2008 German Vázquez Rubio "Hauser" No. 120708 SP/IN

This 2008 German Vázquez Rubio “Hauser” No. 120708 is a classical guitar with a spruce top and Indian rosewood back and sides, made in Los Angeles, California; Bartosz Paprot plays Tansman in the video above.

German’s “Hauser” Model

Its structural details are inspired by the iconic 1937 Hauser I, the guitar Andrés Segovia played in concert and on record for several decades and which is now on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

Perhaps his best-known model, it won German First Place in the Concurso Nacional de Constructores y Ejecutantes de Guitarras in 2000, and John Holmquist and Jason Vieaux have recorded it on five Naxos albums between them.

Materials, Sound and Condition

The sound quality, craftsmanship and playability of this guitar easily live up to that reputation. The materials are first class, including a gorgeous set of Indian rosewood for the back that almost looks like CSA rosewood. It records and concertizes beautifully – bold, clear and balanced. The top is French polished, and the back and sides are lacquered for better long-term durability. The condition is excellent, with only some aesthetic blemishes in the finish from prior use. No. 120708 is written on the label, which is dated 2008 and signed by German.

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.