tested by Müller serial number 53339 built in the HEART of BAVARIA Framus Gaucho built as from 1971 neck & bridge screwed!

tested by Müller serial number 53339 strings used: KAMAN adamas 1717 Phosphor Bronze Acoustic Extra Light built in the HEART of BAVARIA

On July 27th 1900, Herman Carlson Levin began building his wonderful stringed instruments in a small workshop in Gothenburg, Sweden. My great passion is collecting these instruments that, to my eyes (and ears), were some of the finest guitars ever built..

Certainly, many people today know of Levin for its fine old arch-top guitars or its plainer and not quite so fine-sounding beginners' instruments from the 50s and 60s.
But long before this, Levin was top of it's class in Europe and other parts of the world. It already achieved a high-point as an instrument maker at the 1907 World's Fair in Madrid, where it won the gold medal for the best guitar. Remember, this was in the Spanish guitar builders' home territory. Not only that, Levin was awarded the exhibition's Grand Prix!

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Here's a c.1850s parlor guitar (would have been called 'concert' back then) that's most likely either American built trying to copy Martin's early guitars (body shape, body shape!) or European built trying to copy an early Martin. Either way, it's a truly beautiful guitar with an excellent spruce top, flamed maple back and sides (all solid, of course) and interesting features like a thick brass saddle, single pearl dot on the 5th fret, lovely soundhole rosette, and impeccable, balanced tone.

I've just recently restored it entirely -- glued four top cracks (including a 'stealth' crack right alongside the fingerboard, which is a yucky area to work), one back crack, and a total refret. I also did a lot of my usual touchup work, including scuff and smudge removal, some polishing of parts (fortunately, the tuners and saddle were not very tarnished), and minimization of scratches... and of course setup. The end result? This guitar plays and sounds amazing, and is a genuine piece of history.

For this reason, I had to share its sound with all of you before it hits the store rack and online listings and goes off to a new happy home!

I'm playing off of a couple short tunes of my own that I improvise on when I finish with a gut/nylon strung guitar... sort of like the "tone test."

Enjoy!

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Okay, so I tuned down my R.S. Williams and Sons parlor to D until I get some nylon strings for it to take pressure off the top. On my way there I tuned it to open D to try some slide on it, sounded so good I figured I post a clip of it for you peeps to see.

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Vintage Stella Parlor Acoustic Blues Guitar

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1915-1920 Vintage Stella Parlor Acoustic Guitar

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trad.ragtime jugband blues ( please don't comment on my rubbish playing and singing...!)
rare Clifford 6 string parlor guitar made perhaps between 1895-1902 by Jenkinson of Kansas,Missouri.
I love this little guitar......
Please contact me or leave message if you have any knowledge, or own one of these guitars.

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Great little guitar with ol'timey sound!! I've got a lot of these and it's fun to play them once in a while and let the reso's rest..

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Vintage Stella Parlor Acoustic Blues Guitar

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