In a forthcoming sale, the Spanish auction house Durán Arte y Subastas is housing the magnificent collection of Madrid luthier Marcelino López Nieto (1931-2018): a collection of over a hundred stringed instruments that testifies the history of music pover the last centuries. The extensive repertoire consists of guitars ranging from the late 17th century to today. There are also other instruments, such as harps, violas and medieval violins.
Here, we dive into the evolution of the guitar and the great change that the 19th century represented for this instrument.
In the early 19th century, Madrid, Paris, Vienna and Naples were at the centre of a cultural renaissance thanks to the breath of modernity that the Napoleonic empire brought with it. Already the 18th century had witnessed a great development of violin making in both Campania and France.
In this period, each city produced a particular type of guitar, recognisable by its number of strings. In Italy ,the pieces are usually composed of five or seven strings, while six in Spain. In France, on the other hand, there was a five to six string guitar transition.
Other interesting factors to take into account are the shape and size, which in those years changed to become the distinguishing mark of the producing countries. For example, French guitars are usually smaller than the Spanish ones, and the same is true of the Viennese ones. The difference in size is evident in this extraordinary collection of M. López Nieto, as it includes examples from all of these countries.
At the time, there were just as many artisans as there were guitars – who, in this century, designed and produced the pieces. Among others, we highlight Antonio de Torres, a violin maker who played a decisive role in the transformation of the Spanish guitar in the 19th century, and also Salvador Ibáñez, Hernandez and Aguado, Santos Hernandez, Francisco Viudes and Agusti Altimira.
Also present in the collection is a good number of violins, one of the most successful arched instruments in the history of music. Among others, a 19th-century violin stands out, likely a reproduction of the model of a famous Italian violin maker.
The salient point of the auction will also be some instruments built by Marcelino himself on the basis of models ranging from the Middle Ages to the 18th century. Also present in the catalogue are faithful reproductions of medieval instruments inspired by scenes that can be found, for example, in the Pórtico de la Gloria of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Others include vihuelas, instruments similar to the guitar very popular in the Renaissance, and baroque guitars, similar to contemporary ones, but with different proportions and elements.
Finally, we must mention the quality of the materials which are also very high: palo santo, rosewood, Canadian cedar, ebony, pine, spruce and cypress: precious woods that make these instruments witness the history of music unique in their kind.
This auction from Durán Arte y Subastas will take place on 25 October.
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