"...I picked up my cittern in Sept. 2007 at your workshop, and I have been extremely happy with it since. I use it as my main instrument in there different folk music bands and other playing occasions that may come along. One of the bands, called Skyeline (named after Isle of Skye actually) went to a festival in Estonia this summer...There are only a handful of mandola / cittern players in Norwegian folk music and the instrument creates a lot of interest wherever I use it and I receive lots of comments on how well it complements the flute and the violin."
- Anders Fongen, Norway

"Dave, the octave mandolin arrived yesterday, safe and sound and ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!!!! Thank you for your wonderful work. I took it to my performance at the BLACK MOON MUSIC LOUNGE in Belchertown, Mass last night...and it was a hit! Lots of ooo's and ahhhs during the performance...and afterwards people came back stage to look at it as well."
- Joe C, Springfield Massachusetts

"Thanks for sending the mandolin, it's a superb instrument."
- D. N. Frame

"The Cittern arrived in great shape. It's a beautiful instrument with a lovely, warm tone and great sustain. I introduced it at a concert we gave 2 weeks ago and received many compliments. Thank you for constructing this for me."
- Rich Kelly, USA


"I have had a Freshwater octave mandolin for several months and have found it to be loud and very musical sounding. It cuts through other instruments such as the two guitars (one a 12) I often play with. It records beautifully too. They are made in Scotland, yet the price including a gig bag, pickup and shipping (to NYC) was still under $700. Plus the unique 'Celtic Knot' soundhole is striking and always attracts attention."
-- Tony Soll, New York



"I too have been pleased with my Freshwater Octave Mandolin...Good Substantial tone, excellent playability, well made and attractive (I also have the celtic knot sound hole). I recently had it in to my luthier for a routine checkup and set-up work, along with another big name octave which cost around $2,300. The instrument that the luthier was most impressed with was the Freshwater (by the way, he didn't find the Freshwater to need much tweaking, I was great like it was. He didn't do much more than change the strings). I have had it for around eight months and it has been totally stable and consistent all during that time."
-- Ron Maness



"I have had it now some 3 weeks and in that time I have played it at 6 concerts including a weekend in Paris...Wherever we played people came up to me and commented on the sound and the look of the instrument. For anyone reading this message I requested from Freshwater Instruments an Octave Mandolin with, in addition to the standard design, a Celtic knot sound hole, Rosewood sides and back, Electronic graphic equaliser and pickup and as a final touch, to match my Takemine Guitar, a set of gold plated machine heads (tuners).

Even my colleagues in the Band have said what a lovely overall sound the instrument has"
I will keep in touch from time to time to let you know how your "baby" is progressing. Thanks for all the assistance and interest you gave to me during the making of this instrument. The pleasure is now all mine! Good luck and if anyone needs a reference please use this e-mail
-- David Henderson

"I have a Freshwater Wide-Body Octave Mandolin which I purchased for $635. I couldn't be more happy with it. It has a very good tone, especially on the lower strings. And for playability, it is super. Rates higher in that area than other, much more expensive octaves I have played. It is stable (seldom have to even retune it) which I take as an indicator of good construction. In fact I like it (and its price) so well that I am presently waiting on a standard mandolin with a slightly deeper body (an option) which I ordered directly from Dave Freshwater over the Net. It should be delivered this week. And Dave has been super to work with; during the decision and ordering process he called me several times from Scotland and took as much time with me as I wanted. The price for the mandolin is 260 pounds (approx. $387 US). Several options regarding woods, etc. are available. Dave has indicated he normally gets 4 business day delivery on his shipments. So I am only happy to recommend Freshwater Instruments"

"My new Freshwater mandolin has now arrived. It is a standard Mandolin (Celtic-styled) with a slightly deeper body (spruce top, maple back and sides). It is a very attractive instrument and seems well made. Quite a bargain for 260 British pounds (approx. $387 US). Dave Freshwater was great to deal with, even calling me several times long distance. The Freshwater is a good solid-wood option in this price range."
-- Ron Maness


