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Schenk FE Grand Soloist Brazilian/Engelmann
Rod Schenk has made a strong name for himself building top quality guitars inspired by the work of Kevin Ryan, his friend and mentor. Rod has a unique approach to guitar making, employing in-depth computer analysis to determine optimal bracing size and layout to enhance the voicing and capture as much energy as possible. This guitar surely has a lot of energy getting transfered from the strings straight to the top. It’s very lively and spirited. It reminds us a lot of a Ryan Nightingale and very similar is size as well. The Brazilian Rosewood here is just gorgeous and paired beautifully with Engelmann for a lush and angelic voice. There are also many subtle but elegant appointments such as Blue Paua top trim and headstock trim, a Florentine cutaway, Gold Gotoh 510s and a 12th fret Floral inlay. Stunning to behold and to play.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.8100 in String Spacing 2.2500 in Woods Spruce - Engelmann, Rosewood - Brazilian 
2007 Schenk 12 String Honduran Mahogany/Engelmann
This is the prototype 12 String design from upcoming luthier Rod Schenk and debuted at the Newport/Miami Guitar Festival. Rod is close friends with Kevin Ryan and has been mentored a bit by Kevin so it’s no surprise that the level of craftsmanship in this 12 string is superb and that it plays very easily. The combination of Mahogany and Engelmann Spruce give this a warmer voice than most 12 String guitars. It’s also nice and lively. The body is bound in Rosewood and the headstock and backplate are Ebony, giving this Schenk guitar a clean and natural look. The string-through bridge is very unique for a 12 string as well.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.8800 in String Spacing 2.2500 in Woods Spruce - Engelmann, Mahogany - Honduran 
2008 Schoenberg/Russell 000, Cocobolo/Red Spruce
A 2008 collaboration between Eric Schoenberg and James Russell brought about this 000 with Cocobolo and Red Spruce that is an absolte gem. Wide dynamic response, great string energy, and dressed up with colorful Abalone top trim (a detail Eric swears by for tone). 1 25/32″ nut offers a touch more room for your left hand, and the 25.4″ scale keeps strings crisp and punchy. Other details include a pyramid bridge, Ebony bindings, and open back Waverly tuners.
Other keywords: fingerstyle, ooo, fingerpicking, 12-fret
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4 in Nut Width 1.781 in String Spacing 2.406 in Woods Spruce, Rosewood - Cocobolo 
2013 Schoenberg Stella, Madagascar Rosewood/Carpathian Spruce
Boy, this little number is a livewire. We don’t know what kind of magic James Russell and Eric Schoenberg worked on this Schoenberg Stella model from 2013, but it must have been a heady brew. Loud, energetic, crisp and defined! Are the words that first come to mind. It’s a fantastic fingerpicking guitar, hands down. Carpathian Spruce on top with Madagascar Rosewood back and sides, 12 frets to the neck and a venetian cutaway, and a slick setup for easy playability. Part of what’s going on here is a build that takes a nod from a 1920s Oscar Schmidt Stella: the sides are more shallow than you’d expect, and that creates a fast response. Take this Stella model down into Open G, and it maintains that quickness and crunchy clarity. This guitar has us impressed, very impressed.
Other keywords: 12-fret, 00, parlor guitar, fingerstyle, waverly, pyramid bridge
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.3750 in Woods Spruce - Carpathian, Rosewood - Madagascar 
1994 Schoenberg/T.J. Thompson Soloist, Indian Rosewood/Sitka Spruce
Rare and otherwise unobtainable guitars? That’s why we got in this business in the first place, and this T.J. Thompson-built Schoenberg Soloist is our mission statement to a T. Sporting a gorgeous set of Indian Rosewood for the back and sides and Sitka Spruce for the top, this guitar packs a fiendish amount of punch into a comfortable OM-size package. This is one of the 150 guitars which Eric Schoenberg designed and T.J. Thompson crafted the various parts before sending the instrument to Martin for final assembly and finishing.
