2009 Mariano Tezanos "Maestro" SP/CSAR

This 2009 Mariano Tezanos "Maestro" is a spruce and CSA rosewood classical guitar built in Madrid, Spain, by a former craftsman of the José Ramírez III workshop (label No. 72).

The "Maestro": Mariano Tezanos' Signature Model

Built in Mariano's own Madrid workshop, this is the "Maestro" – the only Tezanos model to come our way. The back and sides are especially beautiful, cut from lush, high-quality CSA rosewood with deep grain patterning, a treat for anyone who loves this wood.

Sound, Value and a Small Repair

Its tone is the recognizably big Madrid style, and weighing sound, materials, playability and workmanship together, this guitar was extremely hard to beat in its price range. Condition is excellent: a few hairline cracks had started to develop in the sides (upper bout), so Germán Vázquez Rubio added some small braces to secure them and touched up the finish, making them invisible. Otherwise there are only some minor signs of playing wear in the finish.

Three Generations of Tezanos Guitars in Madrid

The Tezanos name in Spanish guitar making goes back to the first Mariano Tezanos, a respected maker of the Madrid school in the 1950s who built guitars for well-known concert players in a small workshop in his home. His son, Mariano Tezanos Castro, was born in Madrid in 1949. After finishing his studies in 1963 he began working with José Ramírez III, first as an apprentice, and in 1984 he started building his own instruments inside the Ramírez workshop, signed "MTC No. 10".

Tezanos-Pérez and the "Maestro" Model

In 1991 Mariano joined forces with another Ramírez veteran, Teodoro Pérez, and the two built guitars together under the name "Tezanos-Pérez". In April 2005 they parted ways on friendly terms and each set up an independent shop. Working under his own name at Calle Vicente Camarón 19 in Madrid, Mariano built his "Maestro" model in the big, powerful Madrid tradition he learned at Ramírez.

Sergio Tezanos: The Third Generation

Sergio Tezanos, Mariano's nephew and the grandson of the first Mariano, has worked alongside his uncle since 1995. He went on to build guitars under his own label at the same Vicente Camarón address, developing his own models, which have been exported to countries including Japan and the United States.