When jazz artist Pat Metheny asked Canadian instrument maker Linda Manzer to create a guitar with as many strings as possible, the result was dubbed the Pikasso. A guitar collector was so fascinated by the instrument that he had Manzer replicate it in a strictly acoustic version, without the electronic pickups incorporated into Metheny's instrument. With two soundholes, three necks and forty-two strings in four groups, the Pikasso II is a tour-de-force of the luthier's art. The process of building the original instrument consumed five months of drawing time and another four of building. At almost twice the weight of a normal guitar, both Pikasso models are supplied with stands that support them for playing and display. Also unique is the wedge-shaped body, with sides thinner along the upper edge than the lower, allowing the player better access to the multiplicity of strings. Besides the regular six strings on its traditional neck, the three additional sets of twelve each are tuned to various schemes reflecting the note patterns of instruments such as the autoharp and Japanese koto, presenting the player with a considerable array of sound options.