Spring 2010 ... from the wood shaving, aromas, and old world ambiance of an esteemed guitarrero's taller, another flamenco guitar will emerge. Preliminary glimpses graciously shared by the artist via electronic magic, have revealed another stunning instrument bearing witness to the unique ability of this guitarrero to connect with the guitarist and make dreams come true. The mystery of its tone still lingers, but will soon be answered.

have sent you a PM ..hope I did it right and it got through to you

Thanks Tomas for your explanations and corrections. Always appreciated.

What prompted you to choose the name El Pedro for this guitar?

davinort wrote:What prompted you to choose the name El Pedro for this guitar?

It is being made by Peter Tsiorba and La Tsiorba didn't have the same ring to it as La Pedro. Tomas pointed out that it should not be El but La when referring to a guitar. Since Peter's guitars are custom made for the individual player, I think they deserved to be named like Stradivarius did his violins. Peter may pick a better name for it and if so then it will be changed to that. Somehow a name suits a work of art better than a number in my opinion.

Aha, that makes sense. I hadn't considered the maker's first name when I asked the question. Meaning, my own stable could be named "La Gregorio", "La Juan", "La Monica", "La Kenny", "La Darren" (or "La Ursula", which is the guitar's true given name: Ursula Andress Segovia), "La Jesús", and the rather odd "La Mitsuru".

I commissioned Peter to make a traditional flamenco of Santos body shape with Reyes bracing on a spruce top and using straight grain maple with minimal figuring for back and sides. I drew up an idea for the rosette with simple ebony diamonds. I requested mechanical pegs and ebony fingerboard. Also black horn nut and saddle. I originally wanted ebony binding but decided to go with Peter's instinct on what would look best and glad I did. The idea of the pattern on the headstock was all Peters and a nice surprise. The goal is sweet trebles and basses that growl. The idea of maple for a traditional flamenco comes from the fact that maple was first used on flamenco guitar and when hard times drove the availability and price up, cypress was used. I wanted this guitar to be more of a pueblo gypsy juerga style guitar as contrasted to a fine virtuoso concert stage instrument. One factor of consideration, due to my hands problems, was that Peter is reported to make a flamenco that plays easier than any others out there. I anxiously await this experience as well as what it will sound like.

Peter has now opened up the preliminary photos of "La Pedro Arce" for the public. More interesting photography and amazing guitar making artistry. http://picasaweb.google.com/guitarsbype ... eat=email#

Peter is not only very good at guitar making, he also is very good at photography. I am sure you are excited to see, play and hear the end-result.

One thing that always impresses me when I see photos of guitar construction or visit luthiers and see them in action is the tremendous amount of careful handwork involved and the risk of accidents or mistakes that can ruin weeks of work. Though handmade guitars can seem expensive to buyers, if you think of the costs of quality woods and other materials plus yourself having to spend weeks doing the amount of detailed handwork necessary to make a quality guitar, the prices may seem low.

-Bob

Looks very nice thus far. Is there a reason for the alternating dark/light woods used on the top corner bracings?

davinort wrote:Looks very nice thus far. Is there a reason for the alternating dark/light woods used on the top corner bracings?

David,

I think you are referring to the lining blocks or tentalones. I did not select alternating colors for an acoustic reason, although it is accepted that density, and especially the size of linings, do have effect on the behavior of the soundboard. Linings between the top and sides are mostly unseen, unless one is in the habit of inserting mirrors inside the soundbox Mostly, I thought the contrast looked nice, even if just to myself.