1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" SP/CSAR

Year	1994
Top	Spruce
Back & Sides	CSA Rosewood
Scale Length	650 mm
Nut width	52 mm
Finish	French Polish
Country	USA
Luthier	Thomas Humphrey

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The elevated fingerboard and soundboard of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The back and sides of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The headstock and front of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The soundboard and side of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The bridge and saddle of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The front of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The side of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The back of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The rosette of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The headstock of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

The label of a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar made with spruce and CSA rosewood

1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" SP/CSAR

George Crumb's "Toccata" performed by Robert Wang on a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium"

Carlo Domeniconi's "Koyunbaba: I. Moderato" by Adam Kossler on a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium"

Piazzolla's "Primavera Porteña" played by Mateusz Kowalski on a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium"

Jason Nett's "Reflection" played by Anna Pietrzak on a 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium"

Description

This 1994 Thomas Humphrey "Millennium" classical guitar pairs a spruce top with a lush set of CSA rosewood, and was built in New York with Humphrey's elevated fingerboard – crack-free and ready for concertizing.

Humphrey's Revolutionary Millennium Design

The "Millennium" was Humphrey's revolutionary re-thinking of the classical guitar: new soundboard bracing for increased transmission of tone, and – most famously – an elevated fingerboard for playability, an idea many makers have taken up since he popularized it. Concert artists such as Sharon Isbin, the Assads, Eliot Fisk, Ben Verdery and many others have played these guitars.

Sound and Materials

In sound, this 1994 Millennium is all Humphrey: powerful, "hollow" and very focused, with the kind of projection that audience and player alike welcome on the concert stage.

Materials are striking – especially the lush set of CSA rosewood used for the back and sides.

Condition

Apart from some minor playing wear in the finish, the guitar is in excellent condition with no cracks or damage. It's in great shape, plays easily and is ready for concertizing! It includes a custom-fitted Karura case.

Background

Thomas Humphrey (1948–2008): Classical Guitar Maker in New York

Thomas Humphrey was born in 1948 in Minnesota. Around 1970 he moved to New York City, where he apprenticed with the guitar maker Michael Gurian, and for many years he built his guitars in an apartment workshop on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Tom died in Gardiner, New York, in April 2008.

The Millennium: A Revolution in Classical Guitar Design

In the mid-1980s Tom introduced the design that made his name: the Millennium. With its raised fingerboard and newly conceived soundboard bracing, it changed the way many players – and makers – thought about the classical guitar, and the elevated fingerboard has since been taken up by luthiers all over the world. His earlier, traditional instruments are now known as "pre-Millennium" Humphreys. Humphrey guitars have been the concert instruments of many leading guitarists, among them David Starobin, Sharon Isbin, the Assad brothers and Eliot Fisk.