Armenian luthier Manouk Papazian, based in New York for much of his career, put together an impressive body of work, ranging from Classicals like this lovely piece to violins, cellos, and even lutes. The example we have today is a Brazilian Rosewood and Spruce Concert Classical from 1960 that’s opened up sweetly and only weighs just over four pounds. The trebles are characterized by a lively string energy and clarity, and really carry the voice well, pairing with a warm and responsive bottom end and articulate midrange. We’ve gone over it with our repair staff to give it a clean bill of health; it’s got some honest play wear, which reinforces our interpretation that it’s opened up a lot, and has a lovely setup to boot.

Other keywords: andy jurik, fingerstyle, nylon string, brazilain, 650