1933 Enrique Sanfeliu SP/CSAR (ex Pepe Romero)

This 1933 Enrique Sanfeliu is a spruce and CSA rosewood classical guitar with a tornavoz, owned by Pepe Romero and later part of the Russell Cleveland collection – the very guitar featured in “34 Classical Guitars in Life Size”.

Ornate Barcelona Craftsmanship

Ornate marquetry, a carved headstock and the other hallmarks of the later guitars of Enrique García and of Francisco Simplicio are all present in this instrument. The label reads “Enrique Sanfeliu, Constructor de Guitarras, Calle Ancha, 30, Barcelona” and is dated 1933.

The Tornavoz and the Sound

It is fitted with a “tornavoz” – a conical tube attached to the soundhole, which adds a sonic boom to the bottom end and gives the trebles a brilliant clarity. It has a beautiful, old-world sound, reminiscent especially of Simplicio – lyrical trebles and a dark, haunting and mysterious quality.

Ex Pepe Romero, Russell Cleveland Collection

This instrument was owned by Pepe Romero before it entered the Russell Cleveland collection. This is a very fine, rare, collectible and playable instrument by one of the great Barcelona masters of the twentieth century.

In “34 Classical Guitars in Life Size”

This very guitar is one of the 34 instruments presented in Alberto Martínez’s book “34 Classical Guitars in Life Size”:

34 Classical Guitars in Life Size

Enrique Sanfeliu: From Valencia to Barcelona

Enrique Sanfeliu was born in 1882 in Valencia, Spain, and as a child built small “toy” guitars for his friends – a true sign of a promising future as a guitar maker. After hearing Tárrega play a concert in Valencia, he decided to devote his life to the guitar – not just as a player, but also as a maker. He later moved to Barcelona, where he worked in the workshop of Juan Estruch and befriended Enrique García, who shared his knowledge of lutherie with him. His own workshop was at Calle Ancha, 30.

García, Simplicio and the Barcelona School

Sanfeliu’s instruments show the unmistakable influence of the later guitars of Enrique García, as well as those of García’s great protégé Francisco Simplicio – ornate marquetry, carved headstocks and a beautiful, old-world sound. Perhaps the most famous player of Sanfeliu guitars was Agustín Barrios Mangoré, whose famous Sanfeliu bore his name in the headstock. His son, Enrique Sanfeliu Jr., also built guitars in the workshop, with labels marked “Junior”.