Washington City Paper
Nagoya Guitars: A Piece of D.C. Music History
Fifty years later, the Nagoya guitars sold by Veneman Music are still prized, sought after, and played.
Credit: Darrow Montgomery
Three months into quarantine, I got my father’s old guitar down from the attic. After I cleaned and polished it and put on new strings, I was impressed: The dusty wood transformed into a sleek brown and tan instrument that looked very similar to Martin’s classic acoustic dreadnought guitars. When I strummed, it had a full, rich, melodic tone. But the guitar manufacturer’s name stamped on the inside of the body—the Nagoya Guitar Company—was unfamiliar.