José Luis Romanillos (1932–2022) was a Spanish guitar maker who built his most famous guitars in Semley, Wiltshire, England – including the 1973 guitar Julian Bream concertized and recorded on for many years. Called "the Stradivari of the guitar", he was also a leading historian of the Spanish guitar and the biographer of Antonio de Torres.
At a Glance
- Born: June 17, 1932, Madrid
- Died: February 12, 2022, Sigüenza, Spain
- Workshop: Semley, Wiltshire, England (from 1970); later Guijosa (Sigüenza), Spain
- Played by: Julian Bream, Sérgio and Eduardo Abreu, Carlos Bonell, Gilbert Biberian, Antigoni Goni
- Books: a biography and study of Antonio de Torres; The Vihuela de Mano and the Spanish Guitar (with his wife Marian, 2002)
From Madrid to London
José Luis Romanillos Vega was born in Madrid in 1932, and at thirteen years of age he was apprenticed to a Madrid cabinetmaking firm. In 1956 he moved to England to work in a hospital in Epsom, and a few months later he transferred to a hospital in London. Five years after his move to England, he made his first Spanish guitar in London, a city foreign to his native roots.
Semley, Wiltshire, and Julian Bream
In 1970 he set up a workshop as a guitar maker in the village of Semley, Wiltshire, encouraged by the English guitarist Julian Bream – and it was here that he built the legendary 1973 guitar Bream would play for many years. Romanillos guitars received recognition from world-class guitarists as much for their sound as for their aesthetic makeup and attractive appearance. The pure sound and the harmonic balance of the strings is what Romanillos looked for in his quest to produce the subtle "Spanish sound". The Daily Mail called him "the Stradivari of the guitar", and the Italian magazine Sei Corde hailed him as "the most important living stringed instrument maker".
Teacher and Historian of the Spanish Guitar
He gave courses on Spanish guitar making in numerous countries, as well as lectures and seminars about the organology of the instrument and the history and development of the vihuela de mano and the Spanish guitar. He was a member of the Crafts Council of Great Britain for ten years.
From 1995 he lived in Guijosa, a rural district annexed to Sigüenza, in the northern part of the province of Guadalajara, Spain. In 2002, in collaboration with his wife Marian, he published a dictionary in English of stringed instrument makers and guitar makers of Spain, titled The Vihuela de Mano and the Spanish Guitar. José Luis Romanillos died in Sigüenza on February 12, 2022.
José Luis Romanillos in Orfeo Magazine
José Luis Romanillos in Orfeo Magazine #5
Orfeo's feature looks at Torres' influence on Romanillos, the impact of Segovia's 1912 Manuel Ramírez and Bream's 1936 Hermann Hauser as templates for his guitars, and how mosque columns in Córdoba inspired his rosettes.
José Luis Romanillos Guitars at GSI
Many José Luis Romanillos guitars have passed through our doors over the years. You'll find guitars currently in stock by clicking the "Guitars In Stock" button in the header of this page as well as earlier examples in our Museum by clicking the "Guitars In Museum" button.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was José Luis Romanillos?
A Spanish guitar maker (1932–2022) who worked for decades in Semley, England, and built guitars for Julian Bream; he was also a historian of the Spanish guitar.
What did Julian Bream play by Romanillos?
A 1973 Romanillos that he concertized and recorded on for many years; he later owned others, including No. 592, "La Lechuza" (1981).
What books did Romanillos write?
A biography and study of Antonio de Torres, and The Vihuela de Mano and the Spanish Guitar (2002), with his wife Marian.
