2023 German Vázquez Rubio "Concert 635" No. 40923 SP/MP

This 2023 German Vázquez Rubio “Concert 635” No. 40923 is a classical guitar with a spruce top and maple back and sides, made in Los Angeles, California – snakewood binding, padauk headplate and colorful accents.

A Shorter-Scale Concert Guitar

A beautiful concert instrument, it is full of unique and striking design elements.

Inlays, Woods and Finish

Snakewood frames the quarter-sawn spruce, flamed maple back and sides and flamed maple neck in the binding, heel cap and back center strip. The headstock is layered in three pieces of maple and two of palo escrito, with padauk for the back headplate, and “opens” elegantly into the neck when viewed from behind. A subtle use of blue, yellow and red runs through the rosette, tie block, top purfling, back center seam and head veneer inlay. It is fitted with custom gold EVO frets and Schaller GrandTune frictionless machines. German applies the shellac finish with a care and perfection found in very few makers.

Playability, Sound and Condition

Deep, bouncy basses and very clear, full trebles give it a balanced voice. The shorter 635mm scale and a very low action make it a dream to play. There is also a 20th fret, for repertoire that needs a high C natural. In short: beautiful sound and intricate work. The 2023 label is numbered 40923 and signed by German, with “635” written beside it.

In the Video Above

David Duong plays Agustín Barrios Mangoré’s “Mazurka Appassionata” on a 2023 G.V. Rubio.

German Vázquez Rubio: Early Years in Paracho, Mexico

German Vázquez Rubio (also known as G.V. Rubio) has been making guitars since 1968 – over fifty years – and has developed his own signature sound that guitarists have come to love. He was born in 1952 in Paracho, Mexico, where there is an abundance of fine luthiers (with few exceptions, all of the finest guitars in Mexico come from Paracho). German’s first formal training began at eleven years old, when he left school to help support his seven siblings and went to work in the workshop of his uncle, Manuel Rubio. There, even at his young age, he made a conscious effort to make guitar building his life’s work.

“Desde 1968”

In 1968, at the age of sixteen, he made his first concert-level guitar (hence his label reads “Desde 1968”). German has since been able to learn from many different master builders such as Félix Manzanero, José Romanillos and Thomas Humphrey. He now resides in Los Angeles, California, where he builds a variety of both classical and flamenco models. He is also the maker of the real-life guitar from the Disney/Pixar film Coco – you can read more in our article on German Vázquez Rubio and the real Coco guitar.

First Prize in Mexico

In 2000, German won First Place at the Concurso Nacional de Constructores y Ejecutantes de Guitarras, Mexico’s national guitar-making competition.