Sonntag / J18 Augusta / Guitar
The name »Augusta« derives from »Augusta Vindelicorum«, the latin name for Augsburg where my workshop is situated. This model is a hommage to the great guitar-builder John D‘Angelico.
The ornamentations in renaissance style are motives taken from Augsburg's history. The figure on the headstock is the roman god »Mercury«. The original statue can be seen on a fountain. The inlays on the fingerboard are stylised pineal nuts, which form the the crest of the city. This model is also played by Ulrich Hoffmeier of the renowned Palast Orchester from Berlin.
This kind of archtop guitar was in use in the Big Bands of the Swing era, enabling the guitarists to hold their ground even against the horns. Added depth and the additional space of the full body give this purely acoustic Augusta an even fatter tone and greater volume.
€4850,-
Sonntag Guitars, Germany 
Stefan Sonntag, Luthier
Formal education
I was born in Augsburg, Germany on October 17, 1964. I began my training as guitar-maker in 1986 at the Violin-making school in Mittenwald, Germany. There I studied the skills and principles of handmade guitar construction.
In 1989 I ended my course of studies having passed my final examinations and went on to work for the Höfner stringed-instrument manufacturing company in Bubenreuth/Germany. There I was able to obtain an insider's view of the guitar making industry.
In 1990 I went to the Strohmer Workshop in Nuremberg/Germany where special-order guitars were made, as well as repairwork and restorations, along with Limited-Edition series.
In 1993 I received my Master's Degree as best in my class and began to set up my own workshop in Augsburg. Since then I not only serve guitarists in Germany but am increasingly becoming well-known in Europe and world-wide.
Self-employed guitar manufacturer
I build archtop Jazz guitars exclusively. Each instrument is hand-crafted here in my workshop. I use no prefabricated wooden parts, all parts are being made personally by me. I use only select woods that I choose myself from special suppliers. These woods are air-dried and stored for no less than five years. Only then do they posses the necessary quality that I demand in order to build my guitars.
