Marchione Carve-Top Vintage Re-Issue, 2013

Originally sold by me, this remarkable and pristine 2013 Stephen Marchione Carve top VT has come home. This is a very special one of a kind guitar commemorating the 20th anniversary of Stephen’s opening his NYC shop.

Officially called the Marchione Carve-Top 1993 Reissue, this is what Stephen had to say about its genesis: "When I first opened my studio on 20th street in Manhattan in 1993, I made a few blonde carve-tops with black hardware and these decals. I recently discovered a handful of the old decals and started thinking about doing a Marchione Vintage Re-Issue. The carving pattern on this top and the beautiful wood really reminded me of that time and inspired this special guitar. It's hard to believe it's been 20 years, but I love making guitars now more than I ever did!"

Simply put, this VT Carve-Top is spectacular in every way. The one piece big leaf maple top is wonderfully shaped and visually arresting. It reminds me of the carve-top electrics that Stephen has built for Mark Knopfler. The natural finish is glass-like, very transparent, a result of Stephen french polishing the guitar before applying lacquer.

Everything is here. An amazing playing neck with a very seductive C shape neck profile. Some of the best fret work you’ll ever see.

Plugged into my Blackface Princeton Reverb, the guitar gives up all the sounds you expect from this design and pickup layout, but now elevated to another level. The tones have a zing and aliveness to them that you want from a carve-top with a wonderful midrange robustness. The tonal spectrum is complete from top to bottom, with a wonderful bloom and just the right amount of compression.

Bottom line: If you are looking for something really special, this rare Marchione is certainly worth considering. I think the real magic here is in how a single builder can conceive all the details and then execute them as a complete thought into one beautiful handmade guitar. It's all here. This Marchione needs to be experienced.

If you'd like to find out more about this item, just call or e-mail me. It would be my pleasure to talk to you about it.

ABOUT MARCHIONE GUITARS
At one time in his life, Stephen Marchione spent six hours a day playing the guitar. Now he makes them—in fact, since beginning his career as a guitar maker in 1989, Stephen has created more than three-hundred guitars for some of the best guitar players in the world. The journey from high-school jazz devotee to “the finest young guitar maker working today,” according to Chamber Music America, was a rich and complicated one. After establishing his own brand and working for several years in New York, Stephen Marchione moved to Houston, Texas, where he builds his entire family of guitars, but Marchione has also studied privately since 1994 with Manhattan-based violin maker Guy Rabut. "I try to build one violin a year to keep my chops up" Says Marchione. He feels that building classical guitars and violins broadens his understanding of top thicknessing, tap tuning, and surface preparation. On the other hand, building electric guitars has taught him the importance of the fretboard in a player's appreciation of a guitar. Marchione is considered one of a very few leading-edge pioneers in the design of guitars that combine elements of both jazz and classical construction. This well-rounded approach contributes to the magic one finds in a Marchione instrument, a magic that is at once very broad yet truly individual.