1947 Robert Bouchet No. 2 SP/FW

This 1947 Robert Bouchet is a spruce and fruitwood classical guitar from Paris – No. 2, the first guitar Bouchet ever sold, originally owned by Lucien Corbani.

In the videos above, a short documentary tells the story of Bouchet guitar #2, Qingchuan Li plays Llobet's arrangement of "Cançó del Lladre", Marcin Dylla plays Tansman's "Valse Romantique", and Roland Dyens plays Piazzolla's "Oblivion", Django Reinhardt's "Nuages" and Sor's "Le Calme" on this guitar.

The Guitar "That Launched the French School"

Here we have an extremely rare, unique, historically important and incredible-sounding instrument by Robert Bouchet, one of the twentieth century's most revered builders. It could be argued that this very instrument is the foundational guitar "that launched the French school", as it was the first guitar that Bouchet sold publicly (Bouchet's first guitar was built for himself, see here). As we have said many times, Bouchet is renowned for possessing all of the skills of a master luthier from his earliest work – confirmed historically by the immediate and enthusiastic reception of his guitars in the music community.

Lucien Corbani and a Young Daniel Friederich

This particular guitar was originally owned by Lucien Corbani, a prominent aficionado in the Parisian guitar scene (and interestingly, the owner of a string manufacturing company). We have photos (see above) of a gathering in 1954-1955 with (left to right): Joseph Reinhardt (guitarist, Django Reinhardt's brother), Lucien Corbani (owner of this 1947 Bouchet), Gilbert Imbar (manager of the Paris Guitar Academy) and a young (22 or 23 years old) Daniel Friederich, who is playing this very Bouchet #2. Very revealing just how quickly Bouchet's guitars were circulating (and his reputation already very secure) at the highest levels of the aficionado community right from the start.

Sound

And the reason is obvious – it only takes a few notes to be played on this instrument to hear just how majestic it sounds. It has a velvety, textured quality throughout all registers producing lyrical trebles, rich basses and great separation between voices. It has it all.

Robert Bouchet: From Painter to Guitar Maker

Robert Bouchet (1898–1986) was a Paris painter who became one of the most influential guitar makers of the twentieth century and the founding father of what is called today the "French school of guitar making". He took up the guitar in 1932 and became a friend of Julián Gómez Ramírez, a Spanish maker in Paris trained in the José Ramírez I workshop in Madrid, whose workshop he often visited. When he lost the guitar Gómez Ramírez had made for him, he decided to build one himself – in 1946, at the age of 48. In all he made only 154 instruments.

Founder of the French School

Bouchet's reputation quickly attracted some of the greatest players to his workshop: Ida Presti and Alexandre Lagoya, Emilio Pujol, Oscar Ghiglia, Turíbio Santos, Manuel López Ramos and Julian Bream. His innovations, including the famous "barre d'âme" in the soundboard bracing, left a lasting mark on guitar making, and the guitars of Daniel Friederich and many later French makers grew from his school. Bouchets are in the top tier of collectible classical guitars, along with Antonio de Torres and Hermann Hauser I.

Books on Robert Bouchet

Alberto Martínez's bilingual book is the most complete look at Bouchet's life and work, and a 1959 Bouchet is among the guitars shown in Orfeo's "34 Classical Guitars in Life Size":

Robert Bouchet 1898-1986: Peintre & Luthier

Orfeo – 34 Classical Guitars in Life Size