Antonio Raya Pardo　[アントニオ・ラジャ・パルド] modelo Torres　No.79

Product Description

Neck:Cedro
Fingerboard:Ebony
Finish(Top):Shellac
Finish(Back & Sides):Shellac
Tuning Machines:FUSTERO
String Height(1st):3.0mm
String Height(6th):4.0mm

［Profile］
Antonio Raya Pardo (1950–2022) was born in Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. He moved to Granada at the age of 14 and initially worked as a weaver. Through his marriage to Pilar Ferrer, granddaughter of Eduardo Ferrer (1905–1988), he entered the world of guitar making and briefly studied under Ferrer. He later studied with José López Bellido (b. 1943) before establishing his own workshop in 1973.

Largely self-taught, Raya Pardo developed his own approach through extensive study of historic Spanish guitars, including instruments by Torres, Vicente Arias, and Santos Hernández. He also received valuable advice from Antonio Marín Montero (b. 1933), one of the most influential figures in the Granada guitar-making tradition.

From the 1980s onward, Raya Pardo became actively involved in promoting Granada guitar making internationally. In 1987, he helped establish an organization of Granada guitar makers, contributing to the development of the region's guitar-making culture. The following year, he held exhibitions in Japan and China, gave seminars in Japan and New York, and also taught guitar making in Paracho, Mexico. He generously shared his knowledge with younger makers from abroad who visited Granada.

His guitars embody the mature Granada tradition in their construction, appearance, and tonal character. Their sound combines warmth, strength, and a natural intimacy that has earned them many admirers. His son, Antonio Raya Ferrer (b. 1980), later joined the workshop, with both makers producing instruments under their respective labels. Antonio Raya Pardo passed away in 2022 at the age of 72.

［Instrument Information］
This is an Antonio Raya Pardo 1995 No.79 Torres Model, representing the mature middle period of his career. Although inspired by the Torres tradition, the instrument's internal construction is Raya Pardo's own design. The Torres influence is particularly evident in the relatively compact body shape and headstock design.

Like many Granada guitars, the instrument is finished in shellac, resulting in a thin finish through which the natural texture of the wood remains clearly visible. Raya Pardo's shellac work has a distinctive, almost antique-furniture-like appearance, and decades of aging have given this instrument an attractive, warm sheen. The tonal character likewise has a slightly refined and mellow quality that is characteristic of his instruments.

More than 30 years old and carefully played, the guitar remains in remarkably clean condition. While the exterior design follows the Torres concept, its sound is distinctly Raya Pardo's own. The attack has both elasticity and resistance, producing a dense, lustrous tone with a strong sense of depth. At the same time, the sound has an intimate and lyrical quality, almost as if the guitar were naturally speaking through the player's hands.

The soundboard bracing consists of two harmonic bars above the soundhole, with the smaller bar functioning partly as reinforcement, and one harmonic bar below it. Thin concentric reinforcement surrounds the soundhole. The lower soundboard features five symmetrical fan braces together with a thin reinforcement plate extending across almost the full width beneath the bridge/string block area.

The overall arrangement shows a close relationship to the construction associated with Antonio Marín's Bouchet model, while Raya Pardo's modification is particularly notable beneath the bridge. Instead of the substantial bar used in the Marín/Bouchet construction, he employed an exceptionally thin reinforcement plate of less than 1 mm in thickness. This subtly reduces the structural "gravity" of the Bouchet concept, introducing a touch of lightness and brightness while retaining considerable tonal density. The resonance is set slightly above G♯.

There is no significant history of cracks or major modifications. Minor playing marks are visible around the fingerboard and soundhole, with a few small marks below the bridge from string changes. The back and sides show only slight friction marks from clothing. Overall, the instrument remains in very good condition for its age.

The neck is in excellent condition, while the frets show only slight wear on frets 1–3, with no effect on playability. The 646 mm scale is slightly shorter than the standard 650 mm. The neck has a moderately thick D-shaped profile with defined corners, giving it a somewhat substantial grip.

The 12th-fret action is 3.0 mm on the 1st string and 4.0 mm on the 6th, with approximately 1.0–2.0 mm of saddle remaining. A thin shim is currently installed beneath the nut for height adjustment. The guitar is fitted with Fustero tuners from Spain, which are currently functioning properly.