A professional quality cutaway classical hybrid jazz guitar made of exquisite woods, representing a level of
workmanship last seen when Leonardo Da Vinci roamed irreverently
through the Renaissance. It has a 6-leaf flower comprising an open port in the upper bass rim that envelopes the player with his or her own sonic seasonings, a 2” wide
fingerboard measured at the nut, a hand-carved Bolivian rosewood back, as well as sides, fingerboard
and headplate. It displays a wide and
evenly-grained Master Grade Cedar top and absolutely adorable lattice bracing
under that 14 1/8” wide comely face. Lattice
look closely at that oval soundhole rosette – a work of art unto itself – a repeating
ring of extra-terrestrial crania surrounded on each side by twin concentric
circles made up of black and crème rings last seen at Aunt Maude’s Quilting
Bee, circa 1944. The crania-on-parade
are symbolic of infinite pleasure (so many things are), flowing freely against
a buttress of crème celluloid, and then all of this is bound, like a Braciola
Napolitana (a/k/a your Sunday braggiole) in three thin strips of red, crème and
black, prepared in a light garlic sauce with a white wine reduction. Just
seeing it is enough to make one drift off into a reverie of bonhomie. The back which, like the sides and the heel
cap, show a degree of swirl and vertigo-inducing figure so intense as to knock
one off his footstool, is mildly arched – which has the effect of forcing the
sound out and into the audience with so much alacrity that some may be benignly
battered by the palpable buffeting.
This Buscarino Cabaret is unique (meaning there ain’t
any others according to the builder) because
it has Bolivian rosewood back, sides, fingerboard and headstock overlay – all
matching woods. Additionally it is
bestowed with a select cedar top, stainless steel frets that will stay nice and
shiny and will last “forever.” It has a
most natural sounding pickup system – you should hear it plugged in! Its capabilities are enhanced by eschewing
everyday feedback. You might want to
know that this is the same pickup as is used by noted guitarist Gene
Bertoncini, producing warm, even tone in every position. Mystery fans will note that there is a
concealed volume and tone control in the soundhole; it even has a tone control
with a center detent – the wheel closest to the fingerboard is the volume and
the one off to the side is the tone control.
When you turn it, looking down at it, counterclockwise is treble and the
clockwise is bass. So is that “Righty
Brighty, Lefty Less Brighty?" I
don’t know – I always get confused when I think about stuff like that. You will squeal like a pig when you encounter
the comfortable 2” neck width fingerboard - good for both the classical goose and
the jazz-playing gander. Take a second
gander at the Brazilian rosewood, singularly variable, down-bearing bridge, designed
and created by this masterful builder to put more pressure on the treble
strings than the bass strings.
The tuners are fantastic – they are super smooth,
custom-ordered directly from Japan,
Gotoh. You will not find them on your grocer’s shelves
– since they are not offered by the Usual Sources. Made
by the Gotoh Custom Division (and you’d need a more than passing knowledge of
division to know this) they have an 18:1 ratio tuners which, while not
especially good odds in a fist fight come in quite handy when trying to tune
accurately. Played acoustically the
sound of this top-of-the-line cutaway professional (Concert Level) classical
blows the mind (“Eeeyuck!”) and, when plugged in to a high quality acoustic
amplifier, it surpasses all expectations for state sanctioned electric
elocution. Did we mention that it comes
in a super lightweight Hiscox brand Case, named the Lite-Flite Pro 2? This case offers superlative protection and
also won’t cause one of your arms to be longer than the other after you carry
your guitar through an airport, from one terminal to the other, the way some
well-known, high-density cases do.
Sure, it’s great that you can now tie your own (Tyrone) shoelaces
without bending your knees, but it’s so embarrassing when you’re hugging your
significant other with great emotional fervor and your right arm extends all
around his or her back and then continues around your own back and pulls out
your own personal wedgie.
It
has a neo-classical (sans-dot but there are dots on the bass side) fingerboard,
and that sensual nitrocellulose natural finish for which many yearn and few discern. Furthermore,
it has that Bo-rosewood headstock veneer, with its centered and boldly inlaid
stylized “B” and three sublime scallops at the top, a matching yet diminutive
matte finish truss rod cover held in place by one exceedingly confident golden
screw, a bone nut and saddle, and a rectangular bridge so elegant and sculpted,
with an abalone tie-block, it would make Da Vinci Da Lerious. All this combines
to yield an instrument that plays smoother than drawn butter and tastes like
the Lobster Thermador mother never made you. At least my mother never made it
for you. Yes, at first one might think
that eight thousand, five hundred Samarians is a lot of money to spend on a
mere vessel of six-string loveliness, but in fact, the more you know about its
sound and capabilities, the more you will realize that life is like a passing
wind and all any of us can do is embrace its fragrance and hold on tight.