Directly behind the original Selmer-/ or Busato-Guitars the rare Favino-Guitars are within the most expensive and sought after Gypsyjazz-Guitars and count (for good reason) to the most famous as well.The great success of the Favino-Guitars (especially the Gypsyjazz-Models) are founded in their special way of making, invented by their creator Jacques Favino (image right) who started making them in the late 1940- and early 1950ies.
Jacques Favino (born in Piemont, North-Italy) immigrated in 1923 with his family from the sizilian village of Catania to Paris/France, like many other sicilian Guitar- and Instrumentmakers did before him, fleeing from the fashist Mussolini-Regime and plus suffering from unemployment.
Jacques Favino started to learn the making of Stringed-instruments in the early 1940ies. Arriving in Paris he soon started to work in the workshops of Bartolo Bernabe Busato and opened up his first own workshop around 1956 in the Rue de Clignancourt 9 in the Parisian Distrikt of Montmartre, building and selling his guitars there until aproximately 1982/83.
In 1978/79 Jacques started to withdraw from the business more and more. Beginning to work in his fathers workshop around 1976 his son Jean-Pierre Favino 1982 took over his business officially.
But still the two, father and son, were working together there in the workshop until around 1984, supported by two more sicilian guitarmakers helping them in building all kinds of instruments. This time (1980-1984) is what was called the "transition period" afterwhat, as there were some instruments already signed by Jean-Pierre Favino but still made by his father or the two together in the old way of making.
After 1984, when his father finally retired, Jean-Pierre Favino kept on building guitars in the same workshop in the Rue de Clignancourt 9 almost identically the same way he had learned it from his father, copying his type of models and designs. It was just until the late 1980- early 90ies when he began walking his own path in building guitars, developing his own kind of guitar-models. More Details about Favino-Guitars and their story you´ll find inside our articles Favino-History and Features of original Favino-Guitars.
Until today the Favino-Guitars, especially the ones of the father Jacques Favino, are considered the most expensive and best Gypsyjazz-Guitars on the Market.In the mid 1950ies when Jacques Favino started the construction of his famous Gypsyjazz-Guitar-Models (image top left, Favino Model No.10, built in 1960).
Generally he offered 2 basic-models: the Model Jazz No.10 "Gitans" and the Model Jazz No.10 "Macias" (image left, an extract of an old Favino-catalog from the year 1978).
The two models less distincted in their price but the making. Favino offered guitar-models made out of maple, Rio Palisandre and Indian Rosewood.
Typically for Favino-Guitars of Jacques Favino from the beginning were the three-piece-maple-necks. A feature that today is again beeing copied by many guitarmakers that are building Selmer- and Favinostyle-Guitars (e.g. Eimers Guitars or Dell-Arte).
In the early 1990ies when Jean-Pierre Favino began his own model-series he also started to invent his own style of this time 2-piece-maple-necks. More detailed Infos on Favino-Guitars you can find in our article "Features of original Favino-Guitars" were we briefly describe their special features.
Favino-Guitars have been made so famous by the many musicians who played or still play until today.
These are musicians like Matelot and Baro Ferré, Louis Fays, Jacques Montagne, Henri Salvador, Georges Moustaki, Sarane Ferré, Baro Ferret, Georges Brassens, Paul "Tschan Tschou" Vidal, Mondine Garcia, Chatou Garcia, Enrico Macias, Ninine Garcia, Boulou Ferre, Elios Ferre, Jacques Brel, Christian Escoude, Maurice Ferré, Fapy Lafertin, Francois Moerman, Rodolphe Raffalli, Romane, Raphael Fays, Bireli Lagrene, Hansche Weiss, Ziroli Winterstein, Lulu Reinhardt, Holzmanno Winterstein, Dorado Schmitt, Patrick Saussois, Moreno Winterstein, Stochelo Rosenberg, Tschavolo Schmitt and many, many more.
More Infos on Favino in our articles on the History of Favino and on the actual website of Jean-Pierre Favino.
In our JM-Guitar-Gallery we have put online anorganized Image-Archive for old Gypsyjazz-Guitars like Favinos (as well as Selmer-, Busato- and DiMauro-Guitars) to give you a detailed overview on the different models and for research on these rare guitars. Here you might take a look and find detailed information on these guitars, in case for a possible buy of an old Gypsyjazz-Guitar to define and compare the quality or details of an instrument to buy. So you might relatively sure get information about or if an instrument offered is really authentical. Be sure to read our articles about "Fake Gypsyjazzguitars" and "Tipps for buying guitars".
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