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The musical instrument is the principal tool for any musician. It is well known

that a classical guitarist cannot be a guitarist without the guitar. Since I decided to study

music performance and become a classical guitarist, I noticed I would need a classical

guitar. Now my guitar is the tool that I use the most. However, while I am advancing in

my career I also will need a better and more professional instrument. I started to see that

my guitar is not at its best, and now I have to buy a new one. In my career every student

should have their major instrument or voice, depending on what they are studying for.

Literally my instrument is the thing I use the most by far.

While I was looking at internet, there was a guitar that caught my attention. The

guitar was a “Student Classical Navarro Tesoro.” This guitar looked really professional to

me, and it also sounds really sweet. The perfect tone for classical music. Some days later,

I was talking with a friend that I was looking for a new guitar and he recommended me

the “Jose Torres” guitars. He had some experience with that brand and he told me it is a

good option for a student. I visited the web page of “Jose Torres” and I got interested to

one model. The model “Jose Torres JTC-75,” I thought that this guitar worth its price,

and also have a good tone, a sweet and focused tone. This is an examination of “Student

Classical Navarro Tesoro guitar” and “Jose Torres JTC-75 guitar.”

The appearance is the less important claim of the seven. Appearance can play a

significant role for a guitarist. I do not want to present my recitals with an ugly guitar.

Having a guitar that looks nice would help me to look more professional than other

students and also will create that sense of being prepared. Every guitarist wants to give

that sense of being prepared. If I have that feeling, the public will notice it, and I will stay
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Comfortable while I am performing. Daniel Askt is a writer whose work has appeared in

several newspapers such as the New York Times. In his article “What Meets the Eye,”

Askt explains how much importance gives to the appearance and beauty the modern

American. He says, “We infer a great deal from people's looks -- not just when it comes

to mating (where looks matter profoundly), but in almost every other aspect of life as

well, including careers and social status” (15). In other words, Askt explains that people

is always concern about their appearance. It does not matter if appearance is not

important, for people it always would matter in their social and professional life.

Katherine A. Karl is a Professor of Management at the University of Tennessee

Chattanooga. She wrote the excerpt “City Employee Perceptions of the Impact of Dress

and Appearance: You Are What You Wear.” She says, “Research has shown that people

perceive themselves differently based on the clothing they are wearing. That is,

individuals tend to form their own mental models concerning proper modes of dress.” For

instance, people tend to treat others in the way they dress and they look. Appearance in

the end plays an important role of how you can be treated by others. In music, Image is

very important, and it becomes a little more when we talk about the instruments. I do not

want to perform a Francisco Tarrega’s recital with a steel-string guitar. The classical

guitar must be nylon string. I have a preference of a guitar with the back color. In my

opinion, a dark color in the back of the guitar makes it look elegant, this is perfect for a

classical music concert. Also, I prefer the face of the guitar to have a light color. I do not

like other color than cherry red, brown or yellow for my guitar. The webpage Jose Torres

Guitarras shows a series of photographs of their guitars. The model “Jose Torres JTC-

75” is photographed too. In the photographs, the “Jose Torres” looks like a professional
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guitar. The face of the guitar has a nice light brown and the back a deep dark tone of

brown. It has a white line exactly in the middle of the back side. The guitar has a glossy

finish. Moreover, the website Francisco Navarro Garcia offers several photographs of

his guitars too. The model “Student Classical Tesoro” is shown as a very peculiar guitar.

The face of the guitar has a light brown tone color, while its back has an elegant tone of

red, and in the middle of the back a lighter color of brown. This light color covers at

least1/3 of the entire back. This detail makes the “Classical Tesoro” look very stylish and

different from other guitars. Here, both guitars satisfied my requirement of appearance

and both look very professional and stylish.

The prestige of a brand or luthier can help me to choose a guitar with high quality.

