Hi all, I hope that my message finds you all in good health. I'm writing this to share my experience with you in relevance to my recent guitar purchase. So, a few months ago I decided to sell my guitar because I have always been drawn to a deeper/darker sound, which my spruce "Torres" model didn't deliver. It wasn't that the instrument lacked anything, it had been an awesome companion in my journey thus far but maybe it was something which I lacked and I was searching for. Nevertheless, I travelled from China to England visiting Brighton, Kent and London to test guitars and hopefully find that missing something. I'll write below the instruments I tried and a short review of what I felt about them. I spent three full days playing and replaying many instruments, so writing a review for each of the guitars would be a very big job, I will however provide information on the instruments I feel were most appealing to me. It is important to understand that this is only my opinion, which is highly subjective and would probably not be the same for everyone. Juan Hernandez Maestro- New (GBP2800): Specs - Top: Canadian cedar. Nut width: 52.5mm. Back and sides: Cocobolo. Varnish: Nitro Lacquered. Fingerboard: Ebony. Scale: 650 mm.
I really liked this instrument from the first time I lay my hands on it. The construction of the instrument was first class, with high quality woods from all over the world and a very tidy finish. One of the reasons I liked it almost instantly was because of the ease in playability due to a well shaped neck and a great set up. The instrument was also very loud but with sublime control. The bass did not overpower the trebles and the notes had great sustain. My only issue with the instrument was the it was a little too big for my liking and I wanted an instrument, which to me was perfect from the get go. If you don't mind a slightly larger instrument, I would seriously recommend the Hernandez Maestro.
Overall score 4.5/5
Pablo Requena- Second hand (GBP 2000): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 52mm.
Back and sides: Indian Rosewood. Varnish: French Polish. Fingerboard: Ebony.
Scale: 650 mm. Nowadays, Pablo's guitars go for over 4000GBP brand new so this seemed like a bargain. Having said that, after playing the instrument and considering the price I thought that it was not worth it. In my opinion the Alhambra 10p is much better in terms of value for money. Don't get me wrong, it was a good instrument. The balance of the instrument as well as sustain and playability were good but for the same price one could buy a similar instrument with a case and a year's warranty.
Overall score 4.0/5
Stephen Hill 2A- New (GBP 3000): Specs - Top: Spruce. Nut width: 52mm.
Back and sides: Wenge. Varnish: French Polish. Fingerboard: Ebony. Scale: 650 mm.
I don't see what all the fuss is about. The instrument was no more exceptional than most guitars in the 1500GBP-2000GBP category. Again, I'd like to stress that it was not that the instrument was not good, but for the same price one could buy an instrument with higher quality woods and tuners. The workmanship was great as would be expected from a maestro luthier but for me the price of the instrument and what it delivered were not on par. The Hernandez was head and shoulders ahead of it in terms of power, balance and sustain, but the playability of both instruments was similar.
Overall score 4.0/5 Amalio Burguet 1a- New (GBP 2300): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 52mm. Back and sides: Indian Rosewood. Varnish: Lacquer. Fingerboard: Ebony. Scale: 650 mm.
This instrument was very enjoyable to play. I found that even as a new instrument, it had maturity and balance across the fingerboard and strings. I spent quite a long time playing this instrument because I think that for the price it was a very good deal. It had power and sustain, doing a lot of work for the player and making it a very good companion. However, it was missing something, maybe it was me but I felt that I hadn't found what I was looking for, so I continued my search. Overall score 4.2/5 Jose Ramirez 1a 1967- Second hand (GBP 5000): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 54mm.
Back and sides: Brazilian Rosewood. Varnish: Lacquer. Fingerboard: Ebony.
Scale: 664 mm.
The best instrument I've ever played. I had heard that the old Ramirez were very difficult to play because of the action, the size of the instrument as well as the scale length, but it just goes to show that one shouldn't believe something because someone said so. The guitar was very easy to play, the size was not big and the scale length was not noticeable. But oh my, the sound. The notes had a piano-like quality and an extra-ordinary balance. For once Segovia's words mades sense. "The guitar is like an orchestra looked at by the reverse side of the binoculars. It is a little orchestra". And that it was. It had something within it that spoke without words, things within me I had not known. If I had the money I would have bought it instantly. Overall score 5/5 Pappalardo S2- New (GBP 2900): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 52mm.
Back and sides: Indian Rosewood. Varnish: Lacquer. Fingerboard: Raised / Ebony.
Scale: 650 mm.
