Making beautiful music

Talk to Fruitvale's Peter Pii if you want a handcrafted, high-quality acoustic guitar

Peter Pii dedicates his time and energy to creating superior instruments. —

Photo courtesy Peter Pii

Peter Pii has been involved in guitar-making for many years, but five years ago he decided to to start building the instruments full time. He started up Pii Guitars in Fruitvale, and currently specializes in two different styles of acoustic guitars—the full-size dreadnaught type and the smaller OOO/OM orchestra model that is primarily designed for fingerpickers but also suited to flat pickers as well.

Pii has a high standard of quality, and his customers are a discerning group seeking only the best sound from their instruments.

"The difference in a quality hand-built guitar compared to a factory guitar is the time involved and the attention to detail that a luthier can commit to the voicing/tone of the wood," said Pii. "Spending the extra time carving and fine-tuning the top brings out the best tone that that particular piece of wood has to offer. A factory doesn't commit the time to the pairing of the back, sides and top woods. Each piece of wood has a resonance and matching these woods makes a spectacular guitar."

Throughout Pii's life, music has been a constant source of inspiration. His father played the banjo and harmonica, and Pii was always soaking up the musical influences around him.

"The biggest musical influences on me have been John Prine, Steve Earl, Norman Blake and my good friend Jon Staples," he said.

Given the emphasis on customizable quality, Pii Guitars is an ideal choice for any committed guitarist. Choosing a custom-built instrument gives the added benefit of being able to work closely with the builder, having a role in selection of wood, neck shapes and other fine details that make it unique to the owner.

"My biggest satisfaction comes when I hand over the instrument to its new owner, we play a few tunes together and I see that big smile on their face," said Pii. "Many options are available and can be seen on my website, www.piiguitars.com, or if you're in the area feel free to visit my shop in Fruitvale."