1962 José Ramírez "2a" SP/CSAR

This 1962 José Ramírez "2a" is a classical guitar with a spruce top and CSA rosewood back and sides from Madrid – an early "gold label" Ramírez built by Félix Manzanero.

The "Gold Label" 2a

Segovia, Sabicas, Christopher Parkening, Chet Atkins, Lee Ritenour, Sting – the list of professionals who have played instruments from the José Ramírez III workshop over the past half century is practically endless. This is a "gold label" Ramírez, which is identical to the standard 1a models in all ways, with the exception of using materials that may have minor aesthetic blemishes, such as small knots, or what in Spain are called "cocas" (darker areas of resin concentration in the grain). The label shows it: a gold-toned frame with red lettering and red rules, dated 1962.

Built by Félix Manzanero ("FM")

The tone and workmanship are first class – indeed this very instrument was built by Félix Manzanero, as attested by the "FM" stamp on the inside of the heel (years later, after he had left the workshop, the same initials were used by Fernando Morcuende; for a complete list of Ramírez luthiers from this era, click here). The guitar offers a sound that is on par with the best that the Ramírez workshop has to offer.

Playability and Sound

Despite the way many guitars from this period were set up, this one is very easy to play, with a lovely neck and an easy action. Thick yet clear, the tone has the warm, mysterious and moody character that made the Ramírez name famous.

For more information on Ramírez, be sure to read The Ramírez Family: Masters of the Guitar, or for information on the Ramírez family members, from Amalia Ramírez back to José I, and for some interesting fact-checking on myths and facts about this legendary workshop.

The José Ramírez Workshop of Madrid

Founded in Madrid in 1882 by José Ramírez I, the Ramírez workshop has produced guitars for more than a century and through five generations of the family. José Ramírez III (1922–1995) took over as maestro in 1957 and developed the Ramírez concert guitar we know today – large in body, with a long string length and a cedar or spruce top, with great power, sustain, sweetness and balance across the entire register. He popularized western red cedar as a soundboard wood, and from the 1960s Andrés Segovia played José Ramírez guitars to the end of his days.

Ramírez Craftsmen and the Next Generations

From the 1960s to the 1990s the workshop trained many of the most talented guitarreros of the day, among them Paulino Bernabé and Manuel Contreras. In 1995 the shop moved from Calle Concepción Jerónima 2 to Calle de la Paz 8, and since the death of José Ramírez IV in June 2000 the business has been directed by his sister, Amalia Ramírez, who inspects every guitar during and after construction.

Ramírez Models, Labels and Builders' Stamps

For decades the workshop sold its guitars by class rather than by model name. The "1a" (first class) was the standard concert guitar; the "2a" (second class) was built the same way, and the shop explained its lower price tag by materials that might have minor aesthetic blemishes, or by its having been built by an apprentice rather than a foreman. Flamenco guitars add an "F" – "1aF" and "2aF". Until 1967 the labels carried only the year; from 1967 they were signed by José Ramírez III and gave the guitar's number and class, and from 1973 the 2a had a grey label of its own, with a red border and "R" numbers. Until 1971, many Ramírez guitars were stamped inside with the initials of the craftsman who built them – AM for Antonio Martínez, MT for Mariano Tezanos, PB for Paulino Bernabé and many more (see our list of Ramírez workshop luthiers). Later decades brought new models: the "Centenario", which roughly marked the workshop's hundredth anniversary; the "Da Cámara"; the shorter-scale C86 of 1986; and, under José Ramírez IV, the "Tradicional" and the "Especial".