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I composed "Gina" back in 1983 on my favorite acoustic guitar at that time: A 1979 C.F. Martin D-45 East Indian rosewood. It is definitely the guitar on which I have played most hours, written most music, played most concerts, recorded most tracks etc. I guess you could call it "the guitar of my life".
In the video of June I'm honoring this guitar by playing "Gina" on another Martin dreadnought: The C.F. Martin D-45 Deluxe CFMB CFM Sr 200th Anniversary (Brazilian). This guitar is #84 of 91 of a Limited Edition built in 1996 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the year of birth (1796) of the founder of the Martin Guitar company, Christian Frederick Martin Senior, a.k.a. C.F. Martin Sr.
Two Limited Editions were produced in 1996: An East Indian rosewood edition with a total of 114 guitars sold + 2 prototypes and a Brazilian rosewood edition with a total of 91 sold guitars + 2 prototypes. The Brazilian edition corresponds to the actual number of the famous pre-war D-45 guitars built from 1933-1942 with a total of 91 sold.
When studying the Martin book "Martin Guitars: A Technical Reference" I see that the Brazilian edition has not only one name but three names:
In the list of totals of Limited and Special Editions it is called:
D-45 CFMB CFM Sr. 200th
In the GOM, Special and Limited Editions quick reference chart (part one) and in the text about Limited Editions in 1996 it is called:
D-45 Deluxe CFM Sr. (Brazilian)
And furthermore: In the list of specifications it is just called D45CFMB.
Summing up, here I have chosen to call it C.F. Martin D-45 Deluxe CFMB CFM Sr 200th Anniversary (Brazilian).
It goes by many names☺
This D-45 is indeed a deluxe version of the "common" D-45. It features highly figured Brazilian rosewood back and sides, a select Sitka spruce top with aging toner, pre-war forward shifted scalloped X-bracing, modified V-neck, inside label signed by C.F. Martin IV and a replica signature of C.F. Martin Sr (C.F. Martin I) plus lots of other deluxe features. The abalone inlay work is very comprehensive showing not only the inlay work of a normal Martin Style 45 with snowflakes and diamonds inlays on the fingerboard but also pearl bordering on heel, neck, headstock, edge of headstock, edge of fingerboard and backstripe - and the signature of C.F. Martin Sr inlaid at the 19th fret. All in all, it's a very impressive dreadnought and an exceptionally fine sounding instrument.
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I'm not sure of how many guitars of the Brazilian edition that were exported to countries outside the US. I do know that the D-45 Deluxe I play in this video was imported as brand new into Holland by the Dutch Martin distributor - and that it has "lived" most of its life in Holland where it was offered for sale a few years ago at The Fellowship of Acoustics. Prior to 1996, Martin issued separate labeling in the Limited Edition Program for the domestic and foreign editions. Unfortunately this "separation" of the distribution of the editions was changed in 1996.
Playing Martin dreadnoughts is like "coming home" for me. I bought my first one in 1975, a 1971 D-18, and since then Martin dreadnoughts have been an essential part of my life with acoustic guitars. Some people say that dreadnoughts aren't well-suited for fingerpicking? Hmm, I don't agree!
I hope that you'll agree with me after having seen and listened to "Gina"☺
With reference and thanks to the following publications - warmly recommended:
Martin Guitars - A Technical Reference - by Richard Johnston and Dick Boak (Revised and updated from the original by Mike Longworth) - ISBN 978-1-4234-3982-0
Martin Guitars - A History - by Richard Johnston and Dick Boak (Revised and updated from the original by Mike Longworth) - ISBN 978-0-634-03785-6
Pictures of the guitar courtesy of The Fellowship of Acoustics, The Netherlands, who presented this guitar for sale in 2009.
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