2011 John Weissenrieder "Bouchet" SP/CSAR

A 2011 "Bouchet" classical guitar by John Weissenrieder, with a spruce top and CSA rosewood back and sides, made in his own Florence workshop – a structural copy of the 1969 Bouchet No. 127, with details from a 1950 Bouchet.

In the video above, Joseaugusto Mejía plays Erik Satie's "Gnossienne No. 1" on this guitar; there is also a short film of John at work.

A 1969 Bouchet with a 1950 Rosette

This is an extremely accurate structural copy of the 1969 Robert Bouchet No. 127, one of the great masterpieces of guitar making, with some of the detailing – including the rosette – taken from a 1950 Bouchet. The materials are top grade, with Alessi tuners.

Sound and Playability

Like an authentic Bouchet, it has seemingly endless sustain and a creamy, warm yet focused tone, very well balanced and loud enough for any concert. The neck is graceful and the action easy.

John Weissenrieder: From Champion Cyclist to Florentine Guitar Maker

John Weissenrieder (1964–2017) was an American guitar maker who built his guitars in Florence, Italy. Born in Pennsylvania and later based in Boulder, Colorado, he grew up around woodworking – his father was a gifted amateur woodworker and his grandfather, who had emigrated from Switzerland, a machinist and furniture maker. He took up road cycling at 14, rode for the US Junior National Team, and became a professional mountain-bike racer, retiring in 1996 at 32. He also studied architecture for two years, and built a bouzouki with George Diamesis on the Greek island of Poros.

Apprenticeship with Andrea Tacchi and His Homages to Garcia, Simplicio and Bouchet

In September 1998 he arrived in Florence and began working with Andrea Tacchi, who became his teacher and friend. Together they studied the great makers of the past – a 1999 visit to the Barcelona music museum with Stefano Grondona, Simplicio copies, wood-buying trips in the Alps – and after a few more years in Tacchi's workshop John opened his own in Florence. He became best known for his guitars in homage to Enrique García, Francisco Simplicio and, above all, Robert Bouchet: faithful in spirit to their models, yet with a sound and look of his own. He died in 2017; read Andrea Tacchi's memories of John on our blog.