NEENAH, Wis. — Andrew Madsen of Neenah has been building a reputation for building high-quality, custom-built guitars and other instruments for 21 years.

“This job is a lot of sanding and not-so-glamorous items but it is very fruitful to see 20 to 30 of my instruments going across the stage in a weekend,” Madsen said.

As a music lover, Madsen’s career may have chosen him. He also sponsors bluegrass festivals, where many of the musicians appreciate his craftsmanship.

“I had to fix my first guitar and I’m a better woodworker than a player,” said Madsen.

Madsen, a certified luthier, opened a storefront in Neenah last year with an attached workshop where he creates stringed instruments that bear his name. Madsen Guitars takes input from customers to create unique-sounding instruments.

“The players want their own guitar nowadays," Maden said. "Especially acoustic guitars, you have to build the tone into the guitar."

He does this by carving, sanding and shaping the instruments after finishing what he describes as his favorite part of the process: choosing the wood. 

“The most interesting part for sure," Madsen said about choosing the right wood. "They come from all over the world.”

One of his current builds uses Australian Blackwood. 

“It’s a very light, responsive tonewood that is relatively rare,” Madsen said. “There’s stuff from our backyard, and it can be the most far-flung regions of the rainforests all over the world, from the depths of Africa and India to all over.”

In the past year, lumber prices have gone up dramatically, but that hasn’t affected Madsen’s bottom line. He’s seen several older builders retire and secured their stocks of older, unused tonewoods.

Madsen opened his shop right before the pandemic started, but closed them during lockdown, not knowing how his business would be affected. Madsen kept building in his shop while much of the world came to a halt.

“A lot of those companies, Martin and Gibson, those places all shut down their custom order section during the pandemic,” Madsen said.

With an online presence, a growing reputation and people stuck in quarantine, orders flew in for Madsen’s custom instruments.

“Generally, doctors and lawyers and stuff that enjoy the guitars, playing on the couch, they have a more stable income,” Madsen said. “I have been appointment-only since about last year in March.”

Madsen’s guitars are more prevalent in the Fox Valley area, but they’ve been picked up by top musicians across the country. Most people have never heard of this group of musicians, but have probably heard their work. In the music world, they’re known as session players or hired guns.

“If somebody wants a really good line on an advertisement or something, they hire somebody like that,” Madsen said. “You don’t know who they are, but my guitars are generally with a lot of those players.”

Madsen puts professional musician Kelvin Kaspar in that group. Kaspar picked up his first Madsen guitar in 2003 and admires the quality of Madsen’s work.

“It’s just something that when you plug it in, you either know if it’s going to be for you or not,” Kaspar said. “Every time I play one of Andrew’s instruments, it’s noticeably better than anything I have laying around in my basement.”

Kaspar says the man behind the name on his guitar is the biggest reason for his loyalty.

“He’s passionate about what he does,” Kaspar said. “To be able to meet with you and discuss stuff with you on a personal level is such a cool thing. They’re the best guitars I’ve ever played. It’s a feeling I can’t describe.”

Kaspar’s excited to play more shows this year as COVID-19 restrictions loosen. He knows when he takes his Madsen on the road, others take notice.

“Everybody wants to know, what is this? Who makes this? I think people are starting to know who Andrew is,” Kaspar said.

Madsen looks to open his store back up for normal hours in July. He’ll likely be found in the back shop area, shaping the sound of his next instrument.