1923 Francisco Simplicio SP/CSAR
| Year | 1923 |
| Top | Spruce |
| Back & Sides | CSA Rosewood |
| Scale Length | 650 mm |
| Nut width | 50 mm |
| Finish | French Polish |
| Country | Spain |
| Condition | Excellent |
| Exchange | ExchangePlus |
| Luthier | Francisco Simplicio |
Francisco Simplicio, the sole pupil and successor of Enrique Garcia, was known not only for the beautiful tone of his instruments, but also for his exquisite workmanship and use of extravagant ornamentation. This guitar we offer here is a fine example demonstrating the best of these qualities and is one of his more ornate models with extra detailing, including mosaics in the top purfling, inner and outer rosette purflings and tie-block inlay. There is also half-herringbone inlays in the purflings for the top, sides and back. In addition to the carved floral pattern in the headstock, the slots are surrounded with both square and rectangular-shaped mosaic inlays with mother-of-pearl for every 4th occurence. This is truly a piece of art in every way, and not just for its appearance - the famous 'sound' of Simplicio is perhaps the most unique of the great makers of the twentieth century - it has a very "old-world" charm, and players of these guitars often remark how they are transported psychologically to another world when playing a Simplicio. The sound of this Simplicio is magical - there is great depth and rich overtone content in every note from the lowest bass note to the highest treble. It has a deep bottom-end and lyrical, harmonically rich and singing trebles. This guitar also has ample volume to fill any hall. Being over 100 years old, it is in remarkably excellent condition - apart from a crack on the side of the fingerboard and 2 hairline cracks in one of the sides, it is pretty much pristine with all original elements intact including finish and tuning machines. Fun fact about this guitar: Simplicio started working with Enrique Garcia in 1918, and together, they built "Garcia" guitars for several years. When Garcia died in 1922, Simplicio continued building similar models but now signed the labels with his "Francisco Simplicio" signature and started numbering them, starting with #1, #2, etc... For some reason he didn't get around to having his own labels designed and printed until 1925 so built his first 49 guitars (numbered and signed) with the old Garcia labels, and this guitar from 1923 is his #11. Overall, a highly desirable guitar from this famous builder.
Description
Francisco Simplicio, the sole pupil and successor of Enrique Garcia, was known not only for the beautiful tone of his instruments, but also for his exquisite workmanship and use of extravagant ornamentation. This guitar we offer here is a fine example demonstrating the best of these qualities and is one of his more ornate models with extra detailing, including mosaics in the top purfling, inner and outer rosette purflings and tie-block inlay. There is also half-herringbone inlays in the purflings for the top, sides and back. In addition to the carved floral pattern in the headstock, the slots are surrounded with both square and rectangular-shaped mosaic inlays with mother-of-pearl for every 4th occurence. This is truly a piece of art in every way, and not just for its appearance - the famous 'sound' of Simplicio is perhaps the most unique of the great makers of the twentieth century - it has a very "old-world" charm, and players of these guitars often remark how they are transported psychologically to another world when playing a Simplicio. The sound of this Simplicio is magical - there is great depth and rich overtone content in every note from the lowest bass note to the highest treble. It has a deep bottom-end and lyrical, harmonically rich and singing trebles. This guitar also has ample volume to fill any hall. Being over 100 years old, it is in remarkably excellent condition - apart from a crack on the side of the fingerboard and 2 hairline cracks in one of the sides, it is pretty much pristine with all original elements intact including finish and tuning machines. Fun fact about this guitar: Simplicio started working with Enrique Garcia in 1918, and together, they built "Garcia" guitars for several years. When Garcia died in 1922, Simplicio continued building similar models but now signed the labels with his "Francisco Simplicio" signature and started numbering them, starting with #1, #2, etc... For some reason he didn't get around to having his own labels designed and printed until 1925 so built his first 49 guitars (numbered and signed) with the old Garcia labels, and this guitar from 1923 is his #11. Overall, a highly desirable guitar from this famous builder.
