Telesforo Julve, Valencia, Spain
Telesforo Julve is a very important person among the guitar makers of Spain. He is the nephew of Andres Marin and many famous masters worked in his workshop. Among them are Ricardo Sanchis Nacher and Vicente Tatay.
In 1931 he took over the workshop of Salvador Ibanez e Hijos, from which also some of the best Luthiers have emerged.
Telesforo Julve's guitar are famous among collectors nowadays.
But this one is not only interesting for collectors. It has an outstanding tone. The sound has a great vintage character with a great sustain. The basses are very distinctive, but nevertheless the guitar is balanced on all levels.
It is built as light as a feather and the sound is immediate, with an ample amount of tonal modulation and dynamic range. These guitars also boasts enormous power and can easily compete with modern guitars.
1886-01-11: Telesforo Julve, calle S. Bénon, Teruel is born. (R)
????: Telesforo Julve went in ???? to Valencia to start working with his uncle Andrés Marin guitar builder at Barcelonina,17 in Valencia. (R) (i)
(Marin was apprentice of Salvador Ibanez)
1910: Catalogue of Armengol y Llorens y Julve at Arzobispo Mayoral 11. (R)
1916: Catalogue of Llorens y Julve (same content as 1910) at Arzobispo Mayoral. (R)
1922: Catalogue of Julve at Arzobispo Mayoral 12 and 13. (R) (i)
1916-07-12: Telesforo Julve jr. is born.(R)
1929: Telesforo buys the production machinery from the Ibanez factory (who suffers from the great depression?) Ibanez' adress is demolished by civil Works, creating Plaza Ayuntamiento. (i)
1928-12: The telephone numbers in Valencia get 5 digits. (i)
1935: Start of the civil war; Valencia houses the republican government.
1936-1939: Name switch: Convento S.Francisco becomes Mariana Pineda during the war.
1938-1939: Bombardements of Valencia by Conservatives, Germany and Italy.
1939: End of the civil war; The Ibanez workshop/office is totally damaged and 2 brothers Ibanez died. (i)
1940-1950: During this period high production figures are achieved. (i)
1945-11-07: Telesforo Julve sr. dies(R)
Logo with adress c Convento S. Francisco 4(i)
1957-12: The telephone numbers in Valencia get 6 digits(i)
1964: José Orti leaves Telesforo Julve to join George M. Bowden at Palma de Mallorca. (DM)
1991: Telesforo Julve jr. still running a guitar shop (R)
19??: Telesforo Julve jr. buys strings from Classical Royal, but still makes his own strings
19??: Production of guitars stopped
Findings:
Telesforo Julve guitars earlier than 1922 should not be possible ( 1916-1922 is doubtfull )
First address (in 1910) is: C. Arzobispo Mayoral, 1.
Second last address (1936-1939) is: Mariana Pineda, 4 during.
Last adress is: Convento S. Francisco 4, Valencia
José Ortí Baneyto (1911-1968?) was one of Julves' best guitarreros while father and grandfather were same and also working for Julve. (DM) He joined Julve in ±1928 (M)
Julve guitars marked " #14 " are from José Orti. (D)
He left Julve in 1963/64 to join George Bowden at Palma de Mallorca (DM), and left Bowden in 1968. (M)
Dating a Telsforo Julve:
To date a Telesforo Julve, Ton Bogaard (nl) has done a lot of research.
He collected labels and information about the years these where used, and put this online.
This is a great help in dating any Telesforo Julve.
The link:
If you come across a Telesforo Julve sold in the Netherlands, you may find a number stamped into the headstock. (To read the number correctly, you must hold the guitar with the soundhole towards you.) These numbers were stamped in by the Dutch importer van Wouw NV.
Ton Bogaard also did research on these numbers and the year they represent and publiced them.
You can find them here:
Numbers Telesforo Julve by van Wouw NV.
Data collected from:
the internet (i)
Romanillos book "The vihuela de mano and the spanish guitar" (R)
Michael Dunn and Toni Mir (DM)
Guitar dating by Ton Bogaard