Hideo Kamimoto

Video

Oral History Information

Interview Date
Job Title
Luthier

Hideo Kamimoto wrote the book on guitar repair!  He built his first guitar in the late 1950s and soon discovered he had a true passion as a luthier.  Within a decade he opened H. Kamimoto Instrument Repairs in Oakland, California. By this time Hideo was also repairing other string instruments including the violin.  When music retailer Stu Goldberg suggested he write a book about repairs, Hideo began outlining some ideas.  His first book, The Complete Guitar Repair, was published in 1974 and was among the very first books of its type.  He continued to repair until he sold his shop, which by this time was in San Jose, to retire.  He continued to repair and even invented a device to help cellists eliminate an unwanted drift note and called the product the Wolf Terminator!