Story and photos by Garrett Liberman ’25
Many people struggle to master the challenging skill of playing the guitar, but what if you could take it a step further by building, designing, and ultimately learning to play on your very own handcrafted instrument? Upper School students in the Winter Term class Rock and Roll Island Vibes: Building Ukuleles and Electric Guitars had the chance to do just that over the course of two weeks. Led by Upper School teachers Brad Heinemann and Brian Rueckert, students embarked on the creative journey of building instruments that were not only musically rich but also infused with personality and style. Mr. Heinemann shared his and Mr. Rueckert’s inspiration for the class. He said, “Mr. Rueckert and I both play guitars, and he is doing, I believe, a summer sabbatical this summer to build guitars.” Their ultimate goal of this course was to donate these unique guitars and ukuleles to local art programs, sharing their passion with others in the community.
Over the course of two weeks, students explored both the history and the inner workings of guitars and other stringed instruments. They learned how the modern electric and acoustic guitars evolved from their stringed ancestors, studying how these instruments have been producing their iconic sounds since the fifteenth century. Next, with a focus on hands-on learning, students sanded, painted, and assembled electric guitars and ukuleles from kits.
This action packed class was constantly bustling, whether kids were sanding down their soundboards, sketching out art designs, or painting their final product; the room was filled with excitement and good vibes. While prior stringed instrument knowledge wasn’t required, students were ultimately encouraged to test their creations by learning at least one chord and one scale by the end of the class, ensuring they could truly feel the music they had crafted.
These instruments, after being completed, are donated to Sheldon Concert Hall, to be later distributed to schools in the community. Mr. Heinemann explained the connection, “Sheldon has educational programs; we’ve reached out to them and we donated our guitars last year to them. We’ll do it again this year. They take the guitars to schools in the community that are in need of instruments for their music programs.” It’s not just teachers that have a passion for both music and giving back to the community, Spencer Levison ’28 shared his reasoning for signing up for the class: “I was motivated to sign up because I take great pride in giving back to my community through music.”