I was thrilled to be working with Bob Benedetto, late in his career, on a pair of master guitars - the Benedetto Cremona 18s".  One guitar was spec'd for a customer, and one was for Artistic Guitars.  I was to become a Benedetto dealer as well which didn’t materialize as they decided to just sell direct.  

Earlier in my guitar search in the early 1980's, I was searching for a handmade boutique archtop guitar.  I had written to Bob, and he sent me back some pictures of his Cremona and Fratello models. At the time, the top-of-the-line Cremona was $3,000.  So I had to pass at that time.  Bob is the #4 archtop luthier (John D'Angelico, James D'Aquisto, John Montelleone, and then Bob).  In the design of the Cremona 18" serial number S2000, I wanted to model this after Bob's 25th Anniversary Guitar which was a 17" Cremona.  I provided Bob with a complete set of specs, down to the neck profile with width and thickness specifications.

I wanted a very clear close-grained European Spruce top, and very clear and flamey European premier aged flamed Maple for the back and sides.  I wanted the color to be Bob's slightly patina'd honey blonde nitrocellulose lacquer which is a very rich color.  We exchanged numerous emails on the bracing (X vs parallel), the # of plies on the neck (1 / 3 / 5) and decided to use a highly flamed one-piece Maple neck. We selected Bob's purflings and bindings as he used on his violins.  Bob was no longer using celluloid bindings, which look great, but shrink at a different rate than the wood and crack with age.  I wanted the "Gibson-like" stylized end with a 12" radius dark Ebony fingerboard.  The trim pieces (tailpiece and Chuck Wayne-style narrow finger rest) were to be made from burled Walnut, Redwood, or Aboyna, based on color and availability.  Inlay was to be kept minimal to not impact the exceptional wood craftsmanship. However, Bob would add some nice touches with the headstock "Cremona", the 12th fret flower, and the burled veneer on the bridge and end cap.

The guitar came out to be spectacular.  It features the finest European Spruce top, and European aged flamed Maple sides and back.  The flamed Maple Binding consists of a violin-style inner 6B/5W purfling on top and back, and 4B/4W purfling on the fingerboard and headstock, with single B/W/B on sides and f-holes. The one-piece neck uses flamed Maple, with a custom neck carve from specs by Artistic Guitars based on Gibson's L5.  

The headstock, headstock back, Chuck Wayne style narrow finger rest and tailpiece are all made from burled Aboyna.  This wood exudes a very aromatic fragrance, the sweetest smelling wood you will ever experience.  It just fills the room, when the guitar is being played.

My Cremona is one of the last ones built by Bob before he retired and features an 18" lower bout.  Bob has not built very many 18" guitars, as many players view them as too large to hold.  However the added cavity volume helps with bass response and acoustic volume and projection.  This guitar also has a very special serial number - #2000, and was built in Savannah, Georgia - dated 9/28/2011.

I am thrilled by this guitar.  It is very lightweight and very resonant.  It's acoustic sound is very clean and crisp, with great clarity and responsiveness.  When plugged into a nice acoustic amplifier, the Benedetto pickup does a nice job in amplifying output without coloring the excellent acoustic tone.

I must say, this one is PERFECT!