We’re excited to welcome Cordoba to the Sweetwater product lineup! Cordoba guitars are designed by internationally known luthiers Kenny Hill and Edmund Blochinger, and by Tim Miklaucic of Guitar Salon International. The designs of the guitars and the woods used are impeccable. These instruments are easy to play and sound amazing. Cordoba’s selection of nylon-string guitars ranges from student models to high-end classicals to flamenco guitars — they even delve into the ukulele world. Artists who play Cordoba include the Gipsy Kings, Leonard Cohen, Paolo Nutini, and The Decemberists.
Cordoba guitars feature traditional nylon-string guitar design and appointments, with some slight variations. Spanish-style fan bracing is preferred over X-bracing because it lets the guitar’s top vibrate more freely. It also gives the guitar a nice full-range tone. Neck widths of the Cordoba line vary in size. Some feature the common 2” classical nut width, though much of the line features narrower widths, ranging from 1.8″ to 1.96″.
All Cordoba guitars and ukuleles feature solid tops — yes, all of them. Solid tops do not have the obstruction of layers of wood glued together, and thus they vibrate more freely. Solid tops are also louder and more resonant, and they can be made thinner than laminates, making it even easier for the wood to vibrate. The decorative rosettes on Cordoba guitars are still painstakingly made from various woods, combining natural colors to create intricate inlay patterns. Ebony is used for black, ewe wood for yellow, maple for white, cypress for tan, and cherry for red and brown. Bone nuts and saddles are used on most models of Cordoba guitars. Bone transfers string vibration more effectively than plastic does, and it helps produce better tone.
Cordoba also makes a large selection of flamenco guitars. These guitars typically have thinner bodies and slightly smaller neck widths than do classical-style guitars. The wood selection for flamenco guitars can also vary, from the typical rosewood and mahogany back and sides to cypress, which offers punch and projection. The bracing and the tops are usually thinner than those on typical nylon-string guitars, and spruce is a favored tonewood. The string setup is lower and the neck angle flatter. The action is fast for hyper-speed chording and solo lines.
Sweetwater also carries many of Cordoba’s cutaway electric-acoustic guitar models. Both classical-style and flamenco-style models are available in this gig-friendly format. Fishman preamps and pickups are featured in Cordoba instruments. Some guitars include a hybrid pickup system, with both a piezo pickup and an internal microphone. The two can be blended together to create warm, lush nylon-string tones. The cutaway gives you easy access to the upper frets, for those extended solos and alternate chord voicings.
A ukulele craze has recently engulfed the U.S. In case you haven’t noticed, ukes are everywhere! Cordoba has an extensive line of ukuleles of all shapes and sizes, from soprano to tenor. Many feature solid tops as well as intricate handmade rosettes. Sweetwater even carries two electric-acoustic cutaway tenor ukuleles that are ready to rock at your next gig.
Sweetwater is proud to bring Cordoba into the Sweetwater family. Call your Sales Engineer to discover which Cordoba is the perfect guitar for you.
