A Custom Guitar for a Rising Star | Louis Campbell x Turnstone

Louis Campbell is one half of Spafford Campbell, a folk duo nominated for the Folk Album of the Year award, and has been an accompanist to Martin Simpson, Sam Sweeney, Sam Lee, and Ryan Young at various times. In this video he visits the Turnstone workshop at the start of his custom build to talk with luthier Rosie Heydenrych about what a professional folk guitarist looks for in a bespoke instrument. This is a rare, candid conversation with a working professional musician about tone, playability, and the very specific demands of accompanying world-class artists night after night. Louis talks through why, after six years with his beloved Fylde, he wanted something new: the dry articulate character of mahogany over rosewood, the projection needed to cut through multiple instruments, the personal preference for a thicker neck, and why he landed on our new TMD (Mini-Dreadnought) over a standard OM or full dreadnought. We also walk through every tonewood chosen for his build: antique 30-year-old figured mahogany back and sides, Adirondack spruce top, sycamore neck, and sustainable streaky ebony fingerboard and bridge, with a stripped-back satin finish and simple black and white rosette. If you're a working musician thinking about your next guitar, a fingerstyle player curious about mahogany vs rosewood, or just want to understand how a genuine custom build comes together, this one is for you. 🔔 Subscribe to find out about the finished instrument when it's ready. CHAPTERS 0:00 Introduction 1:05 Louis's musical background 4:11 Studying at the Royal Northern College of Music 5:36 Meeting Martin Simpson 8:38 What Louis is looking for in a new guitar 13:55 European vs American guitar sound 15:27 Choosing the body size 19:35 Tonewoods for the build 21:05 Neck profile and playability 25:23 Aesthetics and finish 30:05 What's next for Louis TONEWOODS IN THIS BUILD 🪵Back & sides: Antique figured mahogany (30 years old) 🌲 Top: Adirondack spruce 🎸 Neck: Sycamore ⬛ Fingerboard & bridge: Sustainable streaky ebony ✨ Finish: Satin LOUIS CAMPBELL https://www.spaffordcampbell.com/   / spaffordcampbell   TURNSTONE GUITAR COMPANY https://turnstoneguitars.co.uk   / turnstoneguitars   Turnstone Guitar Company handcrafts bespoke acoustic guitars in East Sussex, England. Each instrument is built to order, designed entirely around the player, their music, their body, and their sound. #CustomGuitar #AcousticGuitar #HandmadeGuitar #FolkGuitar #BoutiqueGuitar #MahoganyGuitar #LuthierLife #GuitarBuild #FingerstyleGuitar #TurnstoneGuitars #MartinSimpson #SpaffordCampbell #AdirondackSpruce #BespokeGuitar #EnglishGuitar #SycamoreNeck #AcousticGuitarBuild #CustomAcoustic #GuitarTone #FolkMusic