Today an article about a special guitarstudio in the Netherlands which I visited about a week ago. It is a guitarstudio run by Jos Rentmeester who is located in Heikenszand, de Bevelanden, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
When I left the Netherlands to live in Leeds, Yorkshire,England there were hardly any musicshops in the local area where I was born. Over the years things changed a bit, some musicshops came and went, some guitarbuilders started up a business and now there is Jos’s very special guitarshop since 2008.
Any experienced guitarist will know this feeling: Looking for another guitar, and go into an average size musicshop and you may find (if you are lucky) two guitars you may like, often these guitars play so so and do have some issues, you will need to set up the guitar to get it to play how you like. Seems to be the usual procedure, but it should not be like that: A guitar should play great as you leave the shop since that is what you pay for!
When I heard about the Jos Rentmeester’s guitarstudio I had to meet the man to see how good the studio was. The studio has been there since the end of 2008. Jos is a specialist in Fender USA, Fender USA Custom Shop, Gretsch and Guild guitars. He is one of ten Fender Custom Shop dealers in the Netherlands, located in one of the most beautiful areas of the Netherlands: Zeeland.
In the studio there are over 100 new- and used USA guitars all personally selected by Jos for quality, sound and playability.
The collection does contain a few jewels: Two Original USA Strats from 1962, a Sunburst Strat from 1959 and a Jaguar from 1962. Apart from these guitars there are some Custom Shop models and a few guitars which Jos build himself with first Class Fender Custom Parts and other high end parts.
Of course the studio does not only contain USA Fender guitars, no, there are also USA Gibsons, PRS and G&L guitars to be found in Jos’s Guitar Studio.
For Who is Jos’s Guitar Studio?
Anyone who is interested in quality guitars and for who playing guitar means a little more than just picking up that piece of wood every now and then. You know who you are eh?
People living in Leeds are spoiled for choice. We have had Sound Control here and the Roseville Road shop did contain all the goodies Jos’s Studio contains, but I am talking of a city of over a million people, not an area of merely 320.000 people! All in all I do think that the people in the Netherlands, and especially the ones in Walcheren and the Bevelanden are very lucky with a Guitar Studio which offers that much quality and choise for reasonable prices. If you live locally or near the area [Even the good folks who live in Germany,Belgium or anyone living close to the Dutch border should pay a visit to this Studio since you are not too far away and Jos does take the time for you!!]
Here are the full contact details for Jos Rentmeest’s Guitar Studio:
Noordland 5
4451 RP Heikenszand
Tel: (0031) 06 33177501
www.stujos.nl
email: rentjo@xs4all.nl
Next article will be about making choises for your guitarplaying, hope to see you again soon!
Eddie