Philosophy

Dragonfly Tapping Instruments grew out of the desire a straight forward, well-designed and well-made tapping instrument that didn’t cost a small fortune. We continue to strive to make quality, quietly innovative instruments that look, feel and sound great … and don’t break the bank!

There are already quite a number of dedicated tapping/touchstyle instruments out there: anything from the pioneering Chapman Stick through to Warr Guitars, Megatars, Touch guitars, Tap Ladders and a growing number of variants. The tendency however, seems to be toward making larger, more extravagant instruments with more strings, specialised systems, custom pickups etc. This is all very good and interesting, but it makes instruments unnecessarily expensive, often times clumsy and creates the need for extra gear to make it all sound good.

Here at Dragonfly we prefer a simple, streamlined approach – we don’t try to reinvent the wheel. We do, however, attempt to make that ‘wheel’ roll better, and we offer unashamedly simple, yet surprisingly versatile instruments that are a pleasure to play. The lower number of strings facilitate integrated, double-handed tapping technique while still allowing enough room for playing styles that require a degree of bass/melody separation. Not only are they great for tapping, but most standard guitar and bass techniques can also be used, along with bowing, hammering and a range of other techniques.

We believe that ‘less’ is sometimes ‘more’, and have found that the very limitations of a simpler instrument can often prove to be a gateway to greater creativity and musical satisfaction.