2025 Oscar Munoz CD/AR

Made with cedar for the soundboard, and a beautiful exotic set of African rosewood for the back and sides, this is a beautifully designed and built guitar by Oscar Munoz. For this instrument he also added a central tapering strip in the back of ebony, matched with ebony for the head veneer and foot where the sides come together at the bottom. This all complements the striking brown & yellow star-shape design in the rosette, which is inspired by visual motifs seen throughout the city of Granada in the myriad of designs that grace the architecture in a vast array of tile work and flooring. According to Oscar, it follows a medieval technique, native to the city of Granada called "taracea". It also has a 20th fret on the high e-string for repertoire requiring a high c-natural. The dark, chocolatey look of the guitar is matched by its sound which has a deep, rich quality with great warmth across the entire register. For this guitar Oscar has really "nuanced" the "cedarness" of the soundboard - very dark, mysterious tone with big overtone content - and extremely responsive to the slilghtest touch of the right hand. Plenty of volume as well - this guitar could easily fill any sized concert hall.

Photos of this guitar taken just after completion

Before pursuing guitar making as a career, Granada luthier Oscar Munoz worked for 20 years in cabinetmaking and carpentry. This gave him a natural advantage when he turned to guitar making in 2013 when he took some construction courses given by Stephen Hill and Pablo Requena. He also formed a close camaraderie with a group of young Granada makers and players including Sergio Valverde, Federico Udini, and Javier and Sixto Moreno. He also is grateful for the advice and support of the Bellido family who encouraged him early in his work. After several years of working at his craft, Oscar Munoz was awarded second-prize at the prestigious Antonio Marin Montero Guitar Making Competition held in Granada, Spain in October, 2017.