| Don't get me wrong ... I am all for the new innovations
that private luthiers are incorporating into their guitars these days.
Bring on all of the built-in bevels ... put as many ports as you can possibly
squeeze in and inlay it to within an inch of its life ... I LOVE that kind
of creativity and forward movement in the evolution of my musical instrument
of choice. But I have to admit it is also nice to see a veteran builder
make an instrument that quietly stands on its own ... to be judged as a
musical tool based solely on sound & playability.
Of course when a guitar looks THIS great,
it maybe won't be judged completely on its intrinsic value. I mean
it would be difficult to ignore the almost three dimensional chatoyance
from the spectacular hazelficte figure in this Sitka top ... and the deep
chocolate hues & dark Rio spider-web grain patterns from the old growth
Brazilian rosewood are definitely eye-catching to say the least!
But it all comes down to sound. How do I
describe this one? I'll let David Martin's two audio files do some
of the explaining ... and tell you a few things. Number one ... I
don't think that there is a person working at our store who isn't in awe
of this guitar. Number two ... David Martin, who has played
every flattop to come through our store for YEARS before he started doing
our sound samples wants to own this particular instrument ... badly.
Number three ... the Twelfth Fret has one of the largest and best selections
of quality flattop guitars of any store in North America and in my
opinion, this instrument from Gordon Barry is the best sounding guitar
in the building right now!!! The nuanced tone layers, overtone
complexity, chameleon like response and sheer power from this musical tool
is truly inspiring. |
