Historic Guitar Markers of the Valencia School
These biographies of historic Spanish luthiers are works in progress. If you have additional materials, information, sources, photographs, or corrections you wish to share, please contact me. (Reference Works)
Alcaraz, Juan (Valencia c. 1850)
Juan Alcaraz was a luthier in Valencia around the middle of the nineteenth century active from 1843 to 1867. In addition to guitars, he made cellos and contra basses.
Joaquín Bargues (Valencia active c. 1900)
Joaquín Bargues was a guitar maker active in Valencia active prior to World War I.
Salvador Blanch (Valencia c. 1900)
Salvador Blanch was a well-known maker with a reputation for making pretty guitars who was active in Valencia prior to World War I. He also made a few violins.
José Boludo (Valencia c. 1900)
José Boludo was a guitar maker who was active in Valencia at the beginning of the twentieth century.
Beltran Salvador Calatayud (Valencia c. first half 20th century)
Beltran Salvador Calatayud was of Basque origin, but plied his trade in Valencia in the first half of the twentieth century.
Ramon Castelló (Valencia, active c. 1930).
Ramon Castelló, a luthier in Valencia, was among the most famous guitar makers of the Levant. In addition to classical and flamenco guitars, he also built bandurrias.
Salvador Gaspar (Turia, Valencia active c. 1930)
Salvador Gaspar was a luthier from Turia, Valencia active circa 1930.
Salvador Ibañez (Valencia, active c. 1875-1920).
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Salvador Ibañez, a luthier active in Valencia in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He first had a shop on the calle Baja San Francisco, then in the late nineteenth century and early part of the twentieth century he moved his shop to calle Padre Rico. He has been described as a man of determination who starting with a small workshop slowly built his business at the expense of his competitors into the largest guitar factory in Spain. He had two sons who took over the firm after his death in 1920. |
Telesforo Julve (Valencia, active c. 1890s-1930s)
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Telesforo Julve
was a luthier with a good reputation that was active in Valencia circa from
the late nineteenth century into the 1930s. Like many luthiers of the
period, he built classical guitars with a tornavoz. His shop was located on
the Arzobispo Mayoral, No. 13.
Photograph courtesy of Felix Manzanero. |
Andrés Marin Terz, (Valencia, active 1880s-1930s)
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Andrés Marin
was one of the most renowned makers in Valencia in the late nineteenth and
early twentieth century. According to his label, he had won medals for his
guitars in 1882 and 1883. His shop was on the Calle de Barcelona, No. 15.
Photograph courtesy of Felix Manzanero. |
Parres y Cía (Valencia c. 1860-1880)
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Parres y Cía
seems to have made guitars in Valencia in the second half of the nineteenth
century. A couple of examples are listed in the Felix Manzanero collection.
Photograph courtesy of Felix Manzanero. |
Francisco Pau (Valencia, active late 19th century)
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Francisco Pau
was another member of the Pau family of makers active in the late 19th
century. An example of one of his guitars made in 1880 is listed in the
collection of Felix Manzanero.
Photograph courtesy of Felix Manzanero. |
José Pau (Valencia, active late 19th century)
José Pau was a luthier from Valencia who in the late nineteenth century moved to Uruguay.
Salvador Pau (Valencia, active c. 1830s-1850s)
Salavador Pau was a guitar maker in Valencia active in the middle of the nineteenth century.
Manuel Pérez (Valencia, active c. 1840s)
Manuel Pérez was a guitar maker active in Valencia circa 1840s.
Juan Ponce (Valencia, active c. 1880)
Juan Ponce was a guitar maker in Valencia in the later part of the nineteenth century. One of his guitars made in 1880 is listed in the collection of Felix Manzanero.
Luis Reig (Valencia, active c. 1840s-1850s)
Luis Reig was a guitar maker from Valencia active around the middle of the nineteenth century whose guitars were awarded prizes by the King of Spain. His guitars followed French tastes. The one in the Manzanero collection made in 1845 is elaborately decorated and shows the high quality of his work.
Alejandro Roca (Valencia, active c. 1850s)
Alejandro Roca was a guitar builder who apparently worked with his brothers and was active in Valencia in the first half of the nineteenth century.
Salvador Sáncho (Valencia, active c. 1860-1920)
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Salvador
Sáncho was a luthier from Valencia that was active at the beginning of the
twentieth century. An example of one his guitars built in 1860 is listed in
the collection of Felix Manzanero. He spent some time in Argentina, but was
unable to make a living there, and returned to Spain in 1912. He appears to
have died in Valencia in 1920.
Photograph courtesy of Felix Manzanero. |
Ricardo Sánchís Nacher (Valencia, 1881-1960)
Founder of the Sanchis factory, Ricardo established a workshop in 1915 in Masanana in the Province of Valencia. His guitars were patterned after the school or Salvador Ibáñez. However, he had close personal ties with Domingo Esteso and Manuel Ramirez as well.
Vicente Saurit (Valencia, active c. 1930)
Vicente Saurit was a luthier active in Valencia circa 1930 whose shop was on Pasaje Santa Lucia, no. 87. His guitars were noted from their exceptional voices.
Sentchordi Hermanos (Valencia, active c. 1861-1905)
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The Sentchordi Hermanos firm made a variety of guitars, bandurrias, and other instruments in Valencia from 1861 until 1905. The shop was on the Calle de la Bolseria No. 5. and the two brothers traced their roots to Manuel Sentchordi (1700-1765). |
Manuel Sentchordi (Valencia, b. 1700 d. 1765)
Manuel Sentchordi was born in Valencia about 1700. He made both guitars and violins. Some of his guitars made in his shop of the calle Nazaret in the 1720s have survived. They are beautiful instruments that reveal his skills at doing inlays. His violins, violas, and cellos, however, do not show the same levels of skill.
Miguel Simón Moya (Valencia, active 1860s)
Miguel Simón Moya was a guitar maker active in Valencia circa the 1860s.
Vicente Tatay (Valencia, b. 1869 active c. 1889-1942)
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Vicente Tatay
was a guitar maker in Valencia. Vicente established his workshop in 1889. It
was like most workshops of the era with the father teaching and supervising
his sons so that some day they could take over the family business. The
family business soon began to grow, and they had to hire extra help to meet
the demand. They slowly began to look for ways to increase their production
by mechanizing some aspects of building. Thus, slowly but surely their
workshop was transformed into a factory. The firm Vicente Tatay founded has
grown into a major factory producing some 40,000 instruments a year.
Vicente Tatay retired in 1942, and the firm was taken over by his sons José
and Vicente Tatay Tomás who formed a company Hijos de Vicente Tatay. Photograph courtesy of Felix Manzanero. |
Francisco Torres (Valencia, active c. 1930)
Francisco Torres was a guitar maker in Valencia who had his shop on the calle Recaredo No. 86. Active circa 1930, he founded a factory that exported guitars world wide.
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