<strong>Saigon's "Guitar Street": </strong>Boasting more than 30 guitar shops on a 500-meter stretch, Ngyuyen Thien Thuat in Ho Chi Minh City is known for its affordable, high-quality acoustic guitars.
Saigon's "Guitar Street": Boasting more than 30 guitar shops on a 500-meter stretch, Ngyuyen Thien Thuat in Ho Chi Minh City is known for its affordable, high-quality acoustic guitars.
courtesy Guitar Duy Ngoc
<strong>One-stop destination: </strong>Shops on Nguyen Thien Thuat sell everything from the custom-made acoustic guitars that have made the street's name to eccentrically shaped electric guitars, mandolins and traditional Vietnamese stringed instruments.
One-stop destination: Shops on Nguyen Thien Thuat sell everything from the custom-made acoustic guitars that have made the street's name to eccentrically shaped electric guitars, mandolins and traditional Vietnamese stringed instruments.
Duncan Forgan
<strong>Guitar maker:</strong> Ton That Anh, who co-owns Duy Ngoc Guitars, is one of the longest-serving artisans on Nyuyen Thien Thuat.
Guitar maker: Ton That Anh, who co-owns Duy Ngoc Guitars, is one of the longest-serving artisans on Nyuyen Thien Thuat.
Duncan Forgan
<strong>Duy Ngoc Guitars:</strong> The instruments at Duy Ngoc typically take around a month to craft. Premium axes with more intricate paint work and details, meanwhile, can occupy four months of a luthier's time.
Duy Ngoc Guitars: The instruments at Duy Ngoc typically take around a month to craft. Premium axes with more intricate paint work and details, meanwhile, can occupy four months of a luthier's time.
courtesy Guitar Duy Ngoc
<strong>Slipping standards: </strong>As business is burgeoning,<strong> </strong>the biggest worry for Anh is the decline in quality. "There are too many people making too many guitars and the quality isn't always there anymore," he says.
Slipping standards: As business is burgeoning, the biggest worry for Anh is the decline in quality. "There are too many people making too many guitars and the quality isn't always there anymore," he says.
courtesy Guitar Duy Ngoc