1992 Ober/Blöchinger SP/CSAR

This 1992 Ober/Blöchinger classical guitar, of spruce and CSA rosewood, was made in Munich and signed on the label by both makers, Fritz Ober and Edmund Blöchinger.

A Guitar from the Ober/Blöchinger Workshop

It was built in what was then the shared Munich workshop of Edmund Blöchinger and Fritz Ober, two makers who of course went on to illustrious careers as independent guitar makers. The style is traditional, drawing largely on Torres and Hauser I.

Sound and Materials

Its sound has an "old-world" character – loose, open and warm, and immensely charming – yet it is very bold and clear at the same time. The materials are gorgeous: dramatic grain and color in the CSA rosewood back, and a fine piece of aged spruce for the soundboard, so it is as beautiful to look at as it is to hear.

Condition

Condition is excellent, with one expertly repaired crack in the back, done by Pepe Romero Jr. This is otherwise a fantastic, "classic" guitar in every way.

Orfeo article on Hauser III, Blöchinger and Ober  |  Orfeo Magazine No. 4 on our blog

Fritz Ober and Edmund Blöchinger

Ober/Blöchinger guitars were built in Munich in the early 1990s by Fritz Ober (1955–2020) and Edmund Blöchinger (b. 1958), in the workshop the two Bavarian makers shared at the time. Both had trained with Helmut Buchsteiner – Fritz before opening his own Munich workshop, and Edmund from 1982, after first apprenticing as a cabinetmaker. Their labels carry both names, "Fritz Ober – Edmund Blöchinger – München", with the month and year.

Two Independent Careers

Both makers went on to illustrious careers of their own in the Torres and Hauser I tradition. Fritz built in Munich until his death in 2020, and GSI was his exclusive US dealer during his lifetime. Edmund works alone in Dorfen, near Munich, building for the Romero family and many young professionals, and GSI is the only dealer of his guitars in the world. Both were featured, with Hermann Hauser III, in Orfeo Magazine No. 4.