Musicians
Juan Falú
“Santiago de Cecilia guitars transmit the fine sensitivity of their makers. They respond to the subtle touch and expressive intention of the interpreters who, along with their love for the guitar, profess an enormous respect for music. And, in their permanent evolution, they are the most faithful testimony of the work of their creators, always attentive to research and their own search for sonorous excellence.
The very luthier of the guitars I used for decades, upon hearing the video of a live recording of a concert given in Barcelona in 2016, asked me:
-whose guitar is that guitar, which is not mine?
-It’s a “Santiago de Cecilia” that they brought me to try out and I decided to use in the concert.
-that’s the guitar for you- he affirmed, true to his nobility.
Indeed, it had sounded marvelous in all its notes and all over the fretboard.
Guillem Perez Quer
When you play a “Santiago de Cecilia” guitar you forget it exists: the instrument disappears in your hands and only the music appears. Its enveloping sound – powerful and refined at the same time – with a sustain that surprises you, responds to the most delicate nuances of your attack. The guitar adjusts to you and becomes an extension of yourself. What more could you ask for? What’s the secret? A combination of intelligence and sensitivity: Santiago likes to work together with the performers, and he – who is also an excellent guitarist – understands our opinions and suggestions and is inspired by them to continue his work. Santiago is totally open to research, to innovation, it is part of his DNA, he is more than a craftsman: he is a creator.
The “Santiago de Cecilia” guitars, related to the richest tradition of classical lutherie inherited from Antonio Torres, continue to open new paths, never cease to surprise us, I believe that in all this lies its increasingly consolidated presence in the hands of the most renowned performers!
Alex Garrobé
“Santiago de Cecilia’s guitars recover the search for the traditional sound. They are flexible instruments that stimulate the search for nuance in color and accentuation. The collaboration with the luthier, an expert guitarist himself, allows a progressive approach to the sound ideal of each performer.”
José Antonio Escobar
“For me, Santiago de Cecilia guitars are a clear example of perfection in the construction of modern guitars that, although they do not lose their connection with tradition, continue to search tirelessly for ways to adapt to the requirements of today’s player who is looking for an instrument that responds to all musical styles and ways of playing. I have always been struck by the elegant and noble sound of all their guitars, both cedar and pine, and at the same time how comfortable they are for both hands thanks to their fast response and neck design. But what seduces me the most is its great range of nuances and flexibility to change sound colors and dynamics, a very necessary element for what I look for in a professional guitar of excellence.”
Javier Contreras
“From the first time I had the opportunity to listen to a Santiago de Cecilia guitar, I knew it was an indispensable instrument for my work as a guitarist and composer, today I have the joy of owning one of these guitars and I must say that the virtues of this instrument are numerous. The 6 strings of the instrument are perfectly balanced in volume and tone, a tone that is also warm without losing clarity and definition as in other prestigious guitars. Playing on this guitar is simple, it offers you all the facilities to obtain great results in technically complex passages thanks to the thin arm of the guitar and its lightness when tightening the fingers in the left hand. An important virtue of this instrument is manifested in the harmonic field, for example, the dissonances executed on this guitar seem to make the whole instrument vibrate in a special way, even being felt in the body of the player. As for the right hand, it is enough to move the hand slightly to obtain new and abundant timbral colors. It is also a beautifully presented instrument. Every time I play on this guitar is like the first time, always a new, inspiring and rewarding experience.”
Esteban Espinoza
In Cecilia’s Santiago guitars I find a series of wonderful characteristics that make it an instrument of excellence; balanced sound throughout its register, great sustain and an exquisite comfort that I have felt in very few guitars. But these characteristics are not a surprise, because the nobility, generosity and love with which Cecilia Saenz and Santiago Canals devote themselves to their work, are values that are transferred to their instruments, resulting in a guitar with a sound, in short, sincere.
Sergio Moldavsky
“With great sonorous presence, expressive power, timbre balance and perfect intonation, the Santiago de Cecilia guitars are the hallmark of the best Spanish lutherie tradition in each and every one of their examples.”
Isabel Siewers
I have known Santiago since the time when he was studying guitar at the University of La Plata in Argentina. Already then, the passion and understanding with which he carried out his projects was evident.
With admiration I followed his beginnings as a luthier with Cecilia and I was able to try his guitars on several occasions. I was impressed by the beauty of their sound, their depth, the precision of their fingerboard, the ductility that allows to express the most subtle nuances.
During my visit to Barcelona as a jury member at the Miguel Llobet Competition in November 2017 I was able to visit the lutherie workshop ” Santiago de Cecilia”. On this occasion I tried two excellent guitars, a demonstration that their work continues to evolve even further, based on talent, research, experience and the love and care with which they build their beautifully crafted instruments.
Congratulations!
Laura Young
“Santiago’s guitars have that most wondrous quality of singing. To me this is the highest praise for a classical guitar as it is the most difficult element to find in the instrument and by far the most important for all forms of musical expression. The natural sweetness and depth of sound that his guitars have, makes them a pure pleasure to play. Each of his instruments provides a physical easiness to play in the hands and a deeply gratifying sound and singing – they are simply superb!!”
