May he rest in peace, John Gilbert was a force of innovation for Classical guitar construction in the U.S. in the latter part of the 20th Century, and two of his most well-known contributions are both present on this 1995 Concert Classical in Indian Rosewood and Cedar. First, Gilbert created a new style of bridge which employed individual metal saddles for each string, enabling the player or luthier to adjust individual string heights without affecting others. Second, Gilbert pioneered a new kind of tuner for nylon strings which employed a worm gear retainer that allowed each string to have the same feel when tensioning, and to eliminate all backlash while insuring smooth tuning action. Here, both are employed to great effect.

By 1995 John’s son, Bill Gilbert, had taken over the luthier mantle from his father, and we’ve verified with Bill that this Gilbert was built by his own hands. voice has a clear warmth in the middle registers that blends smoothly with both bass and treble strings for an overall richness like a slice of fine New York cheesecake. The setup is similarly smooth and friendly. Wrapped up in a Calton flight case, this Gilbert comes protected for many years to come.