Each Schoenberg Soloist from 1990 to 1994 is a resounding example of T.J.’s meticulous craftsmanship: this guitar has a crisp, focused voice which gives fingerpicking arrangements richness and clarity–but if flatpicking is more to your liking, this Soloist has a lively response to both strumming and lead work. Featuring a soft V-shape neck, your left hand won’t wear out any time soon; and that’s a good thing, because you won’t want to put this guitar down once you pick it up. Speaking of which, this guitar also comes with a dynamite Highlander IP-1 pickup, so no worries when it comes time to gig out.
Here’s an additional demo with our own Al Petteway: https://youtu.be/lEyWB9UdvGs
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.2500 in Woods Spruce - Sitka, Rosewood - Indian 
2003 Schoenberg ES-Soloist, Honduran/Italian Alpine Spruce
This 2003 Schoenberg ES-Soloist comes from Bruce Sexauer, replete with Honduran Rosewood (dalbergia tucurensis, according to Bruce) back and sides, an Italian Alpine Spruce top, and Snakewood bindings for style. This Honduran Rosewood is beautifully straight-grained and quartersawn, and pairs well with the aged amber tint of the Alpine Spruce top. Together with Bruce’s lutherie chops, these coalesce into a well-oiled fingerstyle machine. Notes have excellent definition and color, with the treble strings having a particularly full and present timbre, and work well with a balanced bass and mid range response for an even-keeled playing experience.
Hefting this Soloist, you’ll be surprised to find such a featherweight instrument in your hands. This beautiful OM weighs only 3.5lbs. Waverly butterbean tuners help keep the weight down, but it’s really Bruce’s voicing and build style that make this Soloist so agile. The Italian Alpine Spruce top responds so well for both aggressive and lighter attacks, we found it difficult to find a style of fingerpicking that didn’t gel with it at the drop of a hat.
Long story short, this Schoenberg is fabulous. It feels easy, plays effortlessly, and has an immense tonal palette for the player to pick and choose from. The kind of guitar you simply don’t get tired of.Other keywords: eric schoenberg, es-soloist, orchestra model, finger style, finger picking, 25.4, tkl
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.7800 in String Spacing 2.3750 in Woods Spruce - Italian, Rosewood - Honduran 
1993 Schoenberg Soloist OMC Brazilian/Spruce
One of Eric Schoenberg’s earlier collaborations with T.J. Thompson and Martin, this 1993 Soloist OMC is a firebomb fingerstyle guitar: crisp trebles and a glassy setup with a low profile soft-V neck. With some gorgeous Brazilian Rosewood for the back and sides (with sapwood colors the envy of Cocobolo) and Adirondack Spruce fo the top, this Soloist has the right calibre munitions to drive its fat, juicy trebles right through the mix.
Played with a flatpick or just nails, the tight, focused voice soars, wel-balanced and clear. These fine tonewoods have had plenty of time to open up, and brother have they–there’s plenty of that quick response and instant projection that only come with age.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.3800 in Woods xx, Rosewood - Brazilian 
2004 Schoenberg 00-40C Brazilian/Adirondack (Red)
Schoenberg 00-40C features gorgeous Brazilian Rosewood and Adirondack Spruce in a timeless 00 cutaway design. The lightly-built body is extremely responsive; reminiscent of an early 1900’s Martin. With a wider fingerboard (1 7/8″ nut) and 12-fret neck, this guitar is the fingerpicker’s dream machine, perfect for Rags, Old Time, Doc Watson tunes or Appalachian ballads, and you can rely on the included K&K Pure Mini pickup to translate those tunes to the stage!
