2018 Yulong Guo "Granada" SP/CSAR

A 2018 "Granada" classical guitar by Yulong Guo, with a spruce top and CSA rosewood back and sides – a close copy of the guitar that won him second prize in Granada that year, and our first "Granada" from him.

In the video above, Pardy Minassian plays Roland Dyens' "Songe Capricorne" on this guitar.

A Copy of the Prize-Winning Guitar

Yulong built the "Granada" for the 2nd Antonio Marín Montero competition in Granada, where it won second prize. The prize guitar itself was sold to someone else, so he built this close copy for us. The rosette has a Romanillos-inspired motif of black Moorish columns backed by abalone, the head veneer and binding are snakewood, and a strip of maple runs down the center of the back, tapering toward the heel between book-matched halves of CSA rosewood.

Sound and Condition

Velvety, smooth and balanced across all registers, it is a classy instrument in every regard. Pre-owned, it is in like-new condition.

Yulong Guo: Classical Guitar Maker in Guangzhou

Yulong Guo has been building guitars since 1983 and works in Guangzhou, in China's Guangdong province. He made his name with high-quality double-top guitars – student models as well as concert models such as the "Chamber Concert" and "Philharmonic", based on the soundboard designs of Antonius Müller.

Back to Tradition: The "Granada" Model

At the 2018 Musikmesse in Frankfurt he was able to examine an authentic Antonio de Torres guitar, and after playing a guitar by his friend Gabriele Lodi he returned to traditional building. His new "Granada" model won second prize at the 2nd Antonio Marín Montero Guitar Building Competition in Granada, Spain, in 2018 (see the results), and in 2025 he followed it with a model after the 1888 Torres SE 124.