This flamenco guitar was built in 1973 in the emblematic workshop at Calle Gravina No. 7 by the nephews of master luthier Domingo Esteso, which was then run by brothers Faustino and Mariano Conde. Many renowned figures passed through this workshop in search of their guitars, including Paco de Lucía, Melchor de Marchena, Niño Ricardo, Cepero and Juan Habichuela, among many others.

The woods used in this flamenco guitar are of the highest possible quality. The German spruce soundboard features strikingly pronounced, straight and uniform grain throughout its entire surface. The cypress used for the back and sides is of exceptional beauty and outstanding quality.

This flamenco guitar is particularly special because it bears no signature. We actually regard this as a positive feature, since many of these guitars were primera instruments supplied unsigned, allowing professional guitarists to acquire them at a more affordable price, in return for agreeing not to resell them for profit. This is why, on many occasions, as we believe to be the case here, these guitars can be superior to signed primera models. This is information that very few people know, but which we enjoy sharing because it provides a more accurate understanding of these instruments, contrary to what most people believe: that they are segunda guitars and considerably inferior to primera models. Nothing could be further from the truth!

The sound of this flamenco guitar is the authentic and unmistakable voice of Hermanos Conde guitars from that wonderful period of the 1970s. Its bass strings produce that uniquely deep and personal tone that we have not found in any other maker’s instruments, while the treble strings are full-bodied and crystal-clear, making this guitar a genuine treasure to enjoy for a lifetime!

The action of this flamenco guitar is medium, with a very well-balanced string height both along the fingerboard and at the bridge saddle. This provides the guitarist with excellent comfort in both hands and makes playing particularly effortless.

The guitar is in excellent condition. Its scale length has been masterfully modified. To carry out this work, the nut was moved a few millimetres, thereby shortening the fingerboard and filling the upper space where the nut originally sat with a piece of wood identical to that used for the headstock. This modification has been documented in the accompanying photographs, where the remarkable precision and craftsmanship of the work can be clearly appreciated. Following this modification to the guitar’s scale length, the frets had to be repositioned to preserve the instrument’s intonation. To achieve this, the decision was made to reduce the fingerboard to half its original thickness and fit a new fingerboard on top. Otherwise, the grooves left behind after removing the original frets would have required excessive thinning of the fingerboard to eliminate them and cut the new fret slots, potentially compromising the instrument’s structural stability. The decorative bone inlay on the bridge, characteristic of Hermanos Conde guitars, was replaced with a beautiful handcrafted mosaic which, in our opinion, further enhances the instrument’s beauty.

VIDEO RECORDED WITH IPHONE 15 PRO, APOGEE DUET 3 SOUND CARD, AND NEUMANN KM184 MICROPHONE. VIDEO TEST USING ONLY IPHONE 15 PRO (SOUND AND IMAGE). For more details CLICK HERE