This guitar was built by the legendary luthier Santos Hernández in 1923. He was the most distinguished disciple of Manuel Ramírez, with whom he worked for 23 years. In 1918, he opened his own workshop at Aduana Street No. 23. From 1916 until his death in 1943, he is estimated to have built around 300 guitars. Renowned concert artists of the time played his instruments, including Ramón Montoya, Andrés Segovia, Sabicas, Niño Ricardo, and Regino Sainz de la Maza, among others.

The woods selected for this guitar are of exceptional quality and are virtually impossible to obtain today. The spruce soundboard displays an extremely fine, straight, and consistent grain throughout its entire surface. The rosewood used for the back and sides is remarkably homogeneous, featuring a beautiful dark chocolate-black hue that attests to its outstanding quality. The craftsmanship and finishing are simply flawless.

We are facing an instrument whose tonal character approaches absolute excellence. Quite frankly, it is very likely one of the most extraordinary guitars we have ever seen and evaluated. Its projection and tonal richness exceed all expectations—an experience that can only truly be understood when heard in person. The sound combines remarkable delicacy and sweetness with exceptional power and volume. The trebles are clear, precise, and brilliant, offering an impressive harmonic complexity across the entire fingerboard. Undoubtedly, a historic guitar destined to become the crown jewel of any collection.

The action is medium, with perfectly adjusted string height at both the saddle and fingerboard, ensuring outstanding comfort for both hands and facilitating effortless performance.

The state of preservation is truly exceptional considering the instrument’s age. A subtle and superficial varnish restoration was carried out to preserve the original thickness and tonal character of the wood. Cracks on the soundboard and back were carefully stabilized without the use of cleats or additional wood pieces, in order to respect the original structure and preserve the guitar’s authentic sound. This top-level restoration was performed by master luthier Alejandro González and is fully documented in the accompanying images. It is also worth highlighting the remarkable structural solidity of this guitar, making it perfectly suitable for professional performance in any context—far from the common misconception that antique guitars are fragile or merely delicate.

It should be noted that the video recording was carried out using an electrostatic tap plate in order to prevent any possible marks on the varnish while playing. However, we deliberately chose not to install a permanent tap plate, as this type of instrument is extremely acoustically sensitive and was originally designed to be played without one.

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