1969 Manuel Velázquez "Flamenco Blanca" SP/CY

This 1969 Manuel Velázquez is a spruce and cypress flamenco blanca – a very rare flamenco model from a maker famous for his Hauser-style classical guitars.

A Rare Velázquez Flamenco

Although Velázquez is known for the “Teutonic” sound of his classical guitars, this instrument is as flamenco as it gets: a lightweight build, a punchy, immediate attack and a raspy, very flamenco voice – while keeping his trademark clarity, balance and natural, woody tone. A bearclaw spruce top, another Velázquez signature, carries an old-school maple tap plate. As on the 1968, the words “New York” on the label are blacked out.

Setup and Condition

A re-fret by the Germán Vázquez Rubio workshop gives it a comfortable, low flamenco action with just the right amount of sizzle in rasgueados and picados. The condition is excellent – no cracks or repairs, only very minor wear in the finish.

Manuel Velázquez: An American Master in the Spanish Tradition

Manuel Velázquez (1917–2014) was born in Puerto Rico and made his name in New York, where his workshop at 420 Third Avenue became a meeting place for leading guitarists. He was perhaps the greatest American luthier to build in the European tradition, and his guitars yield nothing in craftsmanship or sound to those of his Spanish and German contemporaries. Over a career of nearly eight decades – in New York, Puerto Rico, Virginia and Florida – his instruments were played by Andrés Segovia, Julian Bream, Pepe Romero, Rey de la Torre and Sabicas, and by musicians far beyond the classical world, from Earl Klugh to Paul Simon and Keith Richards.

The Velázquez Sound

Velázquez guitars are most often compared to those of Hermann Hauser I and Hermann Hauser II – not only in appearance but in the style of sound: great clarity and separation between voices, perfect balance, sparkling trebles over steady basses and a natural, beautiful “woody” quality of tone. Most of his guitars follow this compact, Hauser-like model; in the 1970s and early 1980s he also built a larger, more rounded body with a deeper box and an even bigger sound. His son Alfredo Velázquez, who learned the craft in his father’s workshop, continues the tradition.

Books on Manuel Velázquez

A 1978 Velázquez – a guitar that later passed through our hands – is reproduced in Alberto Martínez’s book “34 Classical Guitars in Life Size”, and a 1955 Velázquez from the Russell Cleveland collection appears in “The Classical Guitar – A Complete History”:

34 Classical Guitars in Life Size

The Classical Guitar – A Complete History