Sam Rizzetta is a boat designer and builder, a master luthier (a builder of stringed, fretted musical instruments), music historian, a composites fabricator, a self-publisher, and an author. A canoeist since the age of three, he has designed, built, and modified numerous canoes, made several notable lengthy canoe voyages and first descents, and averages 1,000 miles of paddling annually. He developed his innovative Fabric Form method of boatbuilding as an offshoot of his work in the fabrication of custom composite aeronautical components. Sam has written several booklets on musical instruments for the Smithsonian Institution; articles for numerous music and professional magazines; he writes a regular technical column for The Dulcimer Player's News; and has written three books of original music two of which he self-published, and one of which is published by Mel Bay. He earns a living designing and building exquisite musical instruments in West Virginia.