work with us
To apply for this position, you will need to provide three things. The initial application form containing your details, your CV or other document outlining your experience and motivation, and an object, any object, that you have made from hardwood. This third item does not need to be a guitar or guitar component, but it does need to have been made by you, with hand tools or instruments, and you will need to be able to discuss the methodology and rationale for producing it, and the problems and solutions you encountered in the process. You can download the form templates at the bottom of this page.
Finally, please print both these documents on plain white A4 paper (not via email, etc.) and post them both to PO BOX ADDRESS HERE. Please use the registered post service for this to ensure safe delivery.
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Spending time in a guitar workshop, many hours a day, sometimes six or seven days a week, isn't a job.
The instruments we produce will be held by a musician for thousands of hours as the music starts to come to life, and it is our task to ensure that nothing stands in the way of the vision that the artist hears in her head.
To be a part of the family you will have to understand the way a guitar feels and reacts to the needs of the player, so the first requirement for anybody entering the workshop is that you will need to be a guitar player. There are a couple of exceptions to this, but if you are in any way involved in the actual creation of our guitars, you will need to be a guitarist.
Everyone that comes to MMG has to understand the whole instrument, regardless of where her final skill or speciality shines through. To this end, every maker spends a period of time learning about the production processes with the Jr. guitars. You will spend time sorting and storing wood, cleaning and servicing the tools and workspaces, rough cutting, routing, gluing, sanding, fretting, finishing, building the circuit, setting up, and registering our entry-level guitars to a level of quality and craftsmanship that far outstrips their actual production and retail costs. Time spent with the Jr. guitars is where we begin to learn our trade, and you can expect this foundation period to last anywhere between six and twelve weeks. When the time comes, you will build a Journeyman guitar, an example of what you have learned, alongside other duties, to show us all that you are fully prepared to work on the Standard instruments.
There are other guitars in the workshop from other manufacturers, some well-made instruments and others that highlight the common pitfalls that you might experience while working with the Jr. You are encouraged (and expected) to play these instruments as you work to compare your craftsmanship to that of some of the other guitars out there. Your Jr. guitars must surpass these demonstration instruments in every way.
Everyone in the workshop cleans the floor and benches, everyone reports faults and problems, and everyone has input on the products and processes. Every guitar represents each one of us, even though they have Matt's name on the headstock, and no guitar should ever leave our care unless you personally would be happy to take it up on stage. There are no exceptions to this.
Having spent some time with the Jr. guitars, and having the skill, knowledge, and confidence to produce a Journeyman instrument, you will begin learning again on the Standard guitars as well as supporting the Jr. builds. The Standards are more complex, and the expectations from the musician that eventually take ownership of these guitars are much higher. The build must be exacting, the neck must be perfect, the electronics must be cleanly built and strong, and the finish must be beautiful and flawless.
Are you ready to learn? Get in touch via the contact page or give Matt a call on 07766 382563.