2014 Ethan Deutsch "Negra" SP/HR

A 2014 flamenco negra by Ethan Deutsch with a spruce top and Honduran rosewood back and sides, heard at GSI in two original pieces by Ben Woods.

In the videos above, Ben Woods plays two of his own compositions, "Heavy Mellow" and "Tarantula", on this guitar.

Traditional Andalusian Sound from Seattle

This is a very traditional flamenco: lightweight like the guitars made in Andalucía in the mid-twentieth century, with a strong, quick snap to the attack of each note, much like Ethan's own playing background would suggest. A lyrical sound for a flamenco – but it becomes aggressive quickly if the player pushes.

Ease of Play and Pegs

Extremely easy to play for the left hand, with a sleek, easy contour to the neck – and ultra-responsive to the touch, so very easy on the right hand as well. It comes with mechanical friction pegs: the look and feel of old-school wooden pegs, but "machined" inside, which should reassure anyone nervous about the traditional kind. If you're a serious flamenco player after a fantastic traditional concert guitar, we can recommend this one highly.

Ethan Deutsch: Flamenco and Classical Guitar Maker in Seattle

Ethan Deutsch builds flamenco and classical guitars in Seattle, Washington, and has done so full-time since 1997. Born in 1955, he took up the flamenco guitar as a teenager in the Boston area – and the path from there to the workbench is one of the more fascinating stories among the makers we know.

Morón de la Frontera and Diego del Gastor

In 1970, at fifteen, he went to Spain for a year and studied with the legendary Gypsy guitarist Diego del Gastor in Morón de la Frontera, near Sevilla, absorbing the music mostly by listening and watching. He came home in 1971 with a Manuel Contreras flamenco guitar, discovered Irving Sloane's book Classic Guitar Construction and began building – learning mostly on his own.

Chemist, Flamenco Guitarist, Furniture Maker

With little guidance available for an aspiring luthier, Ethan went to college instead: a chemistry degree at Antioch College, then a Ph.D. in chemistry at Princeton and five years as a research chemist. All the while he performed flamenco professionally under the stage name "Mario Amaya" and taught himself fine woodworking. In 1989 he opened a one-man furniture and cabinet shop in Chicago, moved it to Seattle in 1991, and in 1997 came full circle and returned to guitar making.

Traditional Guitars in the Andalusian Manner

Ethan builds in the old Spanish tradition, mostly flamenco blancas of cypress and spruce, along with negras and a few classical guitars. Over the years he has fitted many of his flamencos with mechanical "machined" pegs from different makers, which keep the look of wooden friction pegs. Flamenco players such as Gerardo Núñez, Jason McGuire and Kai Narezo have all played his guitars.