I am often asked how I choose the people I interview. Here is an article describing the strategy I have always used in this area. With more than 1,500 interviews under my belt, the approach is clear. The priorities The priorities regarding who I interview are simple, my choice will always be: For me, the
Sunday was the third and last day of the Paris Guitar Festival in Montrouge (parisguitarfestival.com), it was a great finale for this 2026 edition. Report for Sunday 08/03/26 Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more info:Paris Guitar Festival
Saturday is always the big day at the Paris Guitar Festival in Montrouge (parisguitarfestival.com), it was definitely the case for the 2026 edition with a lot of visitors and plenty of good music. Report for Saturday 07/03/26 Photo album Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more
This time of year, when the Paris Guitar Festival in Montrouge (parisguitarfestival.com) returns, is always a joy! The quality of the exhibitors and the programme is always top notch. Here is a 7min video report to give you an idea of the guitar show part of the event. Report for Friday 06/03/26 Photo album Until the
The second and final day at the ToneFest (tonefest.fi) was a superb day with lots of visitors again, lots of great encounters, beautiful music and six interviews. Interviews of the day : Many thanks to Petri Matero of ToneFest Guitar Gallery (tonefestguitargallery.com), organiser of this event, who financed a large part of my travel expenses.
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The second and final day at the ToneFest (tonefest.fi) was a superb day with lots of visitors again, lots of great encounters, beautiful music and six interviews. Interviews of the day : Many thanks to Petri Matero of ToneFest Guitar Gallery (tonefestguitargallery.com), organiser of this event, who financed a large part of my travel expenses.
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Here I am! I'm at ToneFest (tonefest.fi), the guitar show held in Tuusula, 20 km north of Helsinki, Finland. Around fifty exhibitors, mainly Finnish, are present with a splendid assortment of acoustic and electric guitars from luthiers, boutique pedals, amplifiers, as well as a luthiery school, book and kit sellers, and a distributor. It was
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Here I am! I'm at ToneFest (tonefest.fi), the guitar show held in Tuusula, 20 km north of Helsinki, Finland. Around fifty exhibitors, mainly Finnish, are present with a splendid assortment of acoustic and electric guitars from luthiers, boutique pedals, amplifiers, as well as a luthiery school, book and kit sellers, and a distributor. It was
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The Finland ToneFest guitar show (tonefest.fi) doesn't start until tomorrow, Saturday, but given the flight schedule, it was easier to arrive the day before so I could be ready to go as soon as the show opened. So I arrived in Helsinki late this morning. Here's a quick video update. Hello from Helsinki Until the
Thanks to a long-time subscriber to La Chaîne Guitare (thank you, Michel!), I was able to get in touch with Polish musician Robert Pieculewicz (Facebook page). Here he is in a Zoom interview to learn about his career and his projects. Robert Pieculewicz interview The Guitar Channel podcast The audio version of the video is
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Ariel Posen (arielposen.com) was one of the musicians programmed at the Wood Wire Volts (woodwirevolts.com) event at The Colony, a few kilometers away from the NAMM Show convention center. Here is for a quick interview to talk about his 2026 projects. FYI, we will soon be recording an in-depth interview to discuss his new album, Bannatyne.
