A New Torres-Inspired Guitar from Francisco Jiménez for GSI

We first met Spanish guitar builder Francisco Jiménez at the 6th International Antonio Marín Montero Guitar Building Competition in Granada, Spain in 2023, where he won first prize for his classical guitar and third prize for his flamenco.

Francisco was born in Granada in 1997, and his path toward lutherie began when he was just 17 years old. Motivated by the wish to build an instrument for his older brother—a flamenco guitarist—he taught himself guitar construction while simultaneously studying musicology and training as a sound technician. During these formative years, Francisco was able to study some of the most significant guitars of the Spanish tradition, drawing inspiration from legendary makers such as Antonio de Torres, Vicente Arias, Manuel Ramírez, Santos Hernández, Domingo Esteso, Marcelo Barbero, and Francisco Simplicio. This deep immersion in Spain’s guitar-making legacy continues to inform his style today.

Francisco's newest GSI guitar is a copy of a Torres SE114, but with the aesthetics and woods of the SE111. Francisco shared with us that this is a super-light instrument with a low body resonance, great for players who value the traditional sound of Torres guitars—especially suited for gut strings. At the moment, the guitar is in the varnishing stage. Francisco is treating it in a UV chamber for oxidation, then applying colored shellac to achieve a warm, vintage look.

Below you’ll find sneak-peek photos and videos of this guitar. We look forward to sharing the finished instrument soon and continuing to feature Francisco’s beautiful work in the GSI collection.