Oscar Trezzini started as a guitar maker in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1982, under the tutelage of luthiers Pedro Malossetti and Héctor Curto. His early efforts produced a dazzling variety of different guitar types before he gradually refined his techniques and settled on the classical model, which he now builds exclusively. Then for a period, he lived and worked in Switzerland, where he benefitted from the additional advice of his friend and mentor Dominique Field. In 2016, he developed a friendship with Daniel Friederich, and after Friederich's retirement, Oscar purchased a large amount of what Friederich had left, including a good deal of wood, instruments and his personal measuring devices and hand tools. Trezzini also acquired the workbenches of both Friederich and Robert Bouchet which he candidly admits won’t make his guitars better, but rather serve as a reminder of his great affection and admiration for Daniel, which provides him a more inspiring environment in which to work. He has since relocated yet again, this time to the Portuguese island of Madeira, off the northwest coast of Africa and set up a new workshop with an ocean view and controlled humidity. These changes, including some great insights, have given him a new direction in his work, and he's made several amazing changes to the design of his guitars.
This instrument is built with some of Friederich’s materials, including one of two spruce soundboards that had originally been reserved for the great guitarist Alexandre Lagoya (as the pencil marking on the top indicates - see photo in the gallery). Back and sides come from a striking set of CSA rosewood that we reserved especially for this guitar several years ago. Overall the materials in the finished instrument are drop-dead beautiful.
In addition to the materials, Trezzini has also infused into this guitar much of what he learned from Friederich during their many conversations. As Friederich was not a fan of “replicas” of his work, Trezzini has instead enhanced the qualities of his own work with many of Friederich’s ideas rather than to make a copy. For example, the plantilla is a little wider than in his prior guitars - this is done to increase the size of the box in order to achieve the correct body resonance adapted to the diameter of Friederich's soundhole size. Scale length is 650 mm instead of his usual 644 mm which allowed Trezzini to use Friederich's fret slotting jig. The fingerboard now has a very slight double twist for balancing bridge pressure, and the saddle and nut are both compensated. He has also of late been working on the back longitudinal floating bars, which he tells us makes the role of the back more active, and he beleives he's found the change he has been looking for in sound. Lastly, like Friederich, the sides are doubled, however not with mahogany as Friederich did, but rather with CSA rosewood which Trezzini believes preserves the glassy resonance of the sound, and to stabilize possible tensions in the grain of the external set. Once glued, they are then reduced in thickness to avoid unwanted weight.
This all translates directly into a new, exciting and beautiful style of sound for Trezzini. The tone is like chocolate silk, the overtone content is fantastic, the notes are rich, creamy and full. And yet there is amazing balance and separation at the same time. The guitar has an excellent dynamic range, great amount of color, and it is extra responsive to the touch. Overall, it sounds as gorgeous as it looks. We congratulate Oscar on his newfound path, working now from a new location with precious tools and materials, and a new vision for his work. This is the first of many instruments in this style we look forward to seeing in the coming years.
More about this instrument including photos taken during construction.
