Guitar
Maker
Ervin Somogyi
Date1980/4
Place MadeOakland, California, United States, North America
ModelModified Dreadnought
Serial No.59
SignedPrinted in black ink on paper label with double-line border, the year and serial number written in black ink on banner over leaves in upper right corner of label: ERVIN 1980 No 59 / [Japanese honko signature stamped in red ink] SOMOGYI [text signature in blue ink over “SOMOGYI”] / OAKLAND, CALIFORNIAWritten on inside of top, upper bass bout: IV – 80 / # 59
MarkingsStamped on tuner covers: S / Made in Germany
DescriptionThis guitar is groundbreaking in the development of fine hand-built guitars for singer-songwriters. Somogyi, an American builder of high-end guitars, had spent years performing adjustments on pre-war American instruments for demanding musicians. This guitar represents a departure by an independent builder from copying standard models by Martin and Gibson to generating unique, new models for clients. The maker has called this instrument the "seminal guitar" in his career. It is featured on the album Willow by Daniel Hecht
Dan Hecht playing this guitar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qoA7WYCyJg
Stringing: six steel strings
Soundboard: two-piece spruce, fine grain
Back: two-piece book-matched figured Indian rosewood; rosewood back stripe surrounded on each side by light and black hardwood strips
Ribs: two-piece Indian rosewood divided by rosewood end graft surrounded on each side by light and black hardwood strips; end graft wider at top; four small rosewood plugs in bass rib near neck, under finish
Head: Spanish cedar peghead veneered with burled, open-pored light hardwood over black hardwood; scarf jointed onto neck under veneer
Neck: Spanish cedar
Heel cap: ebony inlaid with mother-of-pearl slotted diamond with light, light and dark hardwood trim on inside edge
Binding: rosewood with rosewood trim surrounded on each side by light and black hardwood strips on top and ribs; rosewood with light hardwood trim on back and light and dark hardwood trims on ribs
Fingerboard: ebony; 21 nickel-silver frets; single slotted diamonds behind 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 15th and 18th frets; double slotted diamonds behind 12 fret
Nut: bone
Bridge: Brazilian rosewood with belly and decoratively carved lower edge; bone compensated saddle; bone pins with abalone eyes
Tuners: six chrome-plated-steel Schaller covered worm-gear machine heads with ebony heads
Endpin: brass jack plug
Rosette: dyed hardwood mosaic surrounded on each side with two bands of rosewood and light hardwood and black-stained hardwood strips
Finish: clear
Linings: kerfed Spanish cedar
Neck block: Spanish cedar; rounded profile
End block: Spanish cedar; rounded profile
Top braces: spruce X-brace; cross braces above and below soundhole; two transverse braces below X, two transverse braces on each side of X; rosewood bridge plate
Back braces: Spanish cedar back graft; three Spanish cedar back braces
DimensionsTotal guitar length: 1049 mm (41-5/16″)
Back length: 513 mm (20-3/16″)
Upper bout width: 302 mm (11-29/32″)
Waist width: 266 mm (10-15/32″)
Lower bout width: 406 mm (16″)
Rib height (including edging) at heel: 102 mm (4″)
Rib height, at waist: 111 mm (4-3/8″)
Rib height, at end block: 125 mm (4-15/16″)
Head length: 184 mm (7-1/4″)
Head width, top: 75 mm (2-31/32″)
Head width, bottom: 69 mm (2-23/32″)
Neck length (nut to ribs): 353 mm (13-29/32″)
Neck width, nut: 46 mm (1-13/16″)
Neck width, heel: 56 mm (2-3/16″)
Soundhole diameter: 103 mm (4-1/32″)
Vibrating string length (nut to bridge edge): high E: 645 mm (25-3/8″); low E: 647 mm (25-15/32″)
Published ReferencesKathryn Marie Dudley, Guitar Makers. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2014), pp. 193-201.
Credit LineGift of Dream Guitars, Inc., 2009
Object number14414
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