2025 Gabriele Lodi "Torres" SP/CSAR

This 2025 Gabriele Lodi "Torres" is a classical guitar with a spruce top and CSA rosewood back and sides, built in Carpi, Italy, as No. 140 of his "Expo Series" for Roma Expo Guitars (REG) 2025 – and although pre-owned, it is in like-new condition.

An Expo Series Torres for Roma Expo Guitars 2025

This instrument is part of Gabriele's "Expo Series" and was featured at Roma Expo Guitars (REG) 2025 – the label carries the REG 2025 Limited Edition seal. It is also his latest tribute to the great Antonio de Torres. Gabriele's restoration work on original Torres guitars has given him insights that lead him to explore his own innovative ideas, taking what he sees as his own steps to carry the Torres tradition into the modern day. Perhaps it is best to let Gabriele speak in his own words about his mission in general, and about this guitar (No. 140) in particular:

In Gabriele Lodi's Words

"As many people know, I am extremely tied to tradition. However, it is precisely through the in-depth study of Spanish construction and design, to understand what Maestro Torres's objectives were, that I find the inspiration to consciously rethink my work and build a guitar that also fulfills the demands of today's players. Polyphonic distinction and deep body resonance are the main characteristics I wish to achieve, through a thin and elastic soundboard, as the Torres design teaches us. From there I seek a good balance with modern playability, quick response, sustain and dynamic range. The Spanish tradition teaches us that the basic way of bracing the soundboard is the "ABANICO" (fan). In this spirit, I have built into the lower bout of the soundboard a dense structure of braces, positioned primarily to support the movement of the bridge but also to control and manage every portion of the soundboard, to maximize its responsiveness to modern nylon strings under the fingers – which behave very differently from gut strings.

This instrument is built on dimensions taken from two original Torres guitars from 1888, SE 113 and SE 114. The decorative elements of the rosette and purfling are inspired by Torres's early period, featuring a distinctly colored herringbone pattern of red, green and hazelnut to contrast with the black and white decorations in the rosette mosaic and purflings. I have selected a set of tuning machines with a beautifully engraved design to match the fine central Moorish mosaic of the rosette.

With this design update to the "My Torres Interpretation" model, I continue my mission to promote a guitar that moves away from the limited "boxy" sound found in many guitars and instead aims to evoke the imagination, achieving the orchestral and vocal polyphony that, as a solo instrument, only the Spanish guitar can achieve! A personal thank-you to David Collett for his support and for spreading the value of tradition!"
– Gabriele Lodi

Like-New Condition

This is an exquisitely built instrument with no detail overlooked, and although "used", it appears never to have been touched – it is in pristine, brand-new condition. More than a century after his death, Torres would surely be astonished – and proud – to see his legacy carried forward by makers like Gabriele, and by this instrument in particular. Our congratulations to Gabriele on what can only be considered nothing short of yet another masterpiece!

Orfeo Magazine #13 – Lodi, Bottelli, Coriani, Peruffo

A Family of Guitar Makers

Italian luthier Gabriele Lodi (born 1976) comes from a family of classical guitar makers. His father was a luthier and player, and Gabriele happily spent most of his childhood in his father's workshop in Carpi, near Modena. From the age of 13 he was helping out at the bench, and by 20 he had made guitar making his profession. He still works in that same family workshop today.

From Historical Guitars to the Spanish School

The historical instruments that came through the shop for repair sparked a lasting fascination with old guitars, and because of it many of his own guitars are strongly rooted in traditional design and aesthetic. After studying the Romantic guitars of the 19th century, he turned to the Spanish school from Torres on, traveling regularly to Buenos Aires from 2004 to study great Spanish guitars. Besides his Torres models, he builds guitars inspired by the Madrid school – Manuel Ramírez, Santos Hernández and Domingo Esteso – and by the Barcelona school of Enrique García.

Carrying the Torres Tradition Forward

In the last many years, the great Antonio de Torres has become a primary driving force in Gabriele's work as a restorer, historian and, of course, as a builder. He has restored several important original Torres instruments, and along the way captured insights from the hand of Torres that have led him to explore his own ideas to carry the Torres tradition forward into the modern day. He is also a co-author of the book Antonio de Torres – Lo Stradivari della chitarra moderna. His Torres guitars carry the words "My Torres Interpretation" on the label: they are never literal copies, but combine his favorite elements of various Torres instruments with details that answer the needs of today's players.

Gabriele Lodi and GSI

Gabriele has used his own label (instead of the family label) since 2013, and in 2021 his guitar No. 100 launched his "Expo Series" of guitars made for Roma Expo Guitars (REG). His workshop has become a meeting place for players and collectors, and GSI is his only dealer in the United States.