FOR GUITAR AFICIONADOS- Another Guitar!
LAST CHAPTER ON MY GUITAR STORIES!
If you read about my guitars in previous posts, the last acquisition I made makes the 6th guitar to pass into my possession (not counting one I bought for a granddaughter)! Well, this is the last chapter because I now have what I want- 2 classic guitars with awesome resonance and full-bodied sound! One is my Takamine F3105 with steel strings which I call my Martin Takamine because it is a copy of the famous Martin brand maker. I bought it from a collector friend who had so many instruments that he decided to let one go! It looks its age, but its sound is out of this world and worth more than the $100 I paid for it!
I got the second one when I recently traded my Takamine C132S acoustic guitar for my son’s classical Alvarez Yairi CY135. He is a professional entertainer, plays dinner music at Hy’s Steak House in Waikiki and has a number of excellent instruments. One is the Alvarez I really liked and even ‘borrowed’ on occasion. After the last time I played it, he let me talk him out of it. I swapped with him my Takamine C132S which was in mint condition with a plush lined hard shell case and all. My son then gave my Takamine to another guitarist who was going to do house repairs for him!
Takamine F3105 steel string on left, Alvarez Yairi CY135 classical guitar on right.
Would you believe my Alvarez Yairi came with ‘papers’, kinda like having a pedigree dog, you know. It was made in Japan and certified by the factory president Kazuo Yairi himself, handcrafted in Feb. 1975 with woods ‘naturally aged for stability and fine tone’! And I lOVE IT! When I play the Alvarez, it is like we are ‘2 voices together’. My son says that’s a nice way to put it. Anyway, it is the one on the right side of the photo. One of the projects I have on the back burner is to record some songs someday to show how to play guitar by ear using chord progressions. Below is ‘certification’ of my Alvarez Yairi!
Alvarez guitar handcrafted certified by President Kazuo Yairi and completed on Feb. 3, 1975.
Tour of Yairi Guitar factory in Japan:
Posted on March 27, 2015, in About Me And My Family, Created to Praise God, Uncategorized and tagged Alvarez Yairi CY135, Guitar aficionados, Playing guitar the fun and easy way, Takamine C132S and F3105 guitars. Bookmark the permalink. 2 Comments.
the factory tour video was both informative and inspirational. Hand-made and small-scale production wins the day all the time. I am now an authorized dealer of the famous, but affordable Francisco Navarro Guitars. I perform with a Special Grand Concert Classical (http://www.francisconavarro.com). Uncle Wilson lead me to this luthier after having played many of the top name classical guitars in California. I am very satisfied as it sings as beautifully as I can play it.
Funny that I just saw this today! Yes, your guitar you perform with has outstanding sound!
BTW, I like how the Epiphone plays now that Steven lowered the strings closer to the frets. The folksy, mellow tone is great for country and Hawaiian music and of course it always has had a BIG voice which I like in contrast to the more delicate sound of the Alvarez. Thanks for letting me keep the Epiphone which I had played for 20 years in many school programs!