Paulino Bernabe – 1981

Description

Bernabé Sr. (* 2. Juli 1932 in Madrid; † 10. Mai 2007 Madrid) was one of the greatest and most renowned luthiers from Spain. Before he founded his first workshop in 1969, where he worked along with his son Paulino Jr. from the 1980s onwards, Paulino Sr. worked in José Ramirez III’s workshop in the 1950s and 1960s. Bernabé guitars are still played in major venues all around the world today. Thibaut Garcia for instance, the winner of the 2016 Guitar Foundation of America (GFA) competition, has been playing on a Bernabé for several years.

This beautiful guitar is a fantastic and rare example of the collaboration between Paulino Bernabe Sr. and Jr. in the early 1980s. As you can see from the handwritten note H on the label, Paulino Bernabe “Hijo” was involved in building this guitar. Inside the top there is also a signature of Paulino Bernabe Sr. This guitar is therefore, like the guitars of Romanillos & son, Smallman & sons, etc., an impressive testimony of the traditional know-how that has been handed down through several generations in the luthier families.
This guitar is in a very good condition with only a few traces of playing on the varnish and a small dent on the top, but without any cracks.

What a great pleasure it is to play this almost 40-year-old guitar, which is full of liveliness and verve. It has the legendary clarity of Bernabé guitars as well as an enchanting and majestic timbre. The treble voices have a particularly remarkable and even sustain, supported by sypathetic resonances; the playability is excellent, and this vintage instrument will delight both collectors and any guitarist looking for a mature guitar with great finesse.