1985 David Rubio SP/CSAR (ex Mark Ashford, Graham Wade)

A 1985 classical guitar by David Rubio, with a bearclaw spruce top and CSA rosewood back and sides, made in Cambridge – previously owned by the guitarist and author Graham Wade and by Mark Ashford, who recorded three albums on it.

In the video above, Alexander Milovanov plays Federico Moretti's Gran Sonata, Op. 11, on this guitar.

Bearclaw Spruce and a Floral Rosette

This guitar shows Rubio's superior craftsmanship, with gorgeous materials – a stunning set of CSA rosewood and a spruce top covered in bearclaw – a floral rosette, for which he was well known, and Rodgers tuners. The tone is thick and rich with incredible sustain up high, and the volume is excellent without being boomy.

Ex Graham Wade and Mark Ashford

English guitarist Mark Ashford bought this guitar from the guitarist and well-known author Graham Wade. Mark recorded three albums with it – solo works on his "Sonata" CD, the Concierto de Aranjuez with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the first Vida Quartet CD, "Love the Magician" – made many BBC broadcasts on it, and placed in competitions with it, including 2nd prize at the GFA and 3rd at Alessandria.

Condition

Despite all that professional playing, condition is excellent and all original, with no repairs – only some finish touch-up on the back of the neck (reportedly by Paul Fischer), typical minor playing wear and a couple of dings behind the bridge. A Rubio that has it all: provenance, condition, beauty of sound, materials and craftsmanship.

David Rubio: From Flamenco Guitarist to Master Instrument Maker

David Rubio (1934–2000) is arguably the most important guitar maker to emerge from England, and the founding father of the English school. Born David Spink and raised in London, he studied medicine at Trinity College Dublin, then left for Spain, where he earned his living as a flamenco guitarist accompanying singers and dancers – and picked up the nickname "Rubio" for his red beard. A touring flamenco company brought him to New York, where, from what he had seen in the guitar shops of Spain, he taught himself to build guitars under the name "Jose" Rubio. Within a few years Julian Bream was playing his instruments.

Guitars, Lutes, Harpsichords and Violins

Rubio returned to England in 1967 and, from workshops near Oxford and, from 1979, in Cambridge, built a remarkably wide range of instruments: guitars and lutes, harpsichords, baroque and modern violins, violas and cellos. In the late 1960s and 1970s he trained three young makers in his methods – Kazuo Sato, Edward B. Jones and Paul Fischer – who built guitars of his design marked with their initials. Late in his life he developed a radical 8-string guitar, the "Brahms" model, with Paul Galbraith. He died in Cambridge on October 21, 2000, leaving more than a thousand instruments.