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Only a little, but I was very impressed. I dropped in to his workshop the year before last, and tried the guitars that he happened to have on hand. They were all very good. There was a negra that I loved the sound and feel of (although the neck seemed a little thick, but that may have been because I had just come from another place where the guitars had thinner than usual necks). It was very tempting but beyond my price range at the time. Somewhere down the road I'd like to check them out again. I think you'll generally find that he's very well thought of and considered to be one of the best. You can find some comments if you search "Moreno" on the GSI forum.
(P.S. He's also a marvellous character and, as far as I know, has the best beard of any guitarrero.)
Great info, I really appreciate your reply. Vis a vis the neck thickness, had you just been to Andy Marvi's place (in the Alpujarra)? I have a Marvi negra which has been my main guitar for a few years -- very thin neck and wide fingerboard (as well as the most inspiring sound of any guitar I know)
Actually I e-mailed Sr. Rodriguez as to price and turnaround time and hadn't heard back -- may I ask what the dollars were when you were there?
Vis a vis the neck thickness, had you just been to Andy Marvi's place (in the Alpujarra)? I have a Marvi negra which has been my main guitar for a few years -- very thin neck
No, Jesús Bellido just down the road. He also makes a thin neck, and very light guitars. Rafa's guitars are surprisingly heavy by comparison. But the negra, for me, had a beautiful ring to it, and gave the impression that it could work for some kinds of non-flamenco music as well, which interests me. But I'd have to try it again. About the price, I don't recall exactly, but I have a note of it somewhere. Send an email to remind me.
I've played two Rafael Moreno Rodriguez's and one, the blanca, I have always regretted not buying. I don't remember the thickness of the neck but the body was a small Granada type and the sound was absolutely amazing.
I did the rounds of Granada makers in 1990 while waiting to pick up a guitar from Manuel Bellido. The best available was a blanca from Rafael (before his big beard). No comparison with MB though.