2004 Tom Blackshear 'Reyes'

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avimuno

Posts: 598
Joined: Feb. 9 2007
From: Paris, France

2004 Tom Blackshear 'Reyes'

Hi everyone,

I have acquired a 2004 Blackshear 'Reyes' about 5 months ago and I wanted to share my experience and impressions of this guitar after having played it heavily over the past 5 months.
It is the first 'Reyes' that Tom built and it's the very guitar he talks about on his website.
The previous owner had the neck flattened to be more like a Conde's neck (which is very confortable to play for long periods of time). The job was expertly done by German Vasquez Rubio, on the recommendation of Tom.
He also had Tom do some further fine-tuning to the top.

The craftmanship is flawless. It's a beautiful guitar that has been expertly put together by Tom using the best possible materials. I have owned a number of good guitars in the past, namely: a Kenny Hill 'Reyes', a Conde (Felipe V), an Antonio Raya Pardo and a Hermanos Sanchis Lopez 1F... all blancas.
I can honestly say that Tom's craftmanship is up there with the best of them.

Now the interesting part... playability and sound.
One thing I usually find very important for me is the tension/pulsation of the guitar. Tension that's too low does not give you a good 'definition' in the sound, especially when pushed. And tension that's too high is simply quite painful on the right hand.
The Blackshear's tension is perfect for me... higher than the Hill, Raya Pardo and Sanchis Lopez, but lower than the Conde, which I thought was way too high... even compared to my teacher's Pedro de Miguel and other Condes I have played in the past.
The Blackshear just 'feels' right. It's loose enough for powerful rasgeados but stiff enough for each note to retain its definition when I dig in with my right hand. I string the guitar with high tension trebles and normal tension basses, and it's exactly the way I like it: perfect for my dance studio gig. If I'm playing a 'solo' gig, I usually just put a high tension set on there and it also does a great job.

Soundwise it's an amazing guitar... period! I have never played a real Reyes so I cannot compare it to one. The closest thing to it I guess would be the Kenny Hill 'Reyes', which in my opinion, although being a good instrument, is not at the level of the Blackshear.
The guitar has crystalline bell-like trebles and rich/'loose' basses... it sounds very close to Tomatito's Reyes IMHO: not as agressive as Vicente's but with a 'bigger' sound.
Overall the sound could be described as rich, earthy and as having a lot of depth to it. It's both mellow/sweet and aggressive when you need it to be, which is quite unique. It's also full of harmonic overtones which is not common in flamenco blancas, but which works great in this particular design. For example, my friend who's a concert classical guitarist loved it because it could get a sound rich enough for classical guitar, but without being overly 'round' and mellow.
At the same time, the guitar is so loud and aggressive that the other guitarist at the dance studio have to mic up his Sanchis Carpio to be able to be heard over the Blackshear.

All in all, I can honestly say that it's the best guitar I have ever owned. I will never part with that one, and I am really curious as to what the negra version would sound like... maybe one day!

Saludos!

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Apr. 2 2010 12:27:33