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Once again the amp builder Eddie Wang from Eddie Wang Instruments (eddiewanginstruments.com) was an exhibitor at the NAMM Show. He was presenting a new cab as well as his line of high end tube amp. Thanks again Eddie for letting me have an exhibitor badge for the show you rock! Eddie Wang interview Until the
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German luthier Rainer Tausch was exhibiting at NAMM 2026 as usual, and here he is being interviewed at his stand to present his Tausch Guitars (tausch-guitars.de). A huge thank you to Rainer, who has been a paying subscriber to The Guitar Channel for yearsand actively supports the project. Vielen Danke Rainer! Rainer Tausch interview Until
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Portuguese luthier Adriano Sergio of Ergon Guitars (ergonguitars.com) was one of the exhibitors at NAMM 2026. Here he is at his booth, which he shared with German luthier Rainer Tausch and American amp boutique builder Eddie Wang. A big thank you to Adriano, who has been a paying subscriber to The Guitar Channel for years.He
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Nathaniel Murphy aka @ZeppelinBarnatra on Instagram was at the NAMM Show for Chicago Music Exchange (chicagomusicexchange.com). Here he is for a quick video update. Nathaniel Murphy interview Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more info:Nathaniel MurphyNAMM
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Always a pleasure to bump into the amazing musician Adam Levy (adamlevy.com)! Here is a quick interview with him recorded during the 2026 edition of the NAMM Show. Adam Levy interview Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more info:Adam LevyNAMMGuitar in Hand Interviews
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That's right! A new California campaign is taking shape to cover the NAMM Show from January 22 to 24, 2026. This will be my 11th trip to this trade show. Time is flying by at breakneck speed. Why return to NAMM in 2026 The NAMM Show remains THE major event for the entire musical instrument
After Jared James Nichols (jaredjamesnichols.com) concert in Paris last November, I had the pleasure of meeting his bassist Brian Weaver (Insta : @brianweaveryo) and conducting a quick interview with him. Interview Brian Weaver Jared James Nichols interview Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more info:Bassist Interviews
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It's always a pleasure to meet Thomas Blug ((bluguitar.com) in the aisles of Guitar Summit. Here's a quick interview with the German musician and entrepreneur. Thomas Blug interview Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more info:Guitar Summit VideosGuitar in Hand Interviews
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As for the editions of the previous years of the Puteaux Guitar Festival, The Guitar Channel realized a satisfaction survey with the exhibitors of the luthiers show that I was organizing for the sixth time. To my knowledge, the Puteaux guitar show is the only one to conduct a satisfaction survey at each edition and
It was a splendid day this Saturday at the Puteaux Guitar Festival (Festival Guitare de Puteaux), with the start of the demo concerts, which are always popular with visitors and will be available here afterwards. Saturday report in Puteaux Photo album Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel.
It's time for the sixth edition of the Puteaux Guitar Festival (Festival Guitare de Puteaux), for which I have had the pleasure of organizing the guitar show and demo concerts since the event's inception. Here is today's report. Friday report in Puteaux Photo album Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the
Here is a review of a Taylor Guitars model Academy 12e, along with demos by Shaï Sebbag and Hugo Martin to showcase this beautiful guitar. Taylor Academy 12e review Shai Sebbag demos Recorded with microphones only (AT2020 + KM184): Recorded with the guitar preamp output: Recorded with both microphones and the output of the guitar
When the French pro musician Patrick Manouguian came to the showroom for a guitar-in-hand interview, he left with the intriguing Japanese Peace Hill FX (peacehillfx.com) model ODS tube preamp. After a few weeks' testing at home, he returned to give a guided tour, complete with demo. Here's all the footage in a single video. Peace
This is the list of exhibitors at the 6th edition of the luthiers' show organized by La Chaîne Guitare for the Festival Guitare de Puteaux from October 10 to 12, 2025. Some thirty craftsmen from France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Romania and the United States will be there to present their instruments, pickups and guitar gear!
Zane Carney (zanecarney.com) played with the band Foster the People (fosterthepeople.com) at Le Trianon on July 3, 2025. Just after the sound check, we did an interview on Boulevard Rochechouart in Pigalle in Paris, France. As we were in the guitar-shop district of Paris, I took him to rue de Douai. We pushed open the
Here are two gear reviews of models from Schwung Guitars (schwung-guitars.com). This is a boutique manufacturer based in the Netherlands by luthier Charles Janssen. Schwung Mahogany Schwung Guitars Crossover Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre Journel. For more info:Luthier Guitar ReviewsGear Reviews
The Puteaux Guitar Festival / Festival Guitare de Puteaux (culture.puteaux.fr) will hold its 6th edition from October 10th to 12th, 2025. It will be the first under the direction of Florent Monfort, who is now the director of the Puteaux conservatory. I work for Florent again via The Guitar Channel, as organizer of the luthier
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I often bump into the youtuber Leigh Fuge (YouTube channel) at guitar shows, notably at NAMM or this time in Switzerland for the 4th Montreux International Guitar Show. Here's a quick interview recorded at the La Chaîne Guitare booth. Interview Leigh Fuge Until the next interview or gear review, keep on playing the guitar! Pierre
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Once again this year, I was at the Montreux International Guitar Show with sound-recording equipment for impromptu demos of some of the luthier's electric guitars exhibited at the show and selected by yours truly. Test setup: Electric guitar demos in Montreux Instruments tested in order of appearance in the video: Until the next interview or