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.3800 in Nut Width 1.8800 in String Spacing 2.3100 in Woods Spruce - Adirondack (Red), Rosewood - Brazilian 
2003 Schoenberg ES-14C Brazilian/European
Here we have a Schoenberg ES-14C built by Bruce Sexauer. Bruce has been a long standing favorite here at the Dream Guitars shop, he builds some of the most “Alive” guitars we have come across. Legendary fingerpicker Eric Schoenberg has a handfull of the top luthiers build guitars under the Schoenberg name.This Schoenberg is one of the best sounding guitars in this size body that we have played in quite some time. You almost have to tie this down to keep it from vibrating off of your lap – it is that powerful and responsive. Every string has so much complexity and character of tone it is staggering. This is a world class guitar built by one of the great masters of our time.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4400 in Nut Width 1.8100 in String Spacing 2.3800 in Woods Spruce - European, Rosewood - Brazilian 
1988 Schoenberg Soloist Brazilian/Adirondack
This Schoenberg Soloist is modeled after the original Martin OMs and crafted under the supervision of master luthier Dana Bourgeois by the Martin Guitar Company. It features premium Brazilian Rosewood and Adirondack Spruce. These guitars are known for offering the voice of the finest prewar Martins we can attest to that. You won’t find a more lively OM guitar. Classic tone, modern quality.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.3800 in Woods Spruce - Adirondack (Red), Rosewood - Brazilian 
2008 Schwartz Advanced Auditorium Cutaway, Cocobolo/Engelmann Spruce
Sheldon Schwartz may just be a miracle worker–the voice of this Advanced Auditorium is seraphic. In pairing Cocobolo Rosewood back and sides with a gorgeous Engelmann Spruce top, Schwartz gave this Grand Auditorium-sized guitar a tonal palette which is rich but controlled, with a great balance across the registers. Flatpickers, rejoice: the Advanced Auditorium responds with resounding projection and clarity. Prefer your fingertips? Fingerstyle accentuates the balance and scope, letting the low-end mellow out and accompany the middle registers in perfect harmony.
Airy overtones in the trebles fill out the voice, lending the instrument a sweetness and poise that is matched only by Schwartz’s appointments, from the figured Curly Maple bindings to the Mother-Of-Pearl and Shell vine inlays across the rosette and at the twelfth fret. Kept in immaculate condition, you won’t believe this guitar isn’t even a decade old. There are probably brand-new guitars out there with more scratches. Protected by an equally immaculate Ameritage hardshell case, there’s no need to worry about the instrument ever getting hurt in your travels.
Combining easy playability, rich tonality, be prepared to play this Advanced Auditorium for many, many long hours.Here’s an additional demo with our own Al Petteway: https://youtu.be/7KMfzW_TImA
Here’s an additional demo with Paul from 2018: https://youtu.be/CVWOuGHfS64
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.5 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.25 in Woods Spruce - Engelmann, Rosewood - Cocobolo 
2007 Schwartz Oracle Brazilian/Bearclaw Sitka
We don’t know what dark rites Sheldon must perform to make such magical, resonant, and enveloping tone machines like this Oracle, but we’re glad he’s willing to go to such lengths for his craft. This 2007 Oracle has the kind of huge, enveloping bass that shoots out of the soundhole and wraps you up in a trice. Notes have palpable weight, and these trebles! Clear fundamental, and heady sustain. We apologize if the language is a bit extravagant, but it’s hard to describe this guitar as anything less than incredible.
Gorgeous dark Brazilian Rosewood back and sides and a Bearclaw Sitka Spruce top are just the tip of the iceberg. For the Schwartz Oracle, Sheldon creates three offset soundholes, adds a Venetian Cutaway with an extended bevel, a bent-style arm bevel, 5-piece neck, and a 25.5” scale that accommodates everything from Standard to esoteric C tunings. There’s a K&K pickup installed via the rear access panel, and if you peek inside you’ll find the top has been lattice braced for excellent resonance, and we found it responded equally well to picks as well as fingertips, in spite of the fact that Sheldon designed this guitar with primarily fingerstyle in mind. A pinless bridge and Calton case round out the package.
The Schwartz Oracle stands in a category all its own.
