“An amazing hybrid with the flavor of Django Reinhardt and Matelo Ferre, guitar player Tommy Davy is putting Los Angeles on the world map of gypsy jazz!”
— Jon Larsen, Producer, Hot Club Records Norway
“Tommy! You are awesome! The guitar sounds great, better than I could imagine. The tone is beautiful and balanced across and up and down the neck. It sounds much louder and the sustain is fantastic. You did a great job on the dings you fixed, practically a new guitar! Thank you for the great job you did, you are the best.” (Dupont Royale Refret)
John C. MT, USA
"The big breakout act at DjangoFest, both in Mill Valley and Whidbey Island, over the last couple of seasons is, Tommy Davy’s Trio Dinicu. They have quickly become one of our most requested, which is no wonder, the audience reaction is nothing short of ecstatic.”
— Nick Lehr, Artistic Director DjangoFest
"discover many jewels of gypsy music played with great poise and authenticity. Really, you will not be disappointed. This is a group that is a perfect fit, whose members write original arrangements. And despite the fact that certain pieces are often performed and recorded, while they play, magic is happening.”
— Claude Laurin, "Sur la route des manouches", Radio Centre-Ville, Canada
"I've had 2 fairly expensive (for me) gypsy jazz guitars, and not been satisfied with either. One was more playable but didn't sound great. The other had a great sound but was hard to play.
I had brought the guitar that was easier to play but didn't have a great sound. Tommy assessed it and absolutely transformed it with hours of his donated time, on a day when he had a public performance scheduled for the afternoon! He did a complete fret leveling, crowning, and polishing (involving layer after layer of painstaking work with ever-finer abrasives), really, I think because he took pity on me, but also to demonstrate what a great setup can do for these guitars. And that he did - my guitar plays like a dream, easier than I could have ever hoped for. And it sounds better at the same time. And *I* sound better. So I am grateful, and that's why I'm writing this.
OK, long story, but my point is this - I've brought this guitar in to other competent guitar technicians, but none have been able to do more than make marginal improvements, if any. Tommy Davy knows what it takes to get sound and playability out of a gypsy guitar, and he has a process tor doing it all. Check him out if you have a need!"
-Warren NYC, USA
“Tommy installed a Carlos Juan pickup system in my DuPont. It’s a sensor pickup mounted inside under the foot of the bridge, plus a mic inside under the tailpiece. There are 3 small hidden dials under the edge of the soundhole - VOLUME TONE and MIC. There is quite a bit of flexibility ‘dialing in’ your sound as needed, depending on the venue and your preferences. It’s VERY natural sounding - the natural sound of the guitar only loud. I can’t praise this highly enough - both the quality of the pickup and Tommy’s knowledge and attention to detail with the installation.”
-Richard Brooker, Musician
“So I have this old guitar... I bought it thinking it was great, but when I arrived home and compared it to others, I realized it was my worst one. (Lesson learned: be always cold minded when you buy a guitar, no matter how old and cool it is!). I tried several bridges hoping to make it better sounding, and it improved, but always in the "correct" category...Then one day Tommy Davy told me about his study on original Selmer bridges and encouraged me to try one of his... I am open-minded but also at that age where you think you're experienced enough to not believe in certain guitar miracles. Luckily I got one. Yesterday my local luthier contacted me saying: I've put that bridge you brought. Man, I'm amazed with the positive change! This luthier, you see, is a sound monster, only focusing in superior quality old Spanish construction, so I got a little nervous...I have the guitar back now. AndWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!!!!
Where's the magic? I don't know! But this bridge has put the guitar up to the stratosphere!!! BRAVO Tommy!!!!”
-Biel Ballister, Musician and Collector
“I’ve known Tommy for 15 years since he was 16, and he has grown significantly during this time. Through continuous learning and hard work, he has improved his professional knowledge of Gypsy music and is now considered an expert. I am fortunate to be able to discuss aspects of this music that I am not familiar with. I believe that no one has such passion for Gypsy music like Tommy. He has spared no effort to promote Gypsy music and Gypsy guitar. I should thank him and support him for his contribution to the Gypsy guitar. It is great to work with him, and I look forward to continuing so in the future.”
-Hanson Yao, Luthier, President of Altamira Guitars
“Je viens de recevoir un chevalet type Selmer fabriqué par Tommy Davy et je dois avoué être impressionné par la qualité et la précision du travail. La qualité du bois utilisé est également présente, ébène dense, sèche, légère. Une véritable copie de l'original et certainement très sonore. Un des plus intéressant que j'ai pu être amené à voir.”
“I have just received a Selmer-type bridge made by Tommy Davy and I must admit being impressed with the quality and precision of the work. The quality of the wood used is also present, dense, dry, light ebony. A true copy of the original and certainly very sound. One of the most interesting that I have come to see. ”
-Francois Charle, Expert and Author of “The Story of Selmer-Maccaferri Guitars”
"After seeing a video on Youtube demonstrating his facility with gypsy guitar set-up, as well as taking into account his personal history with violin repair, I knew he’d be totally capable of diagnosing another old gypsy box in my collection. He right away recognized the problem spots and tried humidification and other actions before finally doing a refret. It turned out perfectly, even though I later found out it was a not an easy job. And he turned it over in a timely manner."
-David Yorkin
"Tommy not only knows his instruments in and out, but he also does EXPERT repairs and setups- a set of skills that can make a great guitar sound G R E A T (and sound it's best). I've been playing Gypsy guitars for 30 years and have never seen this level of commitment, understanding, and expertise.”
-Paul Mehling, Guitarist, Bandleader
“If you are lucky enough in life, you run into an amazing professional who inspires you and encourages you to grow. In this case, there are two of them: Tommy Davy of djangoguitars.com and Stephen R. Davy of davy-violins.com. This father-son dynamic duo of luthier/musicians is absolutely the best of the best, recognized worldwide for their skill and talent. Of course, they are knowledgeable. What may be less known to people is just how welcoming, down-to-earth, and helpful they are when you work with them - no matter what your level or ability.
I have been a professional musician on and off for over thirty years. Admittedly, it has been more off than on for the last decade (plus). I am trying to learn the difficult and ornate Manouche Jazz style of guitar made famous by Django Reinhardt (which Tommy specializes in). It's still very early for me in this pursuit. In short, as a client, I'm the worst of two worlds... I'm super rusty AND a newbie! But, that didn't matter to Tommy and Stephen Davy. They treated me with the utmost respect and professionalism from first contact via text messages through to well after the sale and work being done. They treated me like I was a pro who just walked in off tour and needed an instrument and adjustment. They weren't worried about my level except to help assess the best instrument to get me into and music suggestions.
Thanks to Tommy, I now have a beautiful new acoustic jazz guitar. He also set it up and has since checked up on whether or not I've been happy with it since I bought it. And, thanks to Stephen, my son's beautiful violin and bow are now playing better than ever and we are enjoying our home music making, anew! Thanks, gentlemen! It is a pleasure to know you. I look forward to buying my next guitar from Tommy. I already have it picked out.”
-Ev Stanton