Lachlan Maclennan is a Tasmanian maker whose practice brings together two enduring passions: timber and music.

Raised in a musical family, Lachlan began playing piano as a child and later studied music at university, developing a strong understanding of musical theory and a fascination with the complexity and skill involved in composition and performance. While academic study did not appeal to his practical talents, craftmanship called to him. In NSW he completed his trade in carpentry and in 2006, he moved to Tasmania to pursue his passion for timber and wooden boat building.

After completing a Certificate in Traditional Wooden Boat Building at the Wooden Boat Centre of Tasmania in 2007, Lachlan built a career spanning boat building, restoration, carpentry and architectural construction. During a decade with Denman Marine, he progressed to lead tradesman and company draftsman, working on clinker dinghies, daysailers and historic restorations, including the rebuild of Te’ Rapunga. He has been involved with the Wooden Boat Festival since 2007 and his work has been featured in WoodenBoat magazine.

Now operating from his workshop in Tasmania’s Huon Valley, Lachlan has returned to his first love: music. He creates mandolins and banjos and restores vintage microphones and concertinas, drawing on decades of experience with timber, electronics, design and craftsmanship.

His approach is rooted in the belief that a musical instrument must be both beautiful and functional. Weight, balance, feel, tone, design and resonance are all part of the making. He works with a combination of traditional tone woods and Tasmanian timbers including Tasmanian Blackwood, Huon pine and Celery-top pine, Lachlan combines traditional craft with a contemporary, refined sensibility.