Introduction
Whether Venetian (rounded) or Florentine (pointed), the cutaway has always been popular with electric and acoustic guitarists — rather less so with classical players. The reason is justified: it distorts the curves of the instrument. This article presents a different approach: a top that inclines progressively at the body-neck junction, giving access to upper positions while preserving the classical guitar's unbroken silhouette. As a further benefit, the additional wood beneath the fingerboard extension appears to add body to the upper register notes.
Phase I
The solera
adapter
Fabricating the adapter
An alder block is shaped to determine the future geometry of the top — it fills the space between the solera and the soundboard during assembly. A plane with a rounded sole is used to hollow it out, so that the drop in the top is smooth and continuous with the top's own vault, rather than angular.
Cutting and finishing the adapter
The scroll saw cuts the outline. The adapter is then varnished — to prevent it bonding to the soundboard — and screwed onto the solera. It is designed to be removable, so the solera can be used for standard construction too.
Phase II
The split
soundboard
Splitting and bracing the top
After gluing the rosette reinforcement (cross-grained, for rigidity), the soundboard is sawn in two up to the rosette. The harmonic bars are the structural backbone of the guitar's architecture — their fit and gluing must be perfect. Because the two halves of the top are no longer at the same level, the solution is to glue two half-bars, then plane them flat across the full length before gluing a single bar over them to consolidate the joint.
Cutting the neck to fit
Cuts are made into the neck heel to accommodate the two levels of the top. The top is then glued to the neck, and traditional assembly continues from this point. The purfling follows in the normal way.
Phase III
The fingerboard
extension
Fitting the bridge piece
The next step is to fabricate the fingerboard and the piece that fills the space between the fingerboard extension and the inclined top. This piece is fitted with precision, glued to the top, then planed flat to receive the fingerboard. The gluing surfaces of both fingerboard and neck are scored with a point to ensure adhesion and prevent any slipping during clamping. Oak wedges, preheated, are used as clamps.
Sculpting the transition
The junction piece between the top and the fingerboard must be sculpted smoothly. To avoid damaging the spruce soundboard, it is protected with a small scraper held in place by masking tape. The result is a continuous curve from body to fingerboard — upper-register access without any visual interruption of the guitar's form.
Wood selection
The guitar documented in this article was built entirely in local wood: Auvergne walnut and Jura spruce. To protect the tie-block from wear caused by the strings (particularly carbon trebles, which are finer and under greater tension), the traditional lute method was adopted — bone veneer is glued to the front and back faces of the tie-block, and the holes drilled through it.
Upper-register access, preserved silhouette — and the added wood beneath the fingerboard seems to give the high notes more presence.