1974 José Ramírez "1a" No. 7896 CD/CSAR

This 1974 José Ramírez "1a" No. 7896 is a classical guitar with a cedar top and CSA rosewood back and sides with a wild set of rosewood; 15-year-old Shaunt Zeytountzian plays Azpiazu's "El Vito" on it in the video above.

From the José Ramírez III Workshop

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. The early 1970s were still part of what many call the workshop's golden era – the Ramírez concert guitar was in demand all over the world, several luthiers who would later make their own names were at the benches, and elite players came to the shop in droves.

The Classic Ramírez Sound

It plays very easily, with a lovely neck and easy action – not always the case with guitars of this period, given the way many of them were set up. The sound is the classic one: thick yet clear, full of that warm, mysterious and moody quality for which Ramírez became famous. It features first-rate materials, including a wild set of CSA rosewood on the back and sides.

Label and Condition

The label is signed by José Ramírez III, numbered 7896 and dated 1974. It is in great condition for its age – no cracks or repairs anywhere on the instrument, although it does have checking throughout the finish, which is superficial only. An excellent example of a fine Ramírez for either collector or concert player.

More reading on our blog: The Ramírez Family: Masters of the Guitar, The José Ramírez Dynasty (from Amalia back to José I) and some interesting fact-checking in José Ramírez: myths and facts.

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".