Marshall Bruné

Renowned luthier Marshall Bruné is a highly pursued workman with over two decades of experience. His instruments are known for their powerful sound, astoundingly rapid response, clean, pure tone, and remarkable build quality. He specializes in all styles of acoustic guitars—classical, flamenco, and steel string—as well as violins, violas, and cellos.

Marshall Bruné grew up beside the bench of his father, R. E. Bruné, and learned guitar building and repair from him. Marshall has a “Certificate of Luthier” from the Violin Making School of America, where he studied with Charles Woolf, Sanghoon Lee, and Peter Prier. He also had the opportunity to complete an internship with and be mentored by the legendary Carl Becker.

When designing his instruments, Marshall uses traditional building styles and techniques, drawing upon the knowledge he has gained from studying many famous instruments. This allows him to craft the best design for each component, resulting in an instrument that both looks and sounds sublime. He has developed four signature bracing patterns—Legacy, Performer's, Concert, and Grand Concert. Marshall's orchestral stringed instruments come in both Stradivarius and Del Jesu style models.

Marshall Bruné has performed repairs on numerous instruments, including notables such as Charlie Byrd's Hauser, Julian Breim's lute, numerous Antonio Torres, Hauser, Bouchet, Santos Hernandez, and many others. In his repairs, Marshall maintains the integrity of each instrument by using minimally invasive techniques, making sure to keep as much original varnish as well as original thicknesses as possible.

In addition to building and repair, Marshall Bruné is an active member of the lutherie community. He belongs to the Guild of American Luthiers as well as the Guitar Foundation of America. In 2011, he became the youngest presenter at the GAL conference with a presentation on traditional French polish techniques. He continues to offer the course as a three-day class to luthiers looking to enhance the value of their instruments.

Currently, his instruments are played by Michael Partington in concert as well as recordings, and his instruments reside in the Urlik Collection as well as the Harris Foundation collection.