Albert Augustine was a Danish immigrant guitar enthusiast, and burgeoning luthier. He was also a founding member of The New York Society for the Classic Guitar, the first organization to present serious classical guitar concerts in New York City, and the publisher of a prestigious journal called Guitar Review.

In the 1940s, it was more difficult than ever to source quality strings, which at the time were made of animal gut (sheep, mostly). Beyond the inconsistency of strings composed of organic materials, their usage as field sutures during the war effort made them extremely scarce. Particularly confounded by this lack of good strings was Andrés Segovia, the Spanish virtuoso whose efforts to elevate the guitar from the parlor to the concert stage had made him an international sensation.

“From my earliest childhood – and I feel as though I must have been playing the guitar before I was born – I was handicapped by the brittleness of the strings that were then available; and as I grew in years and experience, I found myself more and more irritated…” – Andrés Segovia

Albert’s strings resounded in Segovia’s concerts across the globe, causing a fervor amongst guitarists in need of their own durable, reliable, brilliant strings. Before long, the players that would begin to shape the art of the guitar as it came to be known in the 20th century – from Segovia, to Olga Coelho, to the Abreu Brothers, to a young English prodigy named Julian Bream – were all playing “Augustine Strings.”

Rose Augustine, Albert’s wife was not a guitarist, she was a chemistry teacher at a public school in the Bronx. However she shared Albert’s passion for the guitar and a fierce enthusiasm for the guitar community. After Albert’s passing in 1967, Rose took the reins of Augustine Strings, advocating on behalf of her husband’s legacy and all the while nurturing the musical careers of many of the most influential guitarists of the second half of the 20th century.

Augustine Strings’ mission is to produce strings that elevate every guitar to its fullest potential of sound and playability. Beyond manufacturing, donations, advocacy, platforming, networking, and direct financial support make Augustine an industry leader when it comes to ensuring the availability of musical education, especially for communities most in need.

While their hours in the Augustine Strings factory and office are spent working to produce the finest guitar strings in the world, at their core, they are musicians. Their lives have been shaped by music’s power to inspire, excite, heal, enrich, and entertain.

For this reason, They seek to uncover and support organizations doing outstanding work in education initiatives that forge the connections to this most powerful art form. Just a few of these are Austin Classical Guitar, St. Louis Classical Guitar, and Cleveland Classical Guitar. Beyond their own support, they believe strongly in advocating for these organizations within their industry so that they are recognized and supported more broadly.