New Guitar: Cordoba Gitano D-5

MichaelHorowitz

Hi All,

I'm adding a guitars section to the store. I just got this great new guitar from Cordoba. It's built in Spain and really nice...especially for the price:

Cordoba
Gitano D-5 Guitar

They have a petite bouche model as well...I should have some soon. See below for more info.

I'll also be getting some Sagas in shortly.

'm

asd123321

And you're not claiming better than a Gitane for less money?

With so much mail order buying, a comparison of Selmer types like these
Larivees would be handy.
http://www.larriveeforum.com/smf/index.php?topic=5947.0

MichaelHorowitz

It just might be better then the Gitane. It seems to have better hardware, bridge, and set up. It actually comes with Argentine strings on it! And it's made in Spain.

I don't have a Gitane to compare it to...but I'll have some soon.

I don't really think the recorded sound of a guitar tells you all that much about it. You're hearing the mic, amp, mixing console, etc as much as the guitar.

And of course, the player matters the most. If Tchavolo was playing you probably couldn't tell the difference between a vintage Selmer and an Aria!

'm

Jack

It never ends at Djangobooks! I wonder when you sleep. Any plans to pick up other lines after these two?

Best,
Jack.

MichaelHorowitz

Well.. when you have kids you never get much sleep anyway!

Yeah, I'll be looking into some other builders. The usual suspects...

'm

a

"And of course, the player matters the most. If Tchavolo was playing you probably couldn't tell the difference between a vintage Selmer and an Aria! "

Is that because he plays hard? I heard that a lot of gypsys who own cheap guitars raise their action really high and use a lot of force to get a good sound. Jacques Mazzoleni told me that they like to "jump" on their guitars.

When compared to the sound of a pianist, or violinist, what is the normal volume for a gypsy jazz guitarist?

I ask this because its kind of hard to tell from recordings and videos. most of the time, I have to turn the volume up when Django starts to solo.

oscar

Ahhh.....Cordoba......

I wonder....under the tailpiece...is there some "fine Corinthian leather"?

MichaelHorowitz

I just used Tchavolo as a random example...what I meant is that the player (who ever they may be) has a huge effect on how the guitar sounds. But I probably picked Tchavolo because he has a reputation for playing cheap guitars, and they always sound great when he plays them.

I've never seen or played one of Tchavolos guitars, but it seems pretty obvious that he must have very high action. When you watch him play he looks like he's really pounding the instrument. Very heavy right hand. And it sounds that way too. And he seems to have very little buzz and also not a lot of sustain, which is characteristic of very high action. It's a great sound! But takes really great technique to make it work.

Other players use lower set ups. I think Stochelo used to play with a lot higher action then he does now. His sound on his earlier recordings is just amazing...full and rich with very little buzz. His CD Caravan has probably the best Selmer tone I've ever heard. But nowadays I think he must play with a lower set up. His sound is still great...but seems buzzier and thinner then the earlier recordings. I think it's just really hard to maintain the technique required to play with higher action. I played Stochelo's guitar once...the action was definitely on the high side.

You can definitely make lower action work...Bireli does. It's obviously not ultra low, but he has more buzz then most but still has a great sound.

'm

trumbology

a wrote:

Is that because he plays hard? ...[snip]
When compared to the sound of a pianist, or violinist, what is the normal volume for a gypsy jazz guitarist?

Something I've been wondering lately, too.

When Gypsy picking, does a forceful rest-stroke cause, in anyone's opinion, bring out a note that's balanced more toward fundamentals than overtones, or vice-versa, or is this a stupid question? In my limited experience, on a 670 mm scale guitar, guitars tend to sound more alike when being 'Gypsy Picked' (single note lines played forcefully) than when played other ways.

Does the tonal character of a Selmeroid guitar show up more when one is picking softly, or hitting rhythm chords? Is it just a matter of "growing you ears" to the point where you can hear those subtle tonal differences when you are picking forcefully on a Selmer?

Neil

a

I was trying to make a copy of my moustache pick, but accidentally made it twice as thick. I use this "boat" pick to bring up the lower formants of the guitar. it sounds especially good when playing over the sweet spot (almost right over the oval hole). it adds a lot of needed tension there and makes a warm, loud sound. you know how django sounded kind of like a big cat? well this makes the guitar sound more like a large woman or a man. if that doesn't make sense...it sounds kind of like an amplified archtop...very clean but bassy, like wes montgomery. the action on my guitar is set so high that i can fit my finger in the space between the string and the fretboard. i feel like i'm playing a cello, or a big harp.

sockeye

Michael Horowitz wrote:

I've never seen or played one of Tchavolos guitars, but it seems pretty obvious that he must have very high action. When you watch him play he looks like he's really pounding the instrument.

If I'm understanding correctly, this guitar belonged to him. It's definitely been played hard: