13-Year-Old Guitar Student, Paloma Chaprnka, Records At GSI!

Last week, we released the final video from Paloma Chaprnka's recording session in our showroom. Paloma is a 13-year-old student of Irina Kulikova. Even though her recording session took place last year (she was 12 at the time), we haven't released her third and final video until last week.

While at GSI, Paloma recorded three pieces. In the first video, you can hear her performance of Francisco Tárrega's "Lágrima". The title of the piece translates to "Teardrop". Tárrega composed "Lágrima" between 1891 and 1892. Nowadays, it's one of the most popular of Tárrega's works, thanks to its beautiful, yet very simple melody. Paloma recorded this piece on a 2022 Kenny Hill "Signature SP/CD" SP/IN. This guitar is custom-made using the most up-to-date designs, methods, and materials. It features a "double top" composed of a Nomex core "sandwiched" between two very thin layers of cedar (on the underside) and spruce (on the outside). 

In the next video, you can hear "Study Op. 31, No. 16" by the Spanish composer of the early Romantic period, Fernando Sor. For this piece, Paloma chose a 2022 Stephen Hill "2a" SP/PF. The 2a model is a true concert guitar and is built to the exact specification of Hill’s 1a model, using Hill's premium materials. The bulk of the work is carried out by Hill’s apprentices with Hill himself overseeing the entire process and personally handling the most important adjustments and details.

In the final video, Paloma performs "Ballade for Beautiful Elena" by Victor Kozlov. The guitar featured in this video is truly exceptional. It's a 1939 Hermann Hauser I SP/CSAR which is a supreme example of a "Spanish style" Hauser I, built during what many would argue was his best period. It has the classic curves, compact (yet sturdy) build, and aesthetic features that make this one of the most iconic (and copied) models in the history of the craft - this is a full-sized guitar, nearly identical to Segovia's 1937 Hauser in terms of measurements and internal structural details.