William Cumpiano

William Cumpiano has been a renowned luthier since the 1970s, crafting guitars, as well as his specialty, Puerto Rican stringed instruments such as the cuatro and the older forms tiple doliente and bordonua. He is one of the founders of the Puerto Rican Cuatro Project, an initiative that stimulated interest in, study of, and production of the cuatro, the iconic instrument of Puerto Rican musica tipica and the beloved music that the instrument expresses. In addition to creating sought-after instruments of the highest quality, he has organized workshops, festivals, performances, and lecture demonstrations that have brought Puerto Rican folk music to increased attention and new audiences. He taught apprentice Graciela Quiñones Rodriguez to build cuatros, tiples, and bordonuas under the Southern New England Traditional Arts Program. Based in the Northampton, Massachusetts area, Bill has given several workshops in Greater Hartford, including an instrument-making workshop given at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut under the auspices of the Trinity College Fine Arts Department and Hartford Center Church, and in 2016 again at Trinity College.