[David Gonzalez Sr.]

Hello everyone, I play a freshly inherited a 1970 "blanca" Tamura C40 made and signed by Japanese luthier "Hiroshi Tamura". I would really like to know some info on my guitar, but cant seem to find anything on her ANYWHERE..... please help me find out about this guitarra

[rumbafied]

I'm playing a Cordoba 45FM, their "student" flamenco guitar. I really like it, and would buy another one without hesitation. They've got the Gipsy Kings Studio version out as well with electronics, but it's alot cheaper in price (600.00) than what I paid for mine but it's within a different series as well, so maybe that's why it's less expensive. Regardless, they seem to be a great instrument. My father playes the Uke, and he just bought a Cordoba Uke, and he loves it now that he's able to plug into an amp.

[Alatriste]

Originally Posted by deteresa

I have a Francisco Navarro (Mexico)...

Very cool! I am hoping to visit Paracho MEX in the next year or two, though his guitars are sold here in Houston. I just want to see if Paracho is as I have imagined it. I ride my motorcycle down to MEX a lot.

I would like to get my hands on a Francisco Navarro one of these days or a Candelario Delgado. We shall see.

[omnidrone]

Wow some great guitars. I've been hearing great thigs about Anders and his guitars.....someday. Right now I divide my time between a Benito Huipe Blanca and a Francisco Navarro Concert model Blanca cutaway(yucky- I know). I used to play a student model Navarro. I thought it was a great guitar - especially for only $4oo us, but The concert model really doesn't sound a whole heck of alot better. It's a cedar top 2008 so maybe it needs time to open up. I have a classical with golpeadores and flamenco action made by a local luthier named Matthew Roper who seems to have fallen off the face of the earth. My first good guitar. I hope to get a Negra this year. I'm thiking Salvador Castillo.

cheers.

[ronjazz@mac.com]

Unfortunately, cedar doesn't tend to "open up" like spruce does. Cedar guitars sound like they will in years, while spruce guitars tend to develop their sound based on the player.

[La Sonanta]

It is not the name of a specific luthier we prefer, it is the ratio quality versus price that should be the condition to value any flamenco guitar. The sound of a flamenco guitar is influenced by the design of the soundboard and bracing as well as by the quality and kind of woods used to built a flamenco guitar. We prefer hand-made flamenco guitars using the finest very old aged premium master grade solid woods. A good wood to build a professional flamenco guitar not only needs to be very old aged, have a tight grained wood structure, one other important criteria are the extraordinary, little cross silk grain patterns. Try to consider those little grains crossing the vertical long grains making some kind of bridges between the long vertical grains enabling the wood to respond in all its registers. For the soundboard or top, flamenco guitar makers use mainly thin spruce, projecting a brilliant, clear, strongly focused tone. Cedar is also used for the top, projecting a fuller, darker coloring, more wooden but less separated tone. The enchanting sound and responsiveness of Cedar does not improve with age. Spruce, on the contrary, opens up by age becoming increasingly responsive and mellow. For the sides and backs of a flamenco blanca model, guitar makers use different types of thin cypress like Cypress Royal, Cypress Violetta or a deep red African hardwood Coral. Cypress is light and because of its stability, cypress can be worked very thin, projecting a percussive, bright and clear, crispy sound with plenty of flamenco "bite" in the trebles. For the sides and backs of a flamenco negra model, guitar makers mainly use thin rosewoods from East India, Rio or Cocobolo. Rosewoods are denser giving the guitar more sustain, more depth of tone, sounding slightly mellower and richer. For the neck flamenco guitar makers use cedar, for the fingerboard ebony and for the bracing spruce or cedar.

[Michael1917]

La Sonanta,

I agree. Now, can you tell me how I can get one of those Andalusian blancas you sell with the sound ports? The guitar looks wonderful and from the video clip, sounds great.

[scholomance]

I play a Conde Hermanos 1964. Spruce, cypress. Conde 1999 spruce, cypress. The ubiquitous red. Has that 'blunt' dry sound. Lots of midrange.
Also, Ramirez 1A 1996. Cedar and cypress. High-endy, raspy.
All project big-time. The '64 weighs less than 2 pounds. Featherweight. Big bottom-end.

[Payul]

Hi Scholomance,

Welcome to the falseta forum!
You have some nice guitars there.
Are there lot of differences between your 1964 Conde and the 1999 Conde?

Payul

[scholomance]

The '64 Conde sounds nothing like the '99. The '64 has French polish, is small, extremely light, and has a mellow, almost 'compressed' tone. Buttery, very smooth. Thick-sounding trebles. But, it is not at all 'classical-sounding.'
Extremely sensitive and responsive. The wood is so thin that as you speak or sing, the guitar vibrates easily. The '99 is the orange 'media-luna' which has that blunt, woody, dry, raspy tone. It is the very tone that is so coveted-----a very serious and profound tone. I used to love a high-ended rattly, raspy tone, but now the dry, blunt tone of the '99 is what I prefer. Great neck, built like a tank. I used to find the tone 'dull', but as I said, now I love it. Paco del Gastor's tone exactly.