This Larsons-built Maurer 595 model has X-bracing and a slightly arched solid spruce top.
You could hang this on a wall in Versailles, and it wouldn’t look out of place. A 1920s 12-fret of impeccable beauty, the guitar positively drips with inlays. An elaborate pearl and abalone tree-of-life vine runs the length of the neck, from the top of the slotted mahogany headstock down its ebony fretboard. Within the herringbone purfling around the bound body and rosette, even more abalone decorates and dazzles. The ebony bridge features inlays of two ivory stars.
Measuring 15" wide and with a 25 1/2" scale length, the body is 3 1/4" deep, a bit shallower than you’d expect. It has a spruce top with Martin-style X-bracing underneath, and solid Brazilian rosewood back and sides. The neck is 1 7/8" wide at the nut, giving players more room across the fretboard.
This Maurer is a premium example of the work of the Larson Brothers, a pair of Swedish immigrants that occupy a unique space in American guitar craft. From about 1900 to the 1940s, they ran a tight operation that competed, in quality and innovation, with heavyweights like Gibson and Martin.
The guitar’s inlays, made of both pearl and abalone, run the length of the neck, from the headstock all the way down the fretboard.
Alongside archtops, mandolins, and harp-style guitars, the brothers built steel-string flattops like this Maurer—and started building them a full two decades before their rivals. But, while successful in their time, the Larsons were still very little-known in comparison. The fact that they didn’t release guitars under their own name, but a whole constellation of others—for their own brands Maurer, Prairie State, and Euphonon, for retailers like Wm. C. Stahl and W.J. Dyer, and more—didn’t help with name recognition.
Nonetheless, they were pioneers in modern acoustic lutherie, experimenting with reinforcement measures and building techniques. In 1904, August Larson patented his laminated bracing design, where he’d insert thin strips of harder rosewood or ebony within softer spruce braces, which helped add more rigid structure without too much more weight. He employed this technique in the Maurer 595 (you can see its “Pat” stamp inside the soundhole). In 1930, he patented a unique steel-rod contraption found in many Prairie State guitars, though not seen in our Vintage Vault find. Like most flattops built by the Larsons, this Maurer 595 also isn’t quite flat, thanks to another reinforcement measure the Larsons adopted. Built “under tension,” these tops have a permanent, slightly arched shape that, like their laminated bracing, helps withstand the pressure of steel strings.
You could hang this on a wall in Versailles and it wouldn’t even look out of place.
The precise level of detail and the problem-solving tenacity that the brothers brought to their work was no doubt spurred by August’s monastic devotion. Reportedly, he lived in the shop with a small bed and little furniture and was essentially married to his work (so much so that his one romantic marriage was short-lived). While it can’t be known who exactly did the inlay work on this instrument—August, Carl, or one of their part-time employees—it’s easy to imagine August hunched over a bench for hours upon exacting hours to get them right. And if not August himself, someone working with equal fervor in his shadow.
August Larson lived in his workshop, and it's not hard to imagine him or another dedicated employee toiling over the building of this guitar.
Photo by Jake Wildwood/Reverb
While we don’t know the exact year or have price lists for 1920s Maurers, this 595 represents the very top of the brand’s “best grade” guitars. So, it likely sold, originally, in the vicinity of $100, approaching the expense of higher-end Martins and Gibsons. Today, what had been low-end Maurers can fetch thousands of dollars, even in fair condition. Top-of-the-line builds like this 595 can fetch $20,000 or more if they’re collector-grade. Fortunately for all would-be buyers out there, this exact 595 has had enough repair work to be a little less expensive but remains in remarkably near-original shape.
Reverb seller Jake Wildwood, a self-described “country guitar doctor” that has worked on many Larson Brothers instruments, repaired the guitar, and writes that the work was minimal and quick: the removal of a metal bolt that had been placed in the heel, a neck reset, and some standard fret and setup work. Beyond the reproduction tuners, new bone saddle, and evidence of some repairs, this 595 is original. A 100-year-old guitar ready for its next century, with a current asking price of $17,000.
Sources: Gruhn’s Guide to Vintage Guitars, Vintage Guitar Price Guide, The Larsons Brother History (acousticmusic.org), Reverb listings and transaction data.
When braces are scalloped, material is removed from the center of the brace, which makes it more flexible in this area.
Early Spanish-style classical guitars used gut strings. These low-tension strings allowed the soundboards and bracing to be thin and light. In the mid-1800s, the Martin Guitar Company worked to increase the stability of their soundboards, which ultimately culminated in the creation of the X-bracing pattern. At the birth of this innovative design, X-bracing was offered on gut-string guitars. As steel strings became more popular, X-bracing was recognized for its ability to ideally accommodate the increased tension. This marked a clear break between Spanish-style classical instruments and what would soon become the modern flattop steel-string guitar.
When a bracing system is combined with the soundboard's material, it has the single most profound effect on the performance of the guitar.
As flattop builders worked to perfect the stability of this newfound bracing pattern, they continued to improve upon the sound of their guitars. Through shaping braces to lighten the system and by changing carving techniques, instrument makers found they were able to control soundboard flexibility. Many different bracing shapes emerged over time, each of which possess unique perks.
Shortly after the end of WWII, makers began tapering their braces, which resulted in a shift that defiantly changed the sound and feel of these bracing systems. Guitars with tapered bracing have material removed from the perimeter of the braces, thereby "tapering" these braces back toward the bridge. Unlike scalloping, tapering shifts flexibility to the perimeter of the guitar. These tops routinely have a higher voice, giving the instrument a more responsive and defined sound that's quicker to the touch.
The most celebrated vintage steel-string bracing system is the scalloped brace. Guitars with scalloped braces are voiced by removing material in a scooping motion from the center of each brace. This makes the tops more flexible in the center, primarily underneath and directly behind the bridge. These guitars typically have a lower fundamental with a round and full high end.
Tapered braces have material removed from the outer end of the brace, making the perimeter of the guitar more flexible.
I grew up on a 1957 Martin D-18, which was a great example of what tapered braces had to offer. Over time, I picked up a 1941 D-18 with scalloped braces. Even though these guitars were identical models, I had a preference depending on what style I was playing. In time, I perceived that I liked the 1957's tapered brace sound for flatpicking due to its quick response and separation of notes. But my 1941's lower fundamental was killer for rhythm accompaniment, something I found myself doing a lot of in the shank of my playing career.
Other options to consider were models like Martin's D-35 or Gibson's Country Western. Both of these guitars used lighter and smaller bracing absent of any scallop or taper. Instead, the smaller braces evenly dispersed the load throughout the top. While these lightly braced guitars confused many die-hard dreadnought players, the lower resonance and softer feel proved to be notably popular with fingerstyle performers and electric guitar players looking for an acoustic instrument with a lighter feel.
At this point, I should note that I'm referencing and comparing long-scale guitars. Even though it's true that the lower string tension on a shorter scale might simulate some of the topics I'm referring to, that is a topic unto itself. Regardless, don't be influenced by the hype surrounding bracing styles and become convinced it's a feature you must add to your collection. Instead, consider some of these observations to help you find a guitar that optimally complements your playing style.
