This festival includes a competition for young players, masterclasses and some very interesting concerts.

Another incursion into my guitar bookshelves has reminded me of a book by a spanish maker: Jerónimo Peña Fernández. The title is “El Arte de un Guitarrero Español” and although it makes for an interesting read in Spanish , it is not what most people would expect from a method book and perhaps there are much better choices for the novice.

Above is a photo from that book showing a  bracing system that was surely his own invention. Lattice bracing that I have seen is made up of diagonally placed braces which cross each other but there are many variations on that theme. I remember reading somewhere how the Smallman type lattice came about but nobody mentioned this guy who has been building for 50 or 60 years. I don’t know when he started using this system but it was a long time ago. He is known all over the world and even seems to have a street named after him in his home town. In the book there are drawing of other systems some of which include diagonal braces.

This time I was reading an old copy of American Lutherie (Nº 56, 1998) and came across an article by Jeffrey Elliott. The article is very good but these words especially rang true to me. What makes players fall in love with a particular guitar is a very elusive quality but it is that love that helps them play their very best. A guitar must be more than a well-made tool.