Dennis MacPherson is owner and primary luthier at MacPherson Guitarworks.  Dennis grew up in Newark NJ, where his passion for understanding guitars and their construction began at an early age.  While still in his teens, he often found himself in the role of guitar repair and setup technician for local bands of which he was a member.  Over the years, as he as gained experience with a wide variety of acoustic and electric instruments, a widening circle of other local musicians began calling on his services.

In the 1970’s, Dennis took a job at Oscar Schmidt International, renowned autoharp manufacturer, as a builder of Xylophones and marimbas.  Through this job, he gained knowledge and skill in tuning wood and metal to specific musical pitches by cutting and shaping. At that time, Oscar Schmidt also made Harmony guitars in their Union, NJ facility, and this sparked his interest in guitar building.

As his technical knowledge and woodworking skills increased, Dennis began building acoustic and electric guitars just for the enjoyment of it and experimenting in manipulating acoustic bracing to provide specific characteristics to the guitar. His love for the guitar, combined with his passion for music and desire to create exceptional sounding and playing instruments, eventually led Dennis to start his Black Pearl Guitar line.