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Lot Essay
The history of Martin Guitars can be traced back to Markneukirchen, Germany, with the birth of Christian Frederick Martin in 1796. Born into a family of guitar and cabinet-makers, Christian Frederick was sent to Vienna at the age of 15 to be apprenticed to the celebrated luthier Johann Stauffer. Upon returning to his native Saxony, he found himself embroiled in a bitter dispute between two competing guilds: the Cabinet Makers Guild, who were the traditional makers of guitars in Germany, were being challenged by the powerful Violinmakers Guild for the right to produce guitars. Though he and his colleagues were successful in defending the right to practice their vocation, Christian Frederick felt the guild system in Germany bridled his commercial opportunities and creative processes.
In 1833, Martin emigrated to the United States, setting up his first workshop on Hudson Street in New York City’s Lower West Side. Here he plied his trade for five years before moving his family and business to the pastoral setting of Nazareth, Pennsylvania. The rolling hills of the Pennsylvania countryside must have suited Martin well, for it was here in the 1850s, unfettered by the German guilds, that he was fully able to express his craftsmanship. The most enduring contribution to the luthier’s art came at around this period with his innovation of the ‘X’ bracing pattern for the top of a guitar. This bracing system is responsible for the extraordinary tonal quality of C.F. Martin instruments. The system proved to be the perfect balance of mass and material, allowing the top to vibrate to its fullest potential. It later proved to be fundamental with the application of steel strings on guitars, by allowing the top to withstand the pressures exerted by the strings. The ‘X’ bracing would be embraced by the majority of guitar makers by the 20th century, making the steel string guitar the choice for most musicians of popular song.
Through more than 190 years and seven generations of Martin family leadership this American guitar company produced a range of models and styles that became the standard for all flat-top guitar design. Their work influenced a generation of post-war guitar makers in both design and construction techniques. These instruments would be coveted by both professional and amateur players around the world and give an indelible voice to the genres of blues, country, folk, and rock and roll.
The first listing of the Style 45 was in C.F. Martin’s 1904 catalogue. Essentially a more robustly pearl inlaid instrument than their Style 42. Made in sizes 1, 0, 00 and by 1911 the 000 size, they were first priced at $100, $105, $110 and $120 respectively. In 1928 Martin had manufactured and shipped twenty-five 000-45 guitars with a catalogue price of $170 each. At the time it was the most expensive guitar made in their Nazareth workshops.
In 1833, Martin emigrated to the United States, setting up his first workshop on Hudson Street in New York City’s Lower West Side. Here he plied his trade for five years before moving his family and business to the pastoral setting of Nazareth, Pennsylvania. The rolling hills of the Pennsylvania countryside must have suited Martin well, for it was here in the 1850s, unfettered by the German guilds, that he was fully able to express his craftsmanship. The most enduring contribution to the luthier’s art came at around this period with his innovation of the ‘X’ bracing pattern for the top of a guitar. This bracing system is responsible for the extraordinary tonal quality of C.F. Martin instruments. The system proved to be the perfect balance of mass and material, allowing the top to vibrate to its fullest potential. It later proved to be fundamental with the application of steel strings on guitars, by allowing the top to withstand the pressures exerted by the strings. The ‘X’ bracing would be embraced by the majority of guitar makers by the 20th century, making the steel string guitar the choice for most musicians of popular song.
Through more than 190 years and seven generations of Martin family leadership this American guitar company produced a range of models and styles that became the standard for all flat-top guitar design. Their work influenced a generation of post-war guitar makers in both design and construction techniques. These instruments would be coveted by both professional and amateur players around the world and give an indelible voice to the genres of blues, country, folk, and rock and roll.
The first listing of the Style 45 was in C.F. Martin’s 1904 catalogue. Essentially a more robustly pearl inlaid instrument than their Style 42. Made in sizes 1, 0, 00 and by 1911 the 000 size, they were first priced at $100, $105, $110 and $120 respectively. In 1928 Martin had manufactured and shipped twenty-five 000-45 guitars with a catalogue price of $170 each. At the time it was the most expensive guitar made in their Nazareth workshops.