, Kenny has been inducted into "The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame", "The Rockabilly Hall of Fame", "The North American Country Music Hall of Fame", and two "Orders of Living Legends".

While performing at the 2005 Chet Atkins Appreciation Society Convention, Kenny was introduced to Stromberg Guitars, and immediately took a liking to them. Kenny is now a happy owner of a Montreux Custom. He had this to say about his Stromberg:

"The first time I played one of the new Stromberg guitars I was very impressed. What a fine instrument as well as a very beautiful piece of work. It sounds just great and the Nashville pickers that I show it to are very impressed. Looks like I'll be playing my new Stromberg guitar for a long, long time. Congratulations and thanks to the Stromberg Company for building such a great instrument."

Dave Cosby: "I have now had my Montreux for over eight months, and it has been in almost every playing situation possible. I have found that I can consistently get a great tone in a wide variety of performing situations with my Montreux. I have also found the Montreux to play remarkably well, and to require very little adjustment of my playing approach despite the fact that I had played a Gibson® 175 for over ten years now. In addition to the Stromberg® being a great instrument, I have found my dealings with the company to be quite enjoyable experiences."

Eric Elias: "When I saw the guitar I was immediately impressed by three things. First, the instrument itself looked great. It was spotless. The finish was very well done. The binding, pick guard and accessories were very classy looking. Second, it sounded great. The Newport is about the size of a Gibson ES 125, so it is slightly smaller than a full sized arch top. I thought its size might affect the tone, but it did not. The Newport actually sounded noticeably fuller than my re-issue Epiphone Emperor. The third thing that I realized was that this guitar played fantastically. It was set up beautifully and the neck felt very comfortable. I currently play a Stromberg® Montreux for electric jazz gigs and a Newport for trad and acoustic jazz gigs. Both guitars are consistent in comfort and playability. The sound of the Kent Armstrong pick up is also fantastic. I am currently recording two CDs with both Stromberg® guitars and am very pleased with the results."

Mark Mosley: "I have only one thing to say. 'Excellent'. I dare anyone to tell me that it doesn't sound as nice as a $5,000 archtop!"

Bill F.: "Got my new Montreux a couple of weeks ago. It is even better than whats stated in your reviews. Thanks so much. Just love it."

Bill V.: "The set up is first rate and I love the jumbo frets. The Kent Armstrong P90s are strong, quiet (no hum) and versatile. I played it through a '65 Princeton Reverb and a '66 Deluxe Reverb and really like the way the neck pickup changes tone from smokey to agressive between 7-10 on the guitar's volume setting. The TonePros bridge is superb, having that option on a "hollow" guitar is truley unique. The finish is very well done, not too heavy and is just the color I was looking for."

Check out our Stromberg page for more info.