Anders Clemens
“Las guitarras Santiago de Cecilia tiene un sonido equilibrado y brillante que permite al guitarrista una búsqueda sonora profunda, particularmente me siento familiarizado con el sonido de las guitarras Santiago de Cecilia ya que tienen el carácter y el objetivo sonoro que puedo observar en las Guitarras de Alejandro que tengo el placer de conocer profundamente”
Leonardo Palacios
I have known Santiago and Cecilia and their splendid guitars for years.
These instruments come from their hands with an exquisite art where the result obtained is a very fair balance in all their registers.
The full sonority found without undermining the most important qualities in my opinion that should prevail in an instrument destined to the professional concert.
This is the quality of the sound, its well-balanced timbre properties and the achievement of a perfect balance between all its voices, constitute an extraordinary merit.
They are the product of builders who know what they are looking for and who also possess the craft, the high art that delights the interpreter.
It is a real pleasure to discover all these qualities in their guitars and also the absolute comfort for the hands of those who play them.
That is why I congratulate you for so many deep searches, for the beautiful results obtained in your new guitars and for honoring me with your friendship.
Luis Orias Diz
I arrived in Barcelona and on the advice of my friend José Antonio Escobar, I went to the atelier of Santiago de Cecilia guitars.
I was immediately impressed by these guitars, warm, clear in
I arrived in Barcelona and on the advice of my friend José Antonio Escobar, I went to the atelier of Santiago de Cecilia guitars.
I was immediately impressed by these guitars, warm, clear in expressing contrasts and counterpoint, generous and powerful. Beautiful instruments…
Patrick Villanti
“I’ve been playing a “Santiago de Cecilia” guitar for three years. I must say that it has changed my life as a guitarist. I’ve had the opportunity to try out several concert guitars, including those from the great names in lutherie, but the qualities of the “Santiago de Cecilia” guitar seduced me and continue to surprise me: ease of play, power, tuning, balance, a soft, warm sound that’s as malleable as you like, make this instrument a high-level guitar. Santiago is also an excellent guitarist, which enables him to better understand the expectations of his fellow guitarists. Santiago and Cecilia are very friendly and committed to quality work. Many thanks to Santiago and Cecilia.”
Ricardo Gonzalez Longo
Considering the more than fifty years that I have been playing all kinds of guitars, and taking into account the experience that this time has given me in the professional field of music, I believe I am able to establish with absolute clarity the difference between a “good” concert guitar and an “outstanding” guitar, or one of excellence.
In this respect, and having known and played the prestigious “SANTIAGO DE CECILIA” guitars from Barcelona (Spain), I can categorically affirm that they have impacted me favorably both for their precision in tuning, as well as for their warm and pleasant sound, being able to play works of great technical difficulty with total fluidity, since these instruments were absolutely “docile” and highly sensitive to my slightest requirements.
For this reason, and having been very pleasantly impressed by the high quality observed in the construction of the “Santiago de Cecilia” guitars, I recommend them without any doubt.
Edwin Guevara Gutiérrez
“Today we guitarists are fortunate for the great research that luthiers have done to create their own sound, their own style, making the whole guitar context evolve, from the technique to repertoires with new sonorous searches. I was fortunate to play a great guitar that gave me all the technical, sonorous and interpretative possibilities, allowing me to fly artistically in a sublime way. It was almost finished, it lacked some touches of varnish according to what they explained to me. When I played it for the first time I felt the powerful and indescribable magic of a perfect instrument. Besides, the first time I would play it would be in the world premiere of the first work that Leo Brouwer wrote for Cello and Guitar, Lorquianas, which he wrote and dedicated to the Villa-Lobos Duo, with the presence of the composer and the members of the Duo, all in the framework of the Liceu Cámara 2019 series organized by the Conservatório Superior de Música del Liceo de Barcelona. A series of concerts and master classes of the most important in Europe, with one of the greatest composers in the history of the guitar, and a unique opportunity that Santiago de Cecilia allowed me to play one of his wonderful works of art. Besides, the balance between the cello and the new guitar was perfect in all aspects of dynamics, color, contrast, effects. We can’t always count on instruments built with the highest construction qualities? because Cecilia and Santiago are high level musicians and they know perfectly well the demands that we concert players need in every scenario. Thank you Cecilia and Santiago for allowing me to produce the beautiful sounds of your musical creation and I invite all guitarists to try this magical sensation when we play perfect, magical and complete instruments. Cecilia’s Santiago guitars are more than just magnificent and perfect musical instruments, they are a magical door to time that allows us to feel from the stage the sound image of musical expressiveness”.
www.edwinguevara.com
www.duovillalobos.com
Ismael Grossman
When I played a Santiago de Cecilia guitar for the first time, I felt an immediate connection with the instrument. It had a hyper-sensitive reaction to my playing, to what I wanted to express musically, both in my compositions and in Tango, Folklore and classical pieces. Cecilia and Santiago’s guitars are extremely balanced in their frequencies, allowing the guitarist to direct the sounds without conditioning. I have used them in acoustic and amplified concerts, achieving an excellent performance in both situations.