Vicente Carrillo

Luthier

Preserving Spanish guitar traditions

Vicente comes from a family with a long history of guitar making
He feels the family tradition has been crucial in learning his craft
He has made guitars for some of the world's greatest musicians

Vicente Carrillo belongs to the eighth generation of a family of luthiers from the village of Casasimarro, near Cuenca. He learned guitar making from his mother and chose to follow the family tradition instead of heading to university. Right from the beginning, he has striven for innovation and quality, welcoming new materials, techniques and influences from all over the world. Vicente loves to talk about 'guitarreros', the Spanish word for guitar makers, instead of luthiers. “When you come from a long family tradition, you feel like the guitar is yours, like a creature,” he adds. All the great guitar players – Paco de Lucía, Keith Richards, Alejandro Sanz – have used an instrument from his workshop.

Where

Interview

When did you feel you'd learned all you needed?: It’s not easy to say, because as a luthier, you are always learning and searching. Clients ask for new sounds and new techniques. Guitars are made nowadays as they were a century ago, but there are a lot more variations that we must know and that people demand today.
What allows you to innovate?: Wood, for one thing. I really love its different patterns, specially those in exotic woods. It allows us to play with the aesthetic appearance of the guitar on the outside, and in this way we can innovate. We retain the tradition of classical Spanish guitar but we try not to limit ourselves to it.
What makes a great guitar?: Materials, technique, sound. But your relationship with the client is also very important. To fulfil their expectations you need time. The greatest honour is to see big artists playing your instruments around the world.
What do you need to become a 'guitarrero'?: First of all patience, then humility in your everyday tasks with your team. These are my values and they have been very useful during my entire career. Then you have to study wood deeply and choose good workshops to learn from.

Vicente Carrillo is an expert artisan: he began his career in 1980