Collection: Guitars

Valencia classical guitars in half, three-quarter and full size, for school programs, private teachers and beginners.

These are nylon-strung classical guitars. Nylon strings sit under far less tension than steel, which means they are gentler on young fingers and the neck does not need the truss rod and heavy bracing a steel-string guitar requires. The neck is also wider and flatter than a steel-string, which gives more room between strings for fingerstyle and classical technique.

Size is the decision that matters. As a rough guide, half size suits students around five to eight, three-quarter around eight to twelve, and full size from about twelve upward, though hand size and arm length matter more than age. A guitar that is too large is the most common reason a young student gives up, because they cannot reach the first position comfortably and everything sounds bad no matter how hard they try.

The three-quarter hybrid slim neck model is worth knowing about. It has a narrower neck than a standard three-quarter, which suits students moving over from ukulele, since the string spacing feels closer to what their hands already know.

Nylon string sets, padded bags in all three sizes, capos, picks and humidifiers are stocked separately.