Map of Guitar-Luthiers in Madrid

The Spanish guitar is one of the first things associated with Spain in the mind of non-Spaniards, and the country has a tradition of guitar-luthiers, craftsmen who make classical and flamenco guitars, not by factory production line processes, but by hand. Furthermore, Madrid has a valid claim to being the centre of the Spanish guitar universe, and a guitar enthusiast visiting Madrid could well want to take in some of the establishments of the legendary guitar makers which still make up something like an Escuela de Madrid. Names like Manuel Rodriguez, Manuel Contreras, Conde Hermanos or the greatest of the great, the most mythical of Madrid luthiers, José Ramírez. In general, it should be said, their establishments are not as impressive as their illustrious names, and even the most fanatical classical guitar fan might pass some of their shop fronts without sparing them a second glance were it not for the fame of the luthiers they represent. So if you are going to do the Madrid Luthiers' walk, it will be because you appreciate fine guitar makers and their art, not because you like a pretty shop window.

The walking route described here is not much more than 2 miles long, and takes you to some of the most emblematic corners of Madrid - the Gran Vía, the Palacio Real, the Plaza Mayor and Madrid de los Austrias, Hapsburg Madrid.

As you can see from the map, most of Madrid's guitar luthiers are conveniently grouped together in the historic centre. Let's start with Angel Benito Aguado, a little to the north of the others. His shop is not far away from them, though, at Calle Monteleón, 14, in the popular Malasaña district of Madrid - the Metro stations of Bilbao or Noviciado will land you nearly as close, but San Bernardo is the nearest. Though very highly respected, Aguado is an atypical Madrid luthier, as well, in that he is essentially self-taught, so has little connection with other Madrid guitar makers - in other words, if you are going to leave one establishment off your list, it could be his.

A quarter of a mile or so to the south, your next stop could be Manuel Rodriguez e Hijos, at Calle Hortaleza, 26, on the edge of the lively Chueca district of Madrid. It is, frankly, one of the more disappointing shop windows you will pass on this route, and looks like the sort of place you would enter to buy recorder music for a child rather than the historic establishment it really is.

A stroll down the Gran Vía and a few back streets skirting the Spanish Senate will take you to the much more impressive establishment of Conde Hermanos, at Calle Felipe V, 2. Now this is more like it, expensive, rare-looking instruments glowing warmly in the shop window, which is not surprising for that is what they are, rare and expensive instruments, as befits the aristocratic name of this firm of luthiers. Walk around the entrance to the Teatro Real facing the Palacio Real (which music lovers may also want to visit, as it contains a sweet collection of ancient instruments) and at Calle Carlos III, 1, you will find the Real Musical shop of musical instruments and sheet music. It is marked with a pin rather than a bubble on the map as it is not a luthier in itself, but it is a joy to look around anyway. Another non-luthier you may also enjoy browsing in is El Flamenco Vive, at Calle Conde de Lemos, 7, a few yards south of the Real Musical. As its name suggests, it is dedicated to flamenco and stocks practically everything related with that genre you could imagine, from CDs (the widest flamenco discography in the world, they claim), DVDs and books, to the kind of accessory you might conceivably take back as a souvenir for a nephew or niece - castanets, flamenco clothing and shoes, anod so on. But El Flamenco Vive is mainly worth your attention on this walk as it stocks the instruments of Valencian luthiers Hermanos Sanchez López, and very fine guitars they are, too.

A little south of the Real Musical and El Flamenco Vive, at Calle Mayor, 80 is the establishment of another venerable Madrid luthier, Manuel Contreras II, possibly the most satisfying stop on your walk. Apart from guitars, including the firm's own which are very fine indeed, Contreras stocks instruments of all kinds and from all over the world, notably the Americas (that means Central and South America in Spain), and is a delight to browse around.

You could skip the next luthier (I have not included his workshop on the route or counted him in the 2-mile estimate), but if you have the energy, you will find it worthwhile to head south towards the Rastro district of Madrid where you will find the workshop and shop of Félix Manzanero, at Calle de Santa Ana, 12 (don't confuse this with the Plaza de Santa Ana, which is somewhere else). Manzanero is known as one of the more approachable of Madrid's luthiers, and is quite likely to shut up shop while he shows you around and chats.

Leaving or skipping Manzanero's workshop, you will find the workshop of Antonio Iznaoloa to the south of the Plaza Mayor, at Calle Imperial, 16. Iznaola has an impressive collection of antique guitars, including original pieces by the great Antonio de Torres, considered the inventor of the modern classical guitar in the 1850s. And near Iznaola's establishment, at Calle La Paz, 8, is our holy grail, the shop of the great firm of José Ramírez, luthiers who have been making guitars since 1882, over 125 years. José was the family's founding father, succeeded by Manuel and a succession of José's, II, III and IV - it is not surprising that a 2004 book about the Ramirez's was called "The Ramírez Dynasty" (with the subtitle "Spain's first family of classical guitar construction," - the Ramírez's are guitar-making royalty). The Rámirez shop has a selection of the family guitar collection, including "examples not only made by the Ramírez dynasty, but also, amongst others, Antonio de Torres, Santos Hermández, Dionisio Guerra, Francisco Simplicio, and Manuel Muñoa."

The José Ramírez shop makes a good end to this tour of Madrid's guitar-luthiers, and leaves you close to the Puerta del Sol and the Plaza Mayor, Madrid's historic centre (in fact, the Puerta del Sol is the centre of Spain, for it holds the famous plaque marking Kilometre 0, from which all road distances in the country are measured). But if you are still hungry for more, there is more. The modest workshop of Juan Alvarez is not far from the Ramírez shop, at Calle San Pedro, 7, heading down towards the Paseo del Prado. Further away, near the Plaza de Castilla in the north of Madrid, at Calle del Loto, 15, is the more sumptuous establishment of Paulino Bernabe (you may well have heard the name, even seen Paulino Bernabe instruments on sale at your local classical guitar dealer's. Practically all these firms are exporters, they have to be - the market for hand-crafted guitars in Madrid is simply not big enough). Even further away, in the satellite town of Leganés, is the workshop of Teodoro Pérez. And there may be more, I cannot claim to have found all the guitar-luthiers in Madrid. So if you know of any glaring or not-so-glaring omissions, do please, let me know.