Thank you!

Thank you! We have a great team, it's not just me.

Thank you! We have a great team, and Baylor Medical was very supportive.

Thank you sir!

yes

Hes playing flamenco in the style of soleares. Not a specific piece but an improv of several falsetas and variations of compás. If youre interested in this kind of sound look up "soleares" or "soleá"

Lol!

Guillermo! Gracias, Senor!

Thank you, Jenni-on-the-block!

Hey Monty! Did you go ta Cool School, or did it just come naturally? Luv ya, bud!

Cristian Guarinos El tiro es 24 7/8 pulgadas, o sea 632 mm. Torres no usaba medidas de "metric," trabajaba en pulgadas Inglesas.

Marshall Brune Muchas gracias. Saludos

***** Actually we have documented a number of pre-Torres Spanish (mostly Andalucian) instruments which had bridges without saddles such as this Torres bridge. His famous "la Leona" has such a bridge. In the Aguado method of 1825 Aguado describes a new innovation for the bridge with a separate bone saddle, and in his later edition of 1843 he claims this was his invention. The earliest dated SPANISH guitar I have seen a separate saddle on it was a guitar labeled "M. Hielo" of Madrid, 1822. The absence of separate saddle was a holdover from the 6 course guitar which was favored in Spain and basically had a lute style bridge. These were made in Spain (mostly Andalucia) well into the mid-19th century long after guitar traditions around the rest of the planet had settled on 6 single strings as the norm. Outside of Spain bridges took many forms either based on lute style bridges such as this Torres, or from the late 18th century beginning in France, pin bridges, a device invented by the Parisian harp makers to attach their strings to the soundboard, and immediately adapted by guitarmakers as a method to attach strings to the bridges, which usually had separate saddles. See the Diderot encyclopedia engraving of the harp pins which are mentioned as a recent invention. In general, the Spanish bridges sans saddle were usually found in simpler more proletariat instruments, although we recently sold an 1839 Juan Perfumo of Cadiz with a nearly identical bridge. See Vintage Guitar June 2012. In general, Spanish makers, particularly those of Andalucia did not use pin type bridges. When these show up on Spanish instruments of this era they are more often than not later modifications done outside of Spain.

***** In general players preferred the better clarity and focus of a bone (or ivory) saddle, which also had the benefit of being adjustable for action height. Most Spanish Andalucian instruments, either 6 course or 6 single string were intended as instruments of accompaniment for either folkloric or later, flamenco cante and baile in commercial establishments. As such, polyphony was not part of this tradition. The modern "classical" guitar is a term that did not begin to be used commonly until after WW II. Before that time, the common term was "Spanish" guitar outside of Spain, but a few literate Spanish players such as Julian Arcas were mixing "classical" music along with folkloric and flamenco in their programs, using a "Spanish" guitar to perform them, so gradually the requirement for a more polyphonic instrument was advancing alongside the original prototype intended for accompaniments.

***** I made a 'copy' of this very Guitar that also included the Lute style bridge. It affects it much less than one would think, although I dare say that there is some influence. KZbin perhaps isn't the best source to judge tonal qualities but if you search for 'Rob mackillop Torres' you can at least hear another Guitar with a the Lute style bridge and zero bracing! just as in this Torres. I have never tried it myself but I'm pretty sure that I've heard that Alum added to Hide glue renders it waterproof. Alum was also a well known mordant for use in dyes. I guess that Torres would have had access to Alum.

vihuelamig Besides Alum, adding Formaldehyde to glue was an old veneer trick to get it to set fast and waterproof. I think they actually painted the formaldehyde onto the veneer surface and put the hide glue on the carcass to get them to grab almost instantly. This was how compound curved surfaces were hammer veneered I'm told. I haven't tried this myself, the formaldehyde is hazardous.

@@vihuelamig Sorry for chiming in after 9 years, but do you know if this the Torres guitar played by Rob that you mentioned? kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5jSaWBvaNSLaNE

foglemam The nearest plan you will get to this Guitar is the one that Roy Courtnall sells. It will be a very similar size but it does have fan bracing. Just leave it out!

vihuelamig Thank you!