Chartwell Guitar

1974 Richard Brune spruce and Brazilian rosewood

Woods: European spruce top and Brazilian rosewood back and sides. Honduran mahogany neck. French polish shellac finish throughout.

Specs: 655mm scale, 53mm nut, 45mm string spacing at nut, 57mm at saddle 3.25mm bass string height at 12th fret.  TKL type case.  Six hole tie block.

Condition: there are numerous light nail marks on the top, the type that are not visible unless one holds the guitar to a harsh light. The back and sides are in mint  condition. No structural issues whatsoever. For a fifty year old guitar, it appears as relatively new.  I suspect this guitar has had little play over this period.

Comment: playing this fine guitar reminds me of the work of many great builders, such as Valezquez, Ruck, Delarue, and a number of Spanish builders. The initial impression is neutral, sort of a “getting to know you” phase. One pulls from memory a few pieces that might sound best on the guitar, and maybe a book of sheet music comes out. And in the process, the magic of a great traditionally built guitar reveals itself in matters of voice, sustain, vibrato, string balance and separation. In short, modest beginnings flower into real appreciation.

As a dealer with a store room full of modern designed tops I can reach for anything loud or pointedly bright. But most often I reach for the traditionals like this Brune, or a Teodoro Perez, David Rouse, Ignacio Rozas. How many of us players need to fill an auditorium when our connection with our instruments is in our home, late at night or a Sunday morning. That’s when a guitar like this proves itself endearingly.