FROM THE TOP ANDY POWERS I TAYLOR GUITARS
“IT SEEMS TO ME THERE’S A PARALLEL BETWEEN A MANAGEMENT STYLE AND A MUSICIAN’S PLAYING STYLE.”
DO YOU HAVE ANY PASSIONS OUTSIDE OF MUSIC AND GUITAR BUILDING?
great instruments that fit those evolving needs of musi- cians so they can continue to create music that they and their audiences enjoy. Designing instruments to me seems a little like lan- guage — it’s constantly developing, expanding and being updated as we use words in fresh ways (and create new expressions) to communicate. So, whether our future instrument development comes in the form of a tactile characteristic like playability, or perhaps sonic change, advances in amplification, or even in response to changes in the materials we work with, we see lots of room for further innovation and are excited to push forward. IS TAYLOR DOING ANYTHING SPECIAL TO CELEBRATE THE ANNIVERSARY YEAR? Yes, we’ve got some plans to have a bit of fun later on this year. You turn 50 only once, right? I won’t spoil any surprises for our employees with too many details, but it’s great to gather, reflect and appreciate what the past 50 years has brought to Taylor Guitars. SHIFTING GEARS. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR MANAGEMENT STYLE? Without having gone through formal business school, I’m not closely familiar with the labels describing styles of management. It seems to me there’s a parallel be- tween a management style and a musician’s playing style. When asked what my playing style is, I might de- scribe sounds I like, along with musicians I’ve admired, enjoyed listening to and learned from. My hope as a player was that I could assimilate good qualities from the art those musicians made. As a man- ager, I’d hope to replicate that process by gleaning from folks I’ve been around, learned from and admired, and incorporate those qualities.
Growing up in Southern California, I’ve been sur- rounded by a number of interests that followed me into adulthood. I’m a lifelong ocean enthusiast who loves surfing, paddling, diving, even tidepooling or swimming with our kids. I love the intersection of mechanics and aesthetics within the world of car culture and have al- ways enjoyed working with hot rods. At the same time, Southern California has a deep and rich agricultural heritage, and I enjoy maintaining a small fruit tree or- chard where we grow a wide variety of coastal climate- loving trees. All of those interests may seem unrelated to music, but to me, they all represent a component of my upbringing and influence how I hear music and build instruments. SPEAKING OF MUSIC, WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN LISTENING TO RECENTLY? The last track I streamed was “Vivo Sonhando,” by Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto and Antonio Carlos Jobim. THAT’S A GREAT ALBUM. IF YOU WEREN’T WORKING IN MI, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’D BE DOING? You know, I’ve thought about this question over the years because it’s fun to imagine what parallel worlds would be like. I’ve never come up with a specific re- sponse because so often, the paths of my interests wind their way back to building guitars and playing music. If I tried to put roadblocks up to prevent that outcome, I would likely be working with wood in some other form, or maybe building surfboards or hotrods or farm- ing. I enjoy tasks that involve working with my hands, so whatever field I’d be working in, would likely revolve around that. MI
34 I MUSIC INC. I JUNE 2024
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