2015 Francisco Barba SP/CY

A 2015 flamenco blanca by Francisco Barba, with a spruce top and cypress back and sides, made in Seville – with the rosette that copies the design of his label, and almost no wear.

A Rosette Drawn from the Barba Label

What one first notices about this blanca is how visually stunning it is. Instead of the usual mosaic in its center, the rosette has rosewood inlays in the same shape as the design that has framed Barba's label for many years. The ends of the bridge are carved in a matching style, which complements the bold, immediately recognizable headstock.

Sound and Playability

The tone is fat and balanced, with a lot of punch, volume and flamenco edge – a very powerful, lively Andalusian flamenco guitar. The sleek neck and low flamenco action make it a breeze to play, with just the right amount of "sizzle".

Condition

Condition is excellent – almost no wear to be found, and no damage or repairs of any kind. A top concert instrument for the stage or the studio.

Read more: Orfeo Magazine No. 25 – Flamenco: Origins of the Flamenco Guitar (with a feature on Francisco Barba and his sons)

Francisco Barba: Master Flamenco Guitar Maker of Seville

Francisco Barba (b. 1939) is the best-known guitar maker in Seville and one of the most respected builders of flamenco guitars in all of Spain, of the same generation as Manuel Reyes and Gerundino Fernández. A Sevillian through and through, he started woodworking at fourteen in his father's carpentry shop and built his first guitar at eighteen, teaching himself as he went. With no teacher and none of the special tools of the trade, he worked out his own methods from scratch – which is why a Barba is built like no other guitar – and he has spent his whole working life in his workshop on Calle Arroyo, in the heart of Seville.

Francisco Barba and His Sons: Guitars Made by Six Hands

For more than thirty years Francisco has built his guitars together with his sons, Francisco (Paco) and Juan Antonio Barba. The three share every stage of the work rather than specializing, choose their woods with the same ear and voice each guitar together at the end – so although the label reads "Francisco Barba", every guitar from the shop is the work of all three. Barba guitars have been the instruments of many of Andalucía's finest flamenco players, among them Rafael Riqueni, Manolo Franco, Niño de Pura, Pedro Peña, Manuel Molina and Quique Paredes, and the family was featured in Orfeo Magazine No. 25 in 2025.