1981 José Ramírez "1a" No. 15038 CD/IN

This 1981 José Ramírez "1a" No. 15038 is a classical guitar with a cedar top and Indian rosewood back and sides, with no cracks or repairs; Taro Wayama plays his "Etude 4 – Kitten's Play" on it in the video above.

A 1981 Ramírez Concert Guitar

Over more than half a century the famous Ramírez workshop of José III built guitars for countless professionals – everyone from Segovia to Sting, Sabicas to Chet Atkins and Christopher Parkening to Lee Ritenour. This was still a big, exciting era for the workshop, often called its golden era: the Ramírez concert guitar had conquered the world's stages, and the top players kept coming to Concepción Jerónima in droves.

The Classic Ramírez Sound

Playability is very easy, with a lovely neck and easy action, which is not a given with guitars of this era and the way they were often set up. Thick yet clear, the tone has the warm, mysterious and moody character that made the Ramírez name famous. It features first-rate materials and has the classic look, feel and sound of a Ramírez.

The Label and Condition

No. 15038 is written on the label, which is dated 1981 and signed by José Ramírez III. It's in excellent condition, with no cracks or repairs, only some minor cosmetic wear in the finish. Overall a great example of a fine Ramírez for either collector or concert player.

More reading on our blog: The Ramírez Family: Masters of the Guitar, The José Ramírez Dynasty (from Amalia back to José I) and some interesting fact-checking in José Ramírez: myths and facts.

The José Ramírez Workshop of Madrid

Founded in Madrid in 1882 by José Ramírez I, the Ramírez workshop has produced guitars for more than a century and through five generations of the family. José Ramírez III (1922–1995) took over as maestro in 1957 and developed the Ramírez concert guitar we know today – large in body, with a long string length and a cedar or spruce top, with great power, sustain, sweetness and balance across the entire register. He popularized western red cedar as a soundboard wood, and from the 1960s Andrés Segovia played José Ramírez guitars to the end of his days.

Ramírez Craftsmen and the Next Generations

From the 1960s to the 1990s the workshop trained many of the most talented guitarreros of the day, among them Paulino Bernabé and Manuel Contreras. In 1995 the shop moved from Calle Concepción Jerónima 2 to Calle de la Paz 8, and since the death of José Ramírez IV in June 2000 the business has been directed by his sister, Amalia Ramírez, who inspects every guitar during and after construction.

Ramírez Models, Labels and Builders' Stamps

For decades the workshop sold its guitars by class rather than by model name. The "1a" (first class) was the standard concert guitar; the "2a" (second class) was built the same way, and the shop explained its lower price tag by materials that might have minor aesthetic blemishes, or by its having been built by an apprentice rather than a foreman. Flamenco guitars add an "F" – "1aF" and "2aF". Until 1967 the labels carried only the year; from 1967 they were signed by José Ramírez III and gave the guitar's number and class, and from 1973 the 2a had a grey label of its own, with a red border and "R" numbers. Until 1971, many Ramírez guitars were stamped inside with the initials of the craftsman who built them – AM for Antonio Martínez, MT for Mariano Tezanos, PB for Paulino Bernabé and many more (see our list of Ramírez workshop luthiers). Later decades brought new models: the "Centenario", which roughly marked the workshop's hundredth anniversary; the "Da Cámara"; the shorter-scale C86 of 1986; and, under José Ramírez IV, the "Tradicional" and the "Especial".