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Post by PistolPete on Dec 9, 2017 14:40:34 GMT
I'm visiting the mother in law at Barcelona at the minutes and I couldn't pass up the chance to see this guitar in the flesh (well the paper mache at any rate...)
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Post by PistolPete on Dec 11, 2017 10:51:22 GMT
For those of you who are wondering what I'm banging on about Antonio de Torres was a 19th century Spanish luthier who effectively 'invented' the modern classical guitar. He built this guitar, which has cardboard back & sides, in 1862 in order to test his idea that it is the top that gives the guitar its sound. It's arguably the most historically important guitar ever built, at least until Les Paul & Leo Fender came along
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leoroberts
C.O.G.
Posts: 24,485
My main instrument is: probably needing new strings
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Post by leoroberts on Dec 11, 2017 12:13:34 GMT
Nice to see, PistolPete . Those of us that went to the forum meet in Halifax earlier this year are now all experts on Torres - thanks to colins and his obsession
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Post by dreadnought28 on Dec 11, 2017 13:24:22 GMT
I think C F Martin established 1833 might make some comment about this. My 1840s Martin has a nice sound emanating from the top.
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Post by PistolPete on Dec 11, 2017 16:26:02 GMT
I think C F Martin established 1833 might make some comment about this. My 1840s Martin has a nice sound emanating from the top. About what part? From what I know the early gut-string Martins were very similar in construction to pre-Torres Spanish guitars until he hit upon the idea of X bracing?
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Post by littlemart on Dec 11, 2017 17:57:38 GMT
Thanks for that - I've heard about this beasty but never actually seen it! What I found almost equally interesting was the guitar next to it (dated 19th century but I can't make out the luthier's name) with a very modern looking cutaway! It seems I've mistakenly believed for a long time that acoustic cutaways were a new fangled invention!
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Post by PistolPete on Dec 11, 2017 18:38:16 GMT
Thanks for that - I've heard about this beasty but never actually seen it! What I found almost equally interesting was the guitar next to it (dated 19th century but I can't make out the luthier's name) with a very modern looking cutaway! It seems I've mistakenly believed for a long time that acoustic cutaways were a new fangled invention! The museum's catalog is on their website and with a bit of help from Google translate I can tell you it's by Pere Antoni Xemena. They also had a double cutaway from 1840 just to hammer home that there's no new ideas
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Post by littlemart on Dec 11, 2017 19:21:02 GMT
That double cutaway looks like its hardly been played!
Perhaps the Torres will inspire a new build thread ".....then I put the torn up newspaper into a bowl of glue and left it for about half an hour at room temperature...."
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Post by PistolPete on Dec 11, 2017 19:51:02 GMT
That double cutaway looks like its hardly been played! Perhaps the Torres will inspire a new build thread ".....then I put the torn up newspaper into a bowl of glue and left it for about half an hour at room temperature...." Indeed, although from what I understand although it's often called 'the paper mache guitar' it's actually made out of what you might call poster board, so you may have to start your thread "After visiting four branches of Staples..."
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colins
Luthier / Guitar Maker
Posts: 2,318
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Post by colins on Dec 12, 2017 10:15:26 GMT
When we visited we were allowed to handle the guitars (amazing what an introduction from Romanillos will do). FE14, you all remember that that means number 14 of the First Epoch don't you, the 'Paper Mache' guitar, has been repaired and altered over the years, the soundboard is very thin in places and the instrument is really in an unplayable condition now. There is still a great deal of debate amongst students of Torres as to whether he was in fact trying to show that the B&S had very little to do with sound quality of the guitar or was he in fact trying to find a cheap material to use as good rosewood and even maple and cypress were getting harder to acquire. In fact as a B&S material cardboard, or rather poster board work very well as the David la Plante instrument I told you about at Halifax demonstrates. FE 14 was said to have been owned at one time by Tarrega (there I said it!) and later Llobet and was bought from Llobet's daughter by Ricart Matas then curator at the museum. The guitar next to FE14 does not have an epoch number as it is of debated origin, we know that the neck and soundboard were changed in 1908 as it has a secondary label by Manuel Fuster, it may have been one of the guitars left unfinished in Torres workshop at the time of his death.
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Post by andyhowell on Dec 13, 2017 18:37:52 GMT
:-)
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Post by andy3sheds on Dec 13, 2017 19:16:24 GMT
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