The Roudhloff Guitar

(click to enlarge photo)

A 7 String guitar with a short 59.9cm string length for the 6 fretted strings, the extra bass string runs free off the edge of the neck. It is made with European spruce front, with figured maple back and sides, black lacquered neck and head, ebony fingerboard and bridge with simple bone and ebony decoration. I have also made reproductions of an extant 8 string guitar c.1840 by the Roudhloffs, which is identical to this instrument but with all spruce back and sides. There is also another surviving example of this guitar which has rosewood on a pine ground for its back and sides.

There is no date on the original label but the Roudhloff brothers Dominic and Arnould, although originally from Paris, were active makers in London in the mid 1800’s and this is only one of the many fine extant examples of their work. Their guitars show the influence of the French Style of Lacote as well as the Panormo syle. One of Louis Panormos daughters lived and worked as a servant for the Roudhloffs. They made great claims to have invented the ‘much improved melophonic guitar’ but research has not yet revealed what this guitar was, however it is suspected to be this 8 string guitar and it is known that the celebrated virtuoso Guilio Regondi performed on these guitars.

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