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Kenny Hill

2015 Performance Model

2015 Performance Model

$5,250.00

For those of us in the guitar business who have a focus on classical guitars, Kenny Hill’s contribution to the classical guitar market is considerable.  Kenny Hill has the rare distinction of being both an outstanding player and an outstanding luthier.  Accordingly, in terms of construction and voicing, Kenny’s instruments greatly benefit from his insights and sensibilities as a highly trained guitarist.  These days, he is perhaps most associated with the concert level guitars he builds in his California shop and, on the other end of the spectrum, his high quality Chinese-produced New World line, built in a shop that he personally established.  He was also enlisted by the Cordoba Music Group to train their builders in producing the Master Series models, which are built in California (we also detect his influence in Chinese-made Cordoba models).  Yet, it could be argued that Kenny Hill’s most significant achievement was the production of hand-made replicas of famous builders (e.g., Ignacio Fleta, Miguel Rodriguez, Antonio de Torres, Louis Panormo, Jose Ramirez, and Herman Hauser).  Produced in the 1990s and early 2000s in both Felton, CA and Paracho, Mexico, these replicas filled a historically vacant and difficult-to-fill gap in the market, that being the “conservatory-level” guitar (i.e., a somewhat affordable guitar that can perform to the standards of a serious player who otherwise might not be prepared to invest in a concert level instrument). 

As the production of Master Series replica models came to a close in mid ‘00s, Kenny began concentrating on concert level guitars.  Though the Performance Model represented the entry level for this line, in many ways it also represented a continuation of Kenny’s commitment to performance value—indeed, we’ve found the Performance model to be competitive with more expensive offerings from other top builders at a much more modest price point.  Along that line, the Performance model boasts many features that are all the rage in the classical guitar market these days.  Chief among these are its double top—a sandwich of European spruce (on the exterior) and Western Red cedar (on the interior) with a middle layer of Nomex—and its lattice bracing.  This combination of a thin, but highly resilient top with a lightweight bracing pattern that is less longitudinally concentrated, creates more elastic behavior in the soundboard, as well as and a more uniform/concentric distribution of string energy.  The result is a guitar with an incredibly powerful and bold presence, profound dynamic range, and an exhilarating, high-velocity response.  It is important to note that such hot-rodded, lightweight top construction can indeed produce the tremendous power and projection that many modern players seek, but this front end power can often come at the expense of tone color and vocal nuance. Yet, Kenny Hill has seemingly achieved a difficult level of acoustic alchemy in the case the Performance Model, where the player is greeted by a highly refined and articulate voicing that readily delivers an immensely satisfying balance of power and color.  No doubt, this best-of-both-worlds tone can be attributed to Kenny’s experience as a player informing his decisions as a builder, rather than some dabbling in medieval mysticism or a sly greasing of the devil’s palm; but, regardless of his source of inspiration, the Performance Model is a standout value in the entryway to the world of modern concert-level classical guitars.    

 

Condition

As evidenced by the previous owner’s decision to house the guitar in a BAM flight case, this 2015 Performance Spruce was a well-kept guitar.  It was, however, actively played, and it has therefore picked up some signs of wear that are consistent with regular and respectful use.  There are some light nail marks on top that represent the majority of this guitar’s cosmetic wear; yet,  the most significant top wear is a dent on the treble side of the center seam near bottom of the guitar. There are some similar nail marks on back of neck, but these are all quite shallow. Finally, the finish has worn down on both the top and top edge of the side at the lower bout, corresponding to where the player’s right forearm makes contact with the guitar’s body—this is quite common with French-polished shellac finishes, which are inherently light and delicate.  This section of wear is fairly small, but it is evident upon closer inspection; and, while it could be improved or possibly eliminated entirely by re-padding/re-applying shellac, we have elected to leave it as-is, as the wear is not extensive. Otherwise, this fine instrument has no structural wear or repairs to note. - EXCELLENT Condition

  • Classical Body
  • Spruce Double-Top with Cedar Inner Layer
  • Lattice Bracing
  • Solid Indian Rosewood Back and Sides
  • Mahogany Binding
  • Ebony Heelcap
  • 7-Ply Top Wooden Top Purfling
  • Dual Sound Ports
  • Marquetry Inlay Rosette
  • French Polish Finish
  • Mahogany Neck
  • Ebony Fingerboard
  • Indian Rosewood Headstock Veneer
  • Gloss Neck Finish
  • Rosewood Bridge with Bone Tie Block,
  • Gotoh Engraved Brushed Gold Tuners with Ebony Buttons
  • Bone Nut
  • Bone Saddle
  • 52 mm Nut Width
  • 8.5 mm String Spacing
  • 650 mm Scale Length
  • BAM Hightech Flight Case (Carbon Color)
Brand HILL, KENNY
Model PERFORMANCE SP
Serial Number(s) 3958