The History of Siempre
A few years ago I had the good fortune to meet a man who has dedicated his life to preserving the classics, Joseph Gerald Blumetti. He started playing the guitar when he was 5 years old. Everyday of his life revolved around the guitar, practicing 12 + hours a day. He traveled the globe socializing and playing with the greatest players and guitar builders our generation has known. To this day Joe still practices 5 hours a day and then teaches for 8 hours +. His dedication to the guitar and the classics is unparalleled. For you jazz and rock musicians don’t despair. Joe’ Dad was a well known jazz player. Who had a following of fans that pursued him and his band from the honkey tonk bars to night clubs throughout the tri state area (see a picture of Joe’s Dad in front of his music store in Summit, New Jersey in 1965). Joe started playing rock and jazz and moved to the classical guitar in his teens.
In 1965 Joe started building classical guitars in the basement of his father’s store. Through the years he incorporated all he had learned from the great builders and players of his time. The goal he was working to achieve was to overcome the stigma of the acoustical guitar. For years the guitar was considered not a fit instrument to play in an orchestra. The problem was that it could not be heard over the other instruments. The greatest luthiers of the world worked to over come this. They designed many variations of the bridging in the guitar, used many woods for the top, sides and back, Shaped them with many contours, designed different frets and finger board materials, bridges, nuts and the list goes on and on. When the electric guitar came out these efforts stopped. Guitar builders could now focus on the how long the guitar would last and how pretty it looked. The efforts to keep the finish thin yet beautiful were over. It was no longer necessary to make the woods thin and or find dense woods. Who cared about the bridging, etc etc. the mind set was, if you want to be heard plug in. the world changed over night. But not with Joe. For years he worked on the opposite. Using all he had learned he built guitars for years in his father’s basement of the Summit Music store.
My good fortune
Joe and I met a few years ago for the first time (so we thought). I engaged him to teach me classical guitar. After about 6 months of lessons we became close friends. During our talks we came to realize that in 1965 we were sort of friends. You see I took Music lessons from Ricky Moore in 1965 in the basement of the Summit Music Store. After my lesson I would wander over to the back of the basement and there was a kid a few years older than me making guitars (it was Joe). Being a wood worker I was amazed at what was going on and questioned him. He was eager to explain what he was doing and why. To tell you the truth when ever I went for my music lesson I could not wait to be done to go talk with Joe and watch what he was doing. At that point in my life I was already a full time auto body man. The fact that I sprayed cars gave me something in common with Joe as he was spraying the guitars. I soon stopped taking lessons and our relationship ended.
a few years ago I asked Joe what became of the little guitar company he started. He explained that his music caused him to travel around the world and he had to let go of something. He also said I still have materials, jigs, designs, parts, notes from some of him great guitar makers of the world along with material tests I had performed. I convinced Joe to become my partner and act a chief consulting officer and together we would revive the company. It has taken longer than I anticipated, but the results are all that I hoped for. We have guitars to meet all level of player and more models coming out in the future.
What’s in a name
after working with Joe for a few years it was evident that the goal of a quality acoustical luthier was to make a guitar that could be heard. Not by plugging it in, but by shear construction of the resonating surfaces of the guitar. His methods and materials selection created a guitar that is bright, clear, loud and seemingly the sound goes on forever, Hence the name Siempre which means forever in Spain.