~ Manndolins ~

Jonathan Mann is a Paul Bigsby kind of guy—a genius with a basement, a slew of practical ideas, and some one of a kind handmade machines. This player turned builder is only several years in the luthier’s game, yet he is a master craftsman with a special propensity for developing brilliant designs and a special knack for creating incredible electric mandolins.

Mann began playing guitar at age 8 and has 20 years of experience playing live and session gigs and writing, mostly in South-Eastern US. Shortly after departing from the Nashville song writing game in 1997 he began repairing instruments and was soon building all manner of guitars, mandolins, and other folk instruments.

Jonathan developed his signature neck-thru acoustic mandolin design in 2002 and from then on focused on building mandolins. His unique neck-thru design allows for the cellular continuity of neck wood into the body while still leaving the body cavity hollow. Jonathan’s simple, pure, yet unique expression of mandolin design has him edging towards the forefront of the electric mandolin movement.

In Jonathan’s words.. “Playing and recording for a living for the bulk of my adult life has been my greatest teacher as to what an instrument should feel like. Being a player first gives a builder a better insight into capturing that "magic" feel. Doing setup and repair work in the demanding city of Nashville TN also served to hone my skills and taught me what NOT to do when building an instrument.” “I like to keep things simple. I love figured woods. I prefer to let the wood "do the talkin" and keep inlay and plastic bindings to a minimum. Still a one man operation, I turn out about 10 mandolins every 2 months, doing everything from wood selection to staining though I have just recently started farming out my clear coat work to help increase production.”