2021 Mijail Kharash SP/AR

A 2021 classical guitar by Mijail Kharash, with a spruce top and dramatic African rosewood back, sides and head veneer – possibly the lightest guitar he made for us.

In the video above, Minh Nguyen plays Debussy's "La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin" on this guitar.

An Extremely Light Build

Its very light build may explain why the guitar sounded warm, loose and lush even when brand new, while the spruce top gives it excellent focus and balance.

Concert and Recording

Responsive, with a quick attack and plenty of power and refinement, it is a fine choice for concert and recording. The setup is superb, the detailing impeccable, and the label an engraved wooden plaque of the Alhambra.

Photos of this guitar taken during construction

Mijail Kharash: From Leningrad to Granada

Mijail Kharash was born in Leningrad in 1981 and began on the violin before falling in love with the classical guitar. After the collapse of the USSR his family moved to Israel, where he did military service and worked as a builder, cook, cabinetmaker and fisherman. In 2007 he came to Spain and learned from Carmelo González in Ronda; from 2009 he built guitars in Granada, living for six years in a cave facing the Sacromonte Abbey. He has since retired and still lives in Granada.

A Traditional Granada Maker

Advised by Félix Moya Ibarra, John Ray and Jose Vigil, he worked entirely in the traditional manner, with hand tools, rosettes of his own and French polish applied with a muñequilla, and engraved his labels on wooden plaques showing the Alhambra. In August 2019 he won second prize in the flamenco category of the 3rd Antonio Marín Montero Guitar Making Competition in Granada.