Other keywords: brazilain, bear claw, elliptical soundholes, lutherie, luthier
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.5000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.3100 in Woods Spruce - Sitka, Rosewood - Brazilian 
New Schwartz Oracle OSJ Palo Escrito/Moonspruce
Sheldon Schwartz is building some of the most unique and astounding guitars we have seen! This particular Oracle is made in Palo Escrito Rosewood, and while not as well known as a tonewood, it gives its more commonly used Rosewood brethren a run for their money. The Italian Moon Spruce top is perfection, harvested according to the traditional methods of waiting for the proper moon phase to yield the least sap content in the timbers.
Every decision in the design of this Oracle was made with the player in mind, from the soft cutaway to the extremely comfortable Arm Bevel, the off-center soundhole–even the satin neck make this guitar a dream to play. Sheldon’s unique voicing and Carbon Fibe-reinforced lattice bracing system help set the voice of the guitar apart from the field. It is incredibly powerful and responsive, even to the lightest touch, and warmth, evenness, and sumptuous tone define the experience of playing the Oracle. This is a guitar that is well suited for modern fingerstyle arrangements, but can also pick louder and more vigorously than you’d believe possible. But don’t worry: hundreds of hours later, the Evo Gold frets will hardly show any wear at all–and if you’d ever like to experiment with different pickups, Schwartz built in an access panel on end graft of the guitar, so getting into the body of the Oracle is immensely easy.
SOLD Sale! Read moreScale Length 25.5000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.2500 in Woods Spruce - Moonspruce, Rosewood - Palo Escrito 
2008 Schwartz AAC Maple/Cedar
Sheldon Schwartz is one of our very favorite luthiers, quietly building some of the finest modern guitars you will find anywhere, and we are delighted to have this stunning 2008 Schwartz AAC model. This is a Jumbo guitar with an even-grained Cedar top for sweet, rolling warmth, and a rare and mesmerizing set of Birdseye Maple for the back and sides. Think of it as the perfect combination of warmth and lightning quick response. Despite its Jumbo size, the AAC has a sweet, expressive voice that other guitars of this size struggle to pull off, in addition to being surprisingly comfortable to play for extended periods of time. Sheldon also showcases his excellent detail work everywhere on this guitar, from the beautiful Select Paua Abalone purflings to the elegant hemispherical fret ends.
In the spirit of the great Maple-backed Gibson J-200s, this large-bodied guitar has a huge voice with tons of low-end response and shimmering highs which hang in the air. Thanks to the Cedar top, there’s a remarkable warmth and balance across all the strings and all along the neck. Thus, when the low E string is plucked, the player experiences a rush of warm, mellow vibrations emenating from this striking instrument in their hands. Moreover, this guitar is practically mint (thanks in no small part to its Calton Flight Case), looking as beautiful as it sounds.
SOLD Sale! Read moreScale Length 25.4000 in Nut Width 1.7500 in String Spacing 2.2500 in Woods Cedar 
2007 Schwartz Oracle Brazilian/Bearclaw Exciting Design!
The Oracle design by Sheldon Schwartz is one of the most exciting and original we’ve seen. This beauty in Brazilian Rosewood and highly figured Bearclaw Sitka Spruce incorporates a wide array of elements including triple offset soundholes, carbon fibre-reinforced lattice-braced soundboard, double walled side construction, carbon fibre reinforced “X” braced back and a 26 inch scale. Additional features include a beveled cutaway, the bent wood style arm rest, a 5pc laminated neck with 24 frets, a rear access panel.
Now for the sound… listen close and you can probably hear it wherever you are. This is one loud and strong guitar! The Oracle speaks like a Piano, with big, clear notes and tremendous bass response. The offset soundholes insure the player gets an earful and what you’ll hear is a joyful noise! Light players will be rewarded with big sound and heavy handed players have met their match. The Oracle by Sheldon Schwartz is simply remarkable!
SOLD Read moreScale Length 26 in Nut Width 1.7800 in String Spacing 2.3100 in Woods Spruce - Sitka, Rosewood - Brazilian