From my personal collection I am selling this beautiful vintage classical guitar made in Japan in 1974. It is a 'Class 700' instrument which means that it's price at the time was around 70,000 Yen which equates to around £1800 today. The label inside the guitar indicates the model name 'La Esperanza', the makers 'Ongaku Geijutsusha Co. Ltd' and the year of production 1974 and the label is signed (presumably by the luthier). During the time this guitar has been in my collection I have tried researching 'Ongaku Geijutsusha Co Ltd' and discovered that they were a music publishing company active from the early 1960s until the late 1970s with no mention of classical guitar production, which leads me to believe that the building of this guitar was contracted out to another workshop. The label bears a striking resemblance, in fact is almost identical, to those found in Masaru Matano guitars of the same era (see smaller photo of Matano label for reference only). I know that Masaru Matano's 'Meiko Gakki' workshop in Kurume during the 1960s and 70s produced other high quality guitars such as Asturias, Cervantes and Ecole and also built guitars under commission for other labels such as Tatsuo Tanaka and early high end Aria instruments. So although not sure of this guitar's provenance, what I can say is that it has been built to a very high standard using high quality tone woods.
The solid spruce top of the guitar employs conventional Torres style seven strut fan bracing and the grain is very fine, like Japanese Yezo spruce or Sitka. The back and sides are beautifully figured Jacaranda; the sides are unbraced and therefore almost certainly made from two plies; the grain of the back looks to be identical inside and out and therefore single ply, but I can't be 100% sure. The flat 'Spanish' profile neck is mahogany but with a quite highly figured wavy grain, so not African mahogany in my opinion; it has twin rosewood reinforcement spines which is a feature found on some Masaru Kohno guitars of the period, likewise the extended 'Spanish' neck heel. The fretboard is almost black with a perceptible grain so could be Asian ebony or maybe ebonised rosewood. Another unusual feature is that the string nut has been set into the fretboard rather than at the end, another pointer towards the detail that has gone into the build of this instrument.
In common with most concert class guitars of the period, the scale length is 660mm; the nut width is 52mm. The string height at the 12th fret is 3.5mm which combined with the flat profile of the neck makes for a very easy playing action. For a guitar that is 43 years old it is in remarkable condition, in fact near mint. The fretboard and frets show no signs of wear. The inevitable darkening of the lacquer over the years has imparted a beautiful vintage hue to the woods. The only non-original parts on the guitar are the tuning machines which are 'Rubner Classics', fitted by myself as the original machines had a faulty gear wheel that I was unable to find a matching replacement for. So a rare vintage classical guitar (I have never seen another outside of Japan) that would be a pride to own for any player or collector. Personal callers welcome to come and try the guitar before buying, just message or call me on 07971 380728 to arrange an appointment. __________________________________________________________________________ Please take the time to read the following payment and delivery terms. Payment: PayPal or cash on collection - Buyer to contact me within 24 hours to confirm payment or intent to pay. Delivery to UK Mainland: £15.00 (collection in person welcome) Highlands & Islands £18.50   Delivery within European Union:  £35.00