Markneukirchen 1870 Romantic guitar

Johann August Paulus (1807 - 1870) was a guitar maker in Markneukirchen. He received awards for his instruments in 1837. His instruments were also recognized and awarded at an exhibition in 1927, long after his death. Paulus worked for a time with Christian Friedrich Martin (the founder of C.F. Martin & Co) in the workshop of Johann Georg Stauffer in Vienna before returning to Markneukirchen. Among others, he trained Karl August Jacob, the father of Richard Jacob Weissgerber.

The construction of this guitar is truly unique and demonstrates exceptionally high quality. It was built in the style of the famous Viennese guitars, incorporating elements from Stauffer and showing a relationship to the first guitars made by C.F. Martin in the USA. We would like to explain this in more detail:

Stauffer and Markneukirchen

Markneukirchen was a center of German guitar making for many generations. The guitars of Johann Georg Stauffer had a great influence on guitar making throughout Germany. This guitar shows elements of precise German construction combined with aspects of the Viennese style. For example, the head and neck foot are perfectly crafted. The bracing is very fine and in the style of Stauffer guitars.

Relation to C.F. Martin

Christian Friedrich Martin and Paulus are connected by their birthplace Markneukirchen and their joint work in Stauffer's workshop. Like Martin, Paulus was also very keen to experiment. Martin also experimented with the Spanish construction method and integrated elements from Stauffer as well as the traditional Markneukirchen construction method into his design. A cross-border guitar building style, as with this guitar, was also practiced under the C.F. Martin label on the other side of the ocean.

The Markneukirchen 1870 Romantic guitar has a spruce top and sides and a back made of fine rosewood. The scale length is 622 mm and the nut width is 46 mm.

The sound of the Markneukirchen 1870 Romantic guitar is impressive with a velvety, dark but very powerful tone of unusual substance. The sound is very touching and this guitar arouses deep emotions. The basses are round and precise, with a very special and enchanting quality. The singing and crystalline trebles offer a fantastic spectrum of timbres. The sound of the guitar is fine and delicate, but you are amazed at how loud it can get and what volume it develops, despite its relatively small body. Definitely a romantic guitar at a very high level with a charming sound, perfect for approaching the music of old composers in an authentic way.

This Markneukirchen 1870 Romantic guitar has been very professionally restored and is ready to play.