"The octave mandolin was here when I got home on Friday. I barely had time to play it, but took it to Pennsylvania on Saturday to a workshop/jam session on recording put on by Roland, the company that makes lots of electronic musical gadgets One of the participants is a mandolin and fiddle player who has mentioned that he was interested in an octave mandolin. He loved it.
So do I. It plays well and is amazingly loud. I've put in a lot of time playing it - even started to write a song on it. It is well balanced and great to look at. I've already expanded my chord knowledge substantially - trying out positions that are uncomfortable on a conventional mandolin. This instrument will be used."
-- Tony Soll, New York


"I live in Edinburgh and was given your address by a guy called Martin who recently bought an octave mandola from you. I have been playing mandolin/fiddle for some time in the Edinburgh sessions and last night I had a shot of playing this new instrument you made for him. I was very impressed with both the high quality of sound and ease of playing, as well as the beautiful finish of the instrument."
-- V.Higham , Edinburgh

"Hello again friend, I just wanted to drop you a line to tell you that your line of instruments coming out with the Celtic knotwork soundhole looks absolutely fantastic. I am tempted, but my older model of yours is still playing wonderfully, especially with that fantastic new tail piece..."
-- Christopher Rennie, Detroit


"I have been particularly impressed with the pick up and eq that is fitted to the cittern, do I recall you calling it a belcat? It is extremely low noise and high gain giving a very solid sound."
-- Brian Swinton


"I just got my Freshwater on Friday...24 inch scale, DGDAE...I can recommend them without hesitation. Great service, Great sound, Great Price...did I mention the Great sound? I can only type this with my right hand...my left is resting comfortably in ice water!"
-- Craig Harbauer


"I just wanted to tell you that your instruments are one of the finer things in life - your website is excellent - highly polished and well made."
-- Simon Pierce


"David. When I first ordered my octave mandolin, I hoped I would receive a nice instrument. I got that, but it's also beautiful and has a rich full sound that rivals a 12-string guitar. If you actually built 12-string guitars they would probably sound like the Royal Philharmonic. Not only was the instrument beyond my fondest expectations but so was the service. Dealing with Fretted Folk is like having a personal luthier, one, I might add, who works for a very reasonable salary. Thanks for the wonderful instrument and wonderful attention. I'll be happy to refer my musical friends to my own Highlands Instrument builder. And of course I'll remember you when it's winter there and still summer here."
-- Dave Nelson, New Braunfels - Texas


"Hello,
Having had my mandolin for a few weeks now, I thought I might drop you a line with my thoughts.

When I first opened the packaging I was really impressed with the gig bag the instrument came in and have found the straps to be really useful for carrying whilst out and about. The bag is well padded and, short of jumping up and down on it, I have no real fears of anything happening to my mandolin whilst in its case.

As for the mandolin...well, I'd played one of your instruments in Scayles Music shop here in Edinburgh and was impressed. However, I was totally blown away by the volume, the tone and the sustain of this mandolin I now had in my possession. Wow!!! I compared it to my humble Korean-import mandolin (which was priced at £140 when I bought it!) and to be honest the Korean mandolin sounded like I'd stuffed its innards with cotton wool, it just lacked the tone or volume of the freshwater mandolin.

Once I'd taken it out of its case, I sat and picked away for about four hours or so, quite forgetting about the time. Since then I've noticed that I've enjoyed my playing a lot more (one wonders it there's been a similar improvement in my playing, well, maybe the jury's still out on that one!) and I'm keener to do practice exercises. At purely aesthetic level, the shape and styling of the instrument are (in my eyes) elegant and understated and the combination of naturally finished spruce and maple looks very good, and the figure of the maple back is attractive to the eye.

Given their price and their excellent tonal qualities, I would definitely say freshwater instruments represent outstanding value for money. You can most definitely put me down as a satisfied customer!

With many, many thanks"
-- Gavin Wells,(a very happy mandolin-picker)