I often get asked how many guitar-makers there are in Granada. Firstly I always clarify that guitar-making is a province-wide art, over the years some of the great makers have lived and/or worked in villages within the province of Granada so any head count should include those from all over the province. The other question is how many of them make good guitars. Well the answer to both questions (sort of) is in this photograph. I am sure that any one of you will recognize a good number of makers and the outstanding reputations that are represented here. The occasion was a meal in recognition of the respect we hold for Antonio Marín and Manuel Bellido. Two framed scrolls which had been signed by most of the guitar-makers were presented to the masters after the meal. Aarón García Ruiz arrived just seconds after this shot was taken so count him in too. This particular shot was taken with my camera by Antonio Navarro.
Tag Archives: guitarra
Manuel de la Chica Guitar-making Course
The Granada Guitar Festival is growing bigger every year. This year in addition to some great concerts and the building competition the city will host guitar-making courses as well. Master builders Manuel Cáceres and René Baarslag will run two different courses, the latter coinciding more or less with the programming of the guitar festival. Please read the rules carefully before applying.
Exhibition Tour
A recent four-week exhibition in Granada organized by the Association of Guitar-makers made a very convincing case for a guitar museum in Granada. Granada has been a centre for the construction of stringed instruments since the 12 century, the city was home to some of the greatest innovators in the 19th century and today there are 50 makers working in the province. Can any other place say all that?
The video will give you an overview of the exhibition and the links will take you to each of the instruments that were on display. There is also a link to a some photographs by Alberto Juárez which were also included as homage to the original members of the Escuela Granadina. The gallery shows stills of the rest of the exhibition.
Homage to the original Escuela Granadina.
The guitar are linked in the order that they appear in the video.
José Pernas 1864
José Pernas 1838
José Pernas 1851
Agustín Caro 1824
Agustín Caro 1810
Nicolás del Valle c. 1850
Rafael Ortega c. 1890
José Ortega 1880
Bernardo Milán 1927
Andrés Quiñones 1887
Benito Ferrer 1900
J. Ortega señorita
J. Ortega c. 1900
Guitar-making competition August 2019
This year’s guitar-making competition will be diversified to include both flamenco and classical guitars with first, second and third place recognitions for each type. Here is a link to the competition rules where you can see that the deadline for application is July 15. The competition itself will take place from August 5-8 of this year. Meeting the contestants and seeing their hopeful faces is always a thrill as is hearing the final concert on the winning guitar. 
Antonio de Lorca for Sale
This is a guitar made by Antonio de Lorca, probably the last generation, for sale as is. The guitar is in Dublin but I have no more information about it. Contact the seller here.
You can read a bit more about the Lorca dynasty here.
Esta guitarra se encuentra en Dublin y se vende tal cual. Hecha por Antonio de Lorca, probablemente el de la última generación. No tengo más información sobre la guitarra pero puedes contactar con el vendedro aquí. 
Puedes leer más sobre la dinastía Lorca aquí.