1981 MANUEL CONTRERAS SR. SPURCE & BRAZILLIAN ROSEWOOD (SIGNED LABEL, bARBERA PICK UP)

Manuel González Contreras (1928–1994) is one of the towering figures of 20th-century Spanish lutherie — a Madrid native whose cabinetmaking skills caught the attention of José Ramírez III, who invited him to apprentice in his workshop in 1959. By 1962, Contreras had developed his craft sufficiently to open his own independent shop at Calle Mayor 80 in Madrid, where he quickly built a reputation as one of the most creative and innovative luthiers in Spain. He was not a builder constrained by tradition: his first major innovation was the "Double Top" model in 1974, a construction he developed after years of acoustic experimentation and which immediately attracted wide acceptance in the professional guitar world. He continued innovating throughout his career, developing the Carlevaro model (1983) and the Resonance Back system (1985). His son Pablo Manuel Contreras joined the workshop in 1986, and together they defined a pivotal era in modern Spanish guitar making.

This 1981 instrument is a signed-label example from Contreras Sr. at the height of his powers — built with a spruce top over Brazilian rosewood back and sides, just three years before he would introduce his Carlevaro model. The D-shape neck profile is comfortable and substantial in the hand, and the guitar has been professionally outfitted with a Barbera pickup for stage and recording use — a thoughtful addition that does not compromise the acoustic voice.

The sound is everything a Contreras should be: warm, complex, and deeply resonant, with the overtone richness and dynamic range that define the best Madrid-school instruments.