Sisters program puts grad in dream job

Two years ago in the woodshop department at Sisters High School, learning to build guitars in his advanced Wood 2 class, Scott Salgado never would have dreamed that he'd soon be crafting instruments for world-famous Breedlove Guitars in Bend as a Master Class Binder.

In a rare opportunity last fall, Breedlove opened recruitment for a few coveted positions. More than 300 people responded to the call, and Salgado was offered one of the six openings. He was one of the youngest employees ever hired and the first to be chosen from the Sisters High School guitar building program, a testament to the dedicated guidance of teachers Tony Cosby and Jayson Bowerman.

"It really is a dream job," said Salgado, displaying a freshly bound myrtlewood guitar body from his work station at Breedlove, talking over the roar of compressed air guns and belt sanders.

"I was in the very first guitar-building class ever offered. We learned every step in making a guitar from beginning to end - the neck, sides, bracing, backs and top, final spray finish and strings. It was an awesome

program."

Founded in 1990 by Steve Henderson and Larry Breedlove, Breedlove Guitars is known for expertly crafted, exotic-wood acoustic guitars and mandolins. Musicians often speak of the distinctive look and playability of their creations, a balance and rich, sustained tone that comprise the "Breedlove Sound."

"I've worked here for seven months and started out with the lower-end guitars, doing simple binding of the bodies using plastics, then got upgraded to basic mahogany, then on to rosewood with Ivoroid binding," he said. "After that I'll graduate up to herringbone 'perfs,' or decorative trim."

Salgado has risen quickly in the ranks and been offered more responsibility after displaying exceptional skill and ability to adapt.

He's now working with delicate strips of abalone shell and fitting it into the trim slots of more decorative guitars. It's a precise, patient process only given to a select few, and Salgado has absorbed it like all the tasks he's been assigned.

Abalone shell, with its blue and pearl iridescence, is highly sought after as an $800 upgrade on custom guitar orders.

"The supervisors inspected my work and saw my cuts are clear, my joints are clean, so they said it was time to bump up to the abalone inlays," he said. "I was psyched. It's really difficult to align and fit. Abalone sands slower than wood so I take a file to get it perfectly flush with the guitar top. I push for about fifteen guitars finished a week."

After the guitars leave Salgado's unit, they enter the finish room, where they are clear-coated or varnished according to the specifics of the customer's order. For some guitars, workers will paste-fill the wood to bring out the grain or give it a simple hand-buffed coat of Turtle Wax.

Aaron Adams, Salgado's supervisor, is pleased with his young apprentice's rapid advancement and ambition.

"He's got a great work ethic and drive," he said. "Coming in with his background and auto-CAD design experience, it was a smooth transition. He's very passionate about what he does and is inspired about the guitars. Every step of the process is so critical, and with Scott he takes full responsibility for his work. He's the first full-time hire from the Sisters program and it proves that the guitar-building class has paid off."