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To curate means to care, and a curator is one who cares for not just for an object but also the presentation, the experience, and the sharing of knowledge about the objects, how they relate to each other and the greater contexts, like society and evolution, among other things.
The Boutique Guitar Showcase is curated with thoughts about human pursuits of perfection and rejection, the many epochs of the guitar and how they continue to evolve, and societal influences and the role that musicians have played in our acceptance and rejection of the guitar’s many variations.
Intended to be an interactive experience, I have selected unique, world-class guitars that will stimulate your thoughts and have you considering the guitar in ways that you never thought of before.
If you look at a guitar in the Boutique Guitar Showcase and think that you know what it is all about… you are probably missing something.
I love where we have been, and I am excited about where we are going. I hope that you will feel the same way when you experience one of our curated shows.
Jamie Gale, curator
With a passion for discovering and showcasing the most innovative, unique, and world-class instruments, Jamie Gale has become a leading figure in the world of guitar design, curation, promotion, and education; and has been at the forefront of industry innovation for decades.
“Jamie Gale has had his finger on the Boutique Guitar market’s pulse for a while; now he’s become the pulse.” Randy Parsons, Parsons Guitars
From an early age, Canadian-born Jamie demonstrated a natural talent and fascination for the musical instruments of rock ‘n’ roll. Throughout his life, he has been influenced by a wide range of thinkers and artists, from the sculptor Brancusi to the philosopher Emerson and from the writer Adam Grant to the band Iron Maiden. These diverse influences and his innate curiosity have helped shape his unique perspective on the world and informed his ideas about innovation and creativity.
In Jamie’s extensive career, he has gained experience and perspective from many facets of the music industry, including as a salesman, lecturer, curator, promotor, designer, and musician. His journey has resulted in a deep knowledge and exceptional understanding of the global music industry. Jamie’s experience and perspective have led people like Mark Hebert, CEO of Cosmo Music, to say, “Jamie Gale is the pre-eminent authority on the guitar. His clear vision on the future of the instrument – given his in-depth knowledge of its history coupled with his unprecedented network of luthiers, players, dealers, and enthusiasts – make him the go-to resource for the fretted.”
His association with guitar artisans goes back decades, to when he was a retailer filling a lack of instrument supply by looking where his competitors were not. Along the way, he developed meaningful relationships with master
luthiers, which became the genesis of his first exhibit in 2007, focusing on the artistry of guitars as cultural icons and pieces of contemporary sculptural art.
Jamie continued to represent boutique guitar makers around the world, ultimately resulting in the NAMM Show (the National Association of Music Merchants) – the largest music product trade show in the world – commissioning him in 2016 to create and curate the Boutique Guitar Showcase for their annual show. The Boutique Guitar Showcase is one of the most eagerly anticipated and well-attended features at the NAMM Show. At the same time, the Boutique Guitar Showcase enTour takes the work of these talented luthiers to an even broader public in more than 25 cities across 11 countries.
Jamie is a popular speaker at design and guitar-making schools, including Newark College in the UK, Harvard Graduate School of Design in the USA, the Federal Higher Technical Institute in Hallstatt, Austria, and the European Guitar Builder Symposium in Berlin, Germany, where he brings his personal blend of the practical and the conceptual.
Jamie is always searching for new ways to push the boundaries of creativity and the point at which ideas and disciplines intersect. In recent years, he has become fascinated by the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to revolutionize the world of art and music. Jamie sees AI as a powerful tool for artists and musicians, enabling them to explore new creative possibilities and discover new forms of expression. He believes that AI has the potential to unlock new forms of creativity, allowing artists to create works that would have been impossible just a few years ago.