2018 Rafael Moreno Rodríguez SP/CSAR

This 2018 Rafael Moreno Rodríguez is a spruce and CSA rosewood classical guitar from Granada, Spain, set off with ebony details and black mechanical pegs.

Ebony Accents and the Pomegranate Head

This guitar has a beautiful back with a narrow piece of ebony inserted between two pieces of stunning and aged CSA rosewood. Also in ebony are the bindings, foot inlay and head veneer (the headstock is shaped after the pomegranate fruit – a tribute to the city of Granada, the Spanish word for "pomegranate"), which frame the guitar beautifully – the design and quality of materials make this an absolutely stunning guitar in appearance. Although a classical guitar, it's also fitted with mechanical "pegs" (that look old-school but tune easily like normal machines) in black that also give the guitar a very cool look.

The Reversed Fan System

The bracing is Rafa's lighter 6-strut design with the fans "reversed," opening wider toward the soundhole rather than radiating from the foot – the same idea Pepe Romero Jr. has followed exclusively since 2009 (with 7 fans) after he came to own a rare 1970 Miguel Rodríguez braced this way. To our ears, it helps the top feel looser and more responsive while giving each note more clarity and focus.

Sound

Volume is also excellent without being boomy, and a thick, dark sound is achieved in all registers – most remarkably in the trebles. It features a 20th fret for the high C natural required in some of the guitar repertoire. This is an exceptional concert guitar and we recommend it highly both for its concert-worthy sound and refined, unique workmanship and aesthetics.

Read more: Orfeo Magazine No. 8 – The Granada School

Rafael Moreno Rodríguez: Classical and Flamenco Guitar Maker of Granada

Rafael Moreno Rodríguez (b. 1954) – "Rafa" to everyone in Granada – began making guitars at the early age of 12 under the watchful eyes of Manuel López Bellido and Antonio Marín Montero, and in those early years he also studied with Eduardo Ferrer, often called the "teacher of teachers" of the Granada school. Although unrelated to Miguel Rodríguez of Córdoba, he counts Rodríguez's guitars among his strongest influences, along with those of Santos Hernández and Benito Ferrer. After his apprenticeship he opened his own shop on the famous Cuesta de Gomérez below the Alhambra, where he stayed until 2000; since then he has worked at Jesús y María 10.

One Level of Guitar, Built Entirely by Hand

Rafa works alone and refuses to hurry. He builds every guitar from scratch – down to the bone nut and saddle, carved by hand – mostly from CSA rosewood, spruce and cedar that he bought, cut and cured himself, and he makes only one level of instrument. His classical and flamenco guitars have been played by Pepe and Celin Romero, Vicente Coves, Gerardo Núñez, Juan and Pepe Habichuela and the late flamenco singer Enrique Morente, among many others.