The Cebuano Guitar is a Mestizo Masterpiece
How Cebu’s luthiers shaped a world-class sound from local roots.
To talk about Cebuano guitars is actually a conversation often riddled with mystery and legend. In a country dotted by more than 7,200 islands, you wonder why Cebu has been synonymously betrothed with the identity of this melodious musical instrument.
In actuality, it is a fable rooted more in circumstance rather than mystique.
HISTORY
The story goes that Circa the 16th century when the Spanish first conquered our islands, their port of entry was the island of Mactan, Cebu. With conquest came assimilation, and as they settled in, eventually a blending of cultures took place.
As it happened the Spanish friars introduced the “Gitara,” a wooden stringed instrument that eventually had to be repaired due to its wear and tear.
When taking it back for repairs became impractical, the most skilled of the locals were commissioned as artisans who at that time, just happened to be concentrated in Mactan, Cebu.
That’s as far as the lore goes but it is only partially accurate.
It should be noted that the modern Spanish guitar came to be only in the late 1800s through Spanish Luthier Antonio de Torres Jurado who redesigned it to have a larger body, smaller waist curve and introduced fingerboards.
This basic design would be the prototype to what would be today’s modern guitar and so this iteration of the Spanish guitar could only have been introduced in the islands in the early 1900s and not as early as two centuries ago when the Spanish first arrived in Mactan, as often wistfully regaled.
MACTAN
My research of guitar craftsmanship in Mactan also revealed that the industry’s genesis did not actually take place exclusively in this island first visited by Ferdinand Magellan.
For instance, some of the more popular guitar brands like Alegre and Ferangeli were not home grown in Mactan.
Alegre hailed from Manila but decided to relocate to Cebu. Ditto with Fernando Dagoc of Ferangeli who started the business in Cebu City.
The reason for the eventual relocation to Mactan? It became a travel and tourist hub - the gateway to most international travelers.
But of course, there are the true local Mactan artisans like the Malingin family who both gave rise to “Susing’s” and “Lilang’s, which started in the 1950’s with the Mactan airbase personnel as its targeted clientele.
Be that as it may, the actual geographic location in the province of Cebu is only an aside, as what undoubtedly shines through is the Cebuano’s innate musical talent and craftsmanship.
MESTIZO
The term Mestizo often denotes a person of mixed ancestry and in the same manner that Spanish genes have permeated most of the local genealogy here, so it is with the Cebuano guitar. It is actually a collaboration of sorts between Spanish techniques, local craftsmanship and innate musical talent.
To make a good guitar you also need the input of good musicians and this is where the Cebuanos shine.
Known to be heralds by heart, the island is replete with natural musical talent. While you don’t need to be a great guitarist in order to be a good luthier, you do need to have a good musical ear.
Usually, local guitars here are made up of mahogany, acacia or jackfruit (nangka) while the more expensive ones utilize imported wood such as spruce and cedarwood which are often aged for years thus fetching handsome prices.
Still, more than the material - it is the skill of the luthier that brings the guitar to life. It takes more than mere carpentry - it takes a measure of wizardry that transmutes wood and taut strings into silhouettes of sound and melody that tear at the soul and move time and space.
This is why the Cebuano guitar is in actuality a mestizo masterpiece, a hybrid of Spanish influence and local talent.