Thanks to everyone for the interest! This guitar has been SOLD.
Gorgeous tone, effortless playability and great materials.
This Wataru Tsuji (辻 渡) S-1 is handmade in the acclaimed Asturias workshop by Wataru Tsuji, one of Japan’s top classical guitar luthiers.This line of instruments is an in-house label of the Asturias brand.
This guitar features a Cedar top and Indian rosewood back and sides. The materials used are excellent.
The grain of the top is very close and the colour is very uniform. The backs and sides are nicely figured. Projection is good and it would easily fill a medium sized concert hall. The voicing is very lyrical with excellent balance, separation and clarity across all registers. It sings in all registers while maintaining a warm and romantic sound.
To collectors of Asturias instruments, this instrument has a timbre that combines the warmth of the Asturias Standard with the clarity, presence, bold basses and evenness of the Asturias Custom (the successor to the John Mills Model). It has the best of both worlds and it is an exceptional value for a concert guitar.
As expected of Tsuji, the playability is excellent and the fretboard is very fast.
This instrument has some playing wear but is in otherwise good condition. There is small string burn below the tie block and a nick at the lower bout. There is also some very slight clouding on the top left side on the instrument.
There are some light playing and handling marks. These marks are minor and difficult to photograph.
It has a retail price of SGD$3000 (¥;189,000), without shipping or GST. I’m pricing this one at SGD$2400 (USD$1905). It comes in its original hard shell case (with leather handle), complete with key. The label is signed by Wataru Tsuji and stamped, a procedure no longer practised. Now all instruments are either stamped or signed.
The instrument has some slight playing marks (please refer to the photos below) but is in excellent condition for a guitar its age. The neck is dead straight and there have been no cracks or repairs. This instrument is from my personal collection.
This instrument was build in the Hauser-style, but isn’t a strict copy. Tsuji’s line of guitar offers great value for exceptionally well-made guitars. I was highly impressed by them when I visited Japan on my last guitar expedition. Toru Yamashita (father of Kazuhito and Naoka Yamashita) stocks Asturias guitars in his teaching studio and he visits the workshop to handpick models for his studio.
Due to high domestic demand, these instruments rarely make their way out of Japan. It is rare for one to appear on the used market. Guitars from the Asturias and Tsuji label are quite popular in Japan and enjoy a strong fan-base there. Asturias guitars were also highly rated in GFA’s blind tests for sound quality and playability (but didn’t really take off due to distribution issues).
It is worth mentioning that Asturias also made guitars for noted luthier R.E Brune. John Mills has owned and performed extensively on Asturias guitars.
Internationally buyers, kindly e-mail me for a shipping quotation. I accept cash, paypal bank transfer or cheques. The buyer is to assume all shipping and transaction costs.
For more information, contact me here.
Specs
Scale length: 650
Width at nut:52mm
Width at 12th fret: 63mm
Soundboard: Cedar
Back/Sides: Indian Rosewood (laminated)
Finish of guitar: Lacquer
Action at 12 fret: 3.5mm at 1st string 4.0mm at 6th string
Sound Sample
[audio:http://www.dedrickkoh.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/If_she_asks.mp3|titles=If She Asks]
woah, i really like the sound sample!