I loved this guitar. In terms of playability, it was the best out of all the guitars I tested. It was highly responsive and a low action made the difficult passages very simple to play. The volume was the same as most large guitars but there was an unusual control even when one strikes the strings without control. All this, added to the raised fingerboard made it a players dream. An example of this ease in playability is the B section in Satie's Gnossienne No. 1, which goes up to an A on the high E string. On this guitar it was really easy to play that usually awkward note. Having said all of that, it lacked the piano-like notes on the high E string, which I heard on the Ramirez 1a. A little thing like that made sure that I kept at it. Overall score 4.6/5
Yulong Guo Chamber- New (GBP 3000): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 52mm.
Back and sides: Santos Rosewood. Varnish: Lacquer. Fingerboard: Ebony. Scale: 650 mm. Armrest.
This instrument was a strange one. After playing the Pappalardo for almost 30 minutes I picked up the Yulong Guo and I put it straight back down. I really disliked it. It was bright even when I played tasto or tried hard to create a darker sound. And honestly it felt like no matter how much I tried to colour a piece with different tonal variances, I seemingly got the same response. The guitar was however loud and easy to play. Again, this may just be me and my preference of sound but for the asking price it was not worth it. Overall score 3.8/5 Manuel Adalid Membrana- New (GBP 2800): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 52mm.
Back and sides: Pau Ferro. Varnish: French Polish. Fingerboard: Ebony. Scale: 650 mm.
It was between this instrument and the one I chose for the final showdown. It has everything, power, balance, control, sustain and fantastic playability. Before playing this instrument in terms of tonal quality my favourite had been the Hernandez Maestro and in terms of playability it had been the Pappaladro, but the Membrana had a bit of both worlds and a little more. I really enjoyed playing it and it seemed like this was going to be the one until... Overall score 4.8/5 Mengual y Margarit Luthier- New (GBP 3500): Specs - Top: Cedar. Nut width: 52mm.
Back and sides: Indian Rosewood. Varnish: Lacquer. Fingerboard: Ebony. Scale: 650 mm.
I played this. This was it. From the first note I played, it captivated and held my attention. Legend has it that the Stradivarius instruments have something within them that only the player feels. Tests on frequency and pitch have shown that they are no different from most modern instruments but then what is it that gives them their charm and mysticism? Maybe there is something innate within the player, which they find within their instrument. A bond that can't be described but only felt. I felt this instantly with my guitar and now it is here with me, in China. Overall score 5/5
Which particular notes give you the most trouble?
I think having a ‘challenge’ piece is a great idea by the way. No piece is over your head if you take it slowly and stepwise
Hi Kevin, this is high on my list of songs to learn, I hope you'll be able to get passed this difficult part. I have the same trouble with a stretch in the second part of Romanza. I can play the rest no problem but this one part seems impossible to reach, and I have quite big hands. There'a couple of parts in Capricho Arabe I still can't play properly and I learned that quite a while ago, I hope I'll get there the more I practice, and like a lot of Cavatina, the tough bit involves a bar and a stretch!
I started learning Tango en Skai but haven't had enough time to work on it properly so I'll come back to it in the summer. I learned Adelita last night in an hour and a half which I was delighted with, it's the quickest of any other I've learned. Tavi said in the tutorial it's often played together with Lagrima in concerts, so it's good to be able to play both. Did you finish learning Lagrima? Good luck with Cavatina, but if you think it's too much at the moment keep building up with the easier ones.
I can't maintain the bar on the 7th while trying to hit the E on the G string. Nathan, wow! An hour and a half to learn Adelita, nice! I should try and go back to that. As usual, for me, I always get stuck with a part that just seems impossible and, perhaps wrongly, I move on to something else. So I what I have is a repertoire of fragments - incomplete pieces. I have made good progress on Lagrima, Jesu, Joy of Man's Desirings, and Romanza so that keeps me motivated. Nathan, I wish you much success with Tango en Skai. Thanks folks for your comments.
I'm having a look at the tutorial, and might have to push on with learning this song, finally! Do you mean the 7th fret in Bar 2? Tavi says to let the weight of your hand pulling down on the strings help with maintaining the bar chords, not just pressing the neck with your thumb.
The reason I learned Adelita is because I haven't had time to carry on with Tango. It's a big project and I didn't want to go too long without learning something new. There's only 2 parts to the tutorial and I was surprised I managed to learn it in one go. My advice as a fellow beginner is to carry on with the easier songs you started learning until you can play them all to the end. It will give you more confidence to take on the advanced songs. You could carry on with Cavatina at the same time, but see it as a long term project that will take some doing. It took me 3-4 weeks to learn Capricho Arabe. I've been practicing for a few months and there's a couple of parts I still can't play properly. At the moment I'm just playing through it to see if it falls into place eventually.
