1974 Jose Ramirez "1a 8-String" CD/CSAR

This guitar was built in the famous Jose Ramirez III workshop, which for over half a century has produced instruments performed on by countless professionals from Sting to Segovia, Chet Atkins to Sabicas and Lee Ritenour to Christopher Parkening.

Although 8-stringed instruments like this appear rarely on the market, they do have a steady tradition of top players who have played them over the years including Brazilian guitarists Egberto Gismonti and Raphael Rabello, Italian guitarist Livio Gianola, and the great pedagogue José Tomás from Spain. Perhaps the best-known player is Paul Galbraith, who plays a uniquely designed 8-string guitar by David Rubio known as his "Brahms" model. These guitars can be tuned a variety of ways - we currently have two lower bass strings which many players will find helps them with Renaissance and Baroque lute music. For this repertoire, 6-string players are required to transpose bass notes up or down an octave in places that break the original musical flow intended by the composer. The 8-string guitar resolves many such inconveniences, and also makes it possible to perform arrangements of larger pieces originally written for the piano or larger ensembles like chamber music or orchestral works. And to this end, some players will add one lower bass string and one higher-treble. Very versatile instrument in this regard for arrangements of larger pieces that demand a larger range of notes.

This guitar has that essential warm, mysterious and moody quality that made Ramirez famous by repeated performances and recordings by countless players over many many decades. Condition is excellent for its age - apart from two well-repaired cracks in the back (cleated so very stable), it has only the slightest amount of playing wear with only a few minor dings and scratches. Overall, an excellent example of a fine 8-string Ramirez for either collector or concert player.

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