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This instrument is based on two original Francisco Simplicio guitars that were built in 1927, #156, and #157. Federico Sheppard was able to personally inspect and evaluate both guitars, which he claims were nearly identical. #156 had previously been owned by the great Agustín Barrios Mangoré. Federicio Sheppard builds replicas of Barrios' concert guitars, and we have had others in this series, including copies of Barrios' Morant, Esteso, and Jose Ramirez I. For this guitar however, Sheppard made one very interesting departure from the original - rather than doing a literal copy the head veneer, Sheppard modeled the design on a headstone found in the Almudena cemetery in Madrid where many of the past masters of lutherie are buried. It is of an hourglass with wings, symbolizing "Time Flies" which is the title of a letter written about this guitar by Pavel Steidl (see the letter in the images, below), it's first and only owner to date. Pavel toured regularly with this guitar through Europe and the USA, and used it so much that much of the finish was worn from the back - however Federico was kind enough to give it a fresh coat before sending to us. As authentic as it looks, it also has a fantastic old-world sound intimating the haunting and mysterious sounds that distinguish Simplicio from any other of the greats of guitar making history. This is truly a remarkable and unique instrument, that comes with a large story. We look forward to seeing more of the "Barrios" instruments from this very fine and interesting guitar maker and are simply thrilled to have this one.