It's a great feeling to play a whole song and see the improvements with practice.
Hey Kevin,
I have small sausage fingers and struggled with that bar too. For bar 5 there are two things that made it easier:
first was to fret each note only as it comes up - ie. instead of placing both 2nd and 3rd fingers at once, place the 3rd finger first to play the C#, and then the 2nd finger on the 3th string for the E. I find this helps a little because placing both fingers at once turns your hand too much and lifts the index finger from the barre.
Second is to use the motion of the 3rd and 2nd fingers coming down onto the string to increase your hand and arm weight on the chord so you can pull down into the chord more each time. i find if you start your index finger higher up the 7th fret and barring using the side of the finger, you can roll it onto the flat front of the finger as your 3rd and 2nd finger come down to help with that "pulling" sensation
Let me know if you have trouble visualizing this and i could try to post a video
Alex
Just got through the 1st tutorial and had the same trouble with Bar 5, easier to do it how you said, and quicker.
Nathan - its bar 5. And, I agree with you. I am going to stick to beginner level pieces and make Cavatina a long term project. Thanks for your response.
Alex - great recommendations from you that I will try. You have described my problem perfectly and I really appreciate the level of detail you have provided - thanks!
Probably a good idea to build up to that piece. Cavatina is one of the most exhausting pieces to learn and requires a lot of effort to the bar chords. One student entitled it "Baratina"
Alex - been working on your suggestion, "instead of placing both 2nd and 3rd fingers at once, place the 3rd finger first to play the C#, and then the 2nd finger on the 3th string for the E.", and it is starting to work for me - many thanks! When I play the E on the 3rd string, my index finger no longer bars, so I play the remaining A, E, A without barring the E or A string - it's cheating and I hope hope I'm not off to starting another bad habit. But, I still can't maintain a bar at the 7th while playing that E on the 3rd. Similarly, On the first bar, I don't bar the E or A.
Tavi - I agree, but I'm going to use this as a "push" practice piece. I'm also thinking about going back to normal tension strings. Great tutorial - thanks!
Looking forward to hearing you play it
Alex
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JO0LlT3iuQ&feature=youtu.be
Here's my rendition. I'll try to post a cleaner one in the future maybe
@axiao2 Excellent Alex, well done!
Alex
Awesome - thanks for sharing your performance. You are much further along than I am and I'm sure it will sound even better as time passes. I wish I could nail the ending Barr chords as well as you.
Bar 14 is another difficult one, with sausage fingers! I'm using the third finger to play F# and the little finger to jump between the 3rd and 2nd string.
Bar 30 - too difficult maintaining high E with the accompaniment and placing the second finger on the third string. Have to release the high E to be able to do that.
Hey Nathan, I feel your pain. try:
dropping your elbow to get more around the fretboard with your wrist
fretting your index higher up on the 6th string to make room for your 2nd finger
abandoning your thumb behind the neck for less strain on your hand
if none of these work just try to work at the stretch a few times a day while moving on to the rest of the piece. You’ll get it sooner or later.
If you want to cheat a little, that high E barely has any sustain by the time you get to the lower E anyways, so if you use a lot of vibrato and then release the pinky for the 2nd finger it still sounds pretty nice
HI Alex, it's a bit better now but quite tricky to avoid buzzing other strings. I'll try the fretting option as well. Cheers for the advice :)
Worked on tutorial 3 all yesterday evening and tonight to get through it, should be ok now, see if I can remember it in the morning. I'm just going to ignore any difficulties for now, learn the piece first then worry about that later. I've been meaning to learn Cavatina for a long time, glad to be almost there now.
Practicing Natalia and Cavatina will be enough work to carry on with then for a while. Not learning anything else until Serenata Espaniola is here, looking forward to that.
Just taking a break after 50 failed recordings!
Didn't manage to get a clean recording, was getting exhausted after so many tries, and that ending is a killer, haven't managed to play it properly yet. I'm just glad I've finally learned the piece.
Good job man. It will sound even better every day
Cheers Alex, it will take quite some time to get used to the stretches and strains involved in this piece, but well worth the effort.
I've taken on a side project as well, bought the Tabs for Autumn Leaves which are quite straightforward to follow. Got the intro up to the harmonics learned so far. Was it you who said you were learning this a while ago? I remember the post but can't find it now.
I found the post in your El noi de la mare thread, did you finish learning it?
I'm just practicing the intro so far. Getting used to learning from tabs, takes a bit longer that way so making sure I can remember it before moving on. Would be good to see you play if you've recorded it?