Thanks to the prestige of a brand or luthier, I can recognize if a guitar is worth its price or

not. There are a lot of copies of a guitar that can look the same, but in the end the sound

is poor, and these kinds of guitars tend to have several technical problems. Also, while

presenting, having a copy of a guitar it’s frowned upon. Moreover, having a guitar of this

kind can become an illegal act. Debora Helbert is a Professor of College of Social

Science at the University of Hawaii at Manoah. She is the author of “Intellectual Property

Theft and National security Agendas and Assumptions.” She says “What is significant is

that intellectual property generally described, which is vital to our economic strength, is

deemed as important as military force.” In other words, protecting intellectual property is

essential to economics, and it is an illicit act. Charles Arpigian is an Associate Professor

of information system from Middle Tennessee State University. He is the author of the

article “An Analysis of the Factors that Contribute to Intellectual Property Theft.” He

says “Piracy of intellectual property is one of the most destructive illegal activities.”
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What Arpigian was meaning is that Piracy of Intellectual Property is very dangerous, and

it is an illegal activity that can affect really hard to the United States. As a guitarist, I

completely prefer to avoid any illegal act by buying a guitar that is a copy. The guitar I

am buying must have the name of the distributor and have to have use trusty materials to

avoid future technical problems. The webpage Jose Torres Guitarras includes a page in

which describes the years of experience, the quality of materials, quality control of the

guitars, and also offers a three-year warranty. The website Francisco Navarro Garcia

also includes a page in which describes the prestige of the luthier, the years of

experience, the woods and materials that he uses to build a guitar, and the mention that he

is a winner of a luthier competition. Both of the guitars are trustworthy and met my

requirements for this claim.

The size of an instrument depends on the musician. A big person cannot use a

little instrument, because it would be uncomfortable. The size of an instrument can also

affect the hours of practice. If a person do not feel comfortable with their instrument, this

person would have less practice hours than other that is completely comfortable with

their instrument. The size of the instrument matters, because if I buy a guitar bigger or

smaller it can cause several muscle problems such as tendinitis. Dr. John Chong is the

medical director of the Musicians’ Clinics of Canada. He is the author of the article

“Creating the Resilient Performer.” In this excerpt, the author explains several causes of

muscle problems and fatigue. He says “Specific risk factors are: long practice sessions,

insufficient rest, excess muscle tension, poor posture, muscle fatigue, sudden increase in

playing, repertoire scheduling, stress, lack of fitness, and insufficient warm-up” (26).

Here the author explains the importance of a healthy practice session, and the different
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factors that are risk factors to develop future problems. Judy Palac is an associate

professor of music education, at chair of the MSU Musicians’ Wellness Team at

Michigan State University. She wrote the article “Collaborating for Musical Health and

Wellness: It Takes a Village.” She says “Studio teachers don’t often have access to

trainers. And, conversely, most health professionals and researchers see musicians after

they are injured, which makes prevention, and research on prevention, complicated” (29).

In other words, even when musicians are already professionals, they are still having

troubles in preventing injuries, and when visit a professional, they already have a serious

injury. For guitars, the size of the guitar can affect my practice performance. There are

different sizes of guitars. There are approximately eight different sizes of guitars. I prefer

a size of prime quart bass, which is the classical one. This size is perfect to me, because I

am not a big person, in this size my hands feel comfortable. The website Jose Torres

Guitarras offers the prime quart bass sizes guitars. Actually, the model I am interested

(“Jose Torres JTC-75”) has this size. The Francisco Navarro Garcia webpage offers the

“classical” size. In the webpage, the luthier specifies that the size of the guitar “Student

Classical Tesoro” The size of the guitar “Classical Tesoro” is prime quart bass. Both

guitars met my requirements and have the size that I am looking for.

Most of the instruments have included a case. The case for an instrument is very

useful, it protects the instrument for almost everything. Also, the case can prevent the

instrument for being stolen. This is very important, taking into consideration that an

instrument like a guitar tends to be expensive. Now, security is one factor to take into

consideration. Adam Fresco is a journalist and editor from the newspaper Times. The

United Kingdom. He is the author of the article “Locked out Car Gangs Resort to
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Hijacking.” In this article, he says “There is a need for criminals to find ways of

stealing.” In the article, the author explains that it is dangerous to bring important goods

to the city, and there will be always criminals trying to commit this crime. And stealing

not only can happen with a car, but also to any object that can be grabbed like a Classical

guitar. Craig Clarke is another journalist and editor from the newspaper Sunday Mail. He

wrote an article called “Push to Sue Shoplifters” in which he explains the need of getting

new ways to protect goods from the shops. The author says “Shops needed a new weapon

against thieves because the State Government's anti-theft expiation notices had failed to

slow the rate of thefts.” In other words, the author shows the problem that shops have

with robbery. Just like the stores, I need a way to protect my guitar. The guitar should

include a hard case to protect it not just from scratches, but also from stealing. I am a

person that have to move around the city a lot, having a hard case would help me to

transport the guitar from one place to another. The website Jose Torres Guitarras,

includes de details of their guitars. There are several models that includes a case or a hard

case. The model “Jose Torres JTC-75” includes a case, but not a hard case for

transportation. The webpage Francisco Navarro Garcia includes de details of their

guitars. In this case, most of Navarro’s guitars includes a case. The model “Student

Classical Tesoro” does includes a hard case with the guitar. In this argument, just the

Classical guitar “Student Classical Tesoro” Met the requirements that I want.

The volume in music is always an important factor during performing. The

volume is really important, because during a concert, there are instruments that are louder

than other instruments. Having instruments with higher volume level than others can

cause that these instruments be heard more than the instruments with lower volume and
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make them not to be heard. This is a real problem, and actual musicians have to know

how to blend the volume and different sounds to perform the concert perfectly. Jay

Nordlinger is a journalist and editor senior from the magazine National Review. He wrote

the article “Down with Eleven” in which explains the problem of over amplification and

the lack of volume in the concerts and recitals. In the article he says “Onstage were the

musicians of Viva Brazil. They were good, and so was the music they played and sang.

But the volume was absurd—painful, assaultive, and anti-musical” (23). Here, the author

explains how loudness can make an experience that is supposed to be pleasant became in

an experience that he would wish to forget. Nordlinger also mentions the lack of volume

in the performances. Here, he relates another occasion in which the volume was not

enough in the concert. “I could hardly hear him [a jazz guitarist]. I could not really listen

to the music.” Sound Advice is a webpage with different articles about musician’s health.

In this webpage, there is an article called “SOUND ADVICE.” The webpage explains in

this article that the exposure to high levels of sound can affect the hearing of the

musician. “Concerts and listening to loud music can permanently damage the ear's

nerves.” The loudness can cause a great damage, and this is really dangerous for a

musician. The webpage also mentions that “There can be lasting damage to the nerves

that transmit sounds from the ear to the brain.” Having a balance between in loudness of

music can be the difference of becoming deaf or having a good ear health. Having this in

count, my specifications for the guitar are to have a balance in volume. I do not want a

loud guitar that sounds horribly noisy, but I also do not want a guitar too quiet. There are

occasions in which I can save some amplification thanks to the volume of the guitar, but I

have to take into consideration that too loud can affect my performing. The webpage Jose
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Torres Guitarras offer a demonstration of volume and sound of their guitars. The guitar

“Jose Torres JTC-75” demonstrates having a warm tone that is very balanced. This guitar

is not an electroacoustic, this means that it will need a kind of amplification for some

scenarios. By the other hand, the webpage Francisco Navarro Garcia also offers a

demonstration of their guitar. The “Student Classical Tesoro” guitar had a focused well

balanced volume, I really enjoyed listening to this guitar. The volume of both guitars

were really similar, and both of the guitars met my expectation.

As a musician, the tone and sound quality is the first thing I notice in the

instrument. If I notice the sound quality is not good enough, or the tone could be

unpleasant to hear, then I discard the option. This claim is really important, because a

poor tone and sound quality can cause a bad experience during a performance of a

concert. Kentaro Ono is a researcher from the Human Brain Research Center, graduate

from the School of Medicine of Kyoto University. He is the author of “Effects of

Regulatory on the Processing of Sound Omission in a Tone Sequence in Musicians and

Non-Musicians.” He says “How we hear music is strongly affected by how we organize

temporal and spectral features, such as rhythm or pitch, perceptually and composers use

them efficiently to achieve particular feelings” (2786). Here, the author explains the

importance of factors such as rhythm and pitch and the way they are used to get a specific

feeling. The woods used to make a guitar play an important role in the tone. Depending in

what type of wood is used in the parts of the guitar can create a brighter or sweeter tone.

For classical music I am looking for a sweet tone. Guitars with the top made of solid red

cedar or just cedar have a really comfortable tone that is perfect for my performing. Jose

Torres Guitarras is the webpage that offers the details of the guitar “Jose Torres JTC-
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75.” The web page includes the specifications of the guitar. According to the webpage,

the “Jose Torres JTC-75” has a top of solid cedar wood. In the webpage Francisco

Navarro Garcia, offers the guitar “Student Classical Tesoro.” The webpage tells us the

details of the guitar. The “Student Navarro Tesoro” has a top made of solid rosewood

(Palo Escrito). In this claim, just the “Jose Torres” guitar meet the requirements that I am

looking for.

Affordability is the most important concern for me. Money and the way people

spend it is really important. I understand that I must save my money. If I waste my

money in unnecessary goods, in the future I will be struggling to afford my expenses.

Joel Wagoner is an assistant professor in the Business Division of DeSales University. He

is the author of “Personal Budgeting: What Are We Trying to Do?” In this excerpt,

Wagoner explains that people must know how to manage their finances and do not waste

in things that are not know that necessary. He says, “We may share a general consensus

that personal budgeting is crucial to successfully managing one’s money, but there is a

remarkable lack of consensus on how best to go about budgeting one’s money” (10). In

this excerpt Wagoner explains that there are some cases in which people do not

understand completely the value of money and do not know how to manage it. Also, the

author mentions that budgeting is a great strategy to manage money, “personal budgeting

is an effective means of managing one’s money, it is more important to do so now than

ever before” (10). Robin Henager is a researcher and assistant professor in economics and

finance in the school of Business at Whitworth University. She is the author of the

journal “Budgeting Happiness.” In the text, she explains the difference between the needs

and the wants. The author explains that money should be used principally in what we
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need. She says “Certainly, money can become a status symbol, cause jealousy, or create a

certain lifestyle, but what does it really do for us? The foundation is the difference

between wants and needs” (17). However, she also explains that money can also be used

to bring happiness. For example, “Money is necessary for these needs, but it is also an

external source for bringing satisfaction in life” (17). Analyzing my budget, I noticed

that I have the sufficient money to buy a guitar no more expensive than $2,000. A

professional guitar costs at least $1,000, so this estimated of $2,000 is pretty good to get a

new and better guitar. According to the webpage Ume Union Musical, the classical guitar

“Jose Torres JTC-75” costs $995.50 this is a good guitar taking into consideration that it

is considered a medium-high quality guitar. By the other hand, the website Francisco

Navarro shows that the guitar “Student Classical Tesoro” has a price of $1,300. The

“Navarro Tesoro” is a more expensive guitar than the “Jose Torres,” but I have to

consider that the “Classical Tesoro” is a hand crafted guitar and it can be customized with

my specifications. Both guitars are a good choice and in my opinion both of them are

worth their price.

In Summary, The following criteria have been exanimated. First examined was

the appearance of the guitar. This was the less important criterion to me. Both guitars met

what I want about their look. Next criterion was the prestige of the luthier or brand. It is

shown that both guitars have an excellent prestige and I will not have any kind of legal

complication. The third examined was the size of the instrument. Both guitar have the

size that I want and will help me to avoid any muscular problems. The fourth examined

was including a hard case. In this examined only the “Student Classical Tesoro” met the

requirement of having a hard case. Examined next was the volume of the instrument.
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Both instruments have the sufficient volume required. The sixth examined is he sound

quality and tone. In this criterion only the guitar “Jose Torres JTC-75” have what I want

in the guitar. The last examined was the cost. This is the most important criterion. The

research shows that both guitars are affordable to my budget.

In conclusion, both guitars met the exact same quantity of criterions, the only

difference were the criterions. I will be still looking for other options and criterions. I

would need to keep doing more research and try new guitars that could meet my

requirements.
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References

Apigian, Charles H. “An Analysis of the Factors that Contribute to Intellectual

Property Theft.” Franklin Business and Law Journal, vol. 2012, no. 2,

June 2012, pp. 21-44 EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Askt, Daniel “What Meets the Eye.” Wilson Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 3, summer

2005, Pp, 15-13. EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Chong, John. “Creating the Resilient Performer.” American Music Teacher, vol.

64, no. 6, Jun/Jul 2015, pp. 25-27. EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Clarke, Craig. “Push to Sue Shoplifters.” Sunday Mail, EBSCOhost,

ebscohost.com/.

Fresco, Adam. “Locked Out Car Gangs Resort to Hijacking.” Times: the United

Kingdom, EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Garcia, Francisco N. “Limited Edition Student Classical Tesoro.” Francisco

Navarro Garcia, www.francisconavarro.com/tesoro/

Halbert, Debora. “Intellectual Property Theft and National Security Agendas and

Assumptions.” Information Society, vol. 32, no.4, Jul/Sept. 2016, pp. 256-

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Henager, Robin. “Budgeting Happiness.” Phi Kappa Phi Forum, vol. 97, no. 4, 1

Dec. 2017, p. 17. EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

José Torres Guitarras. “JTC-75.” José Torres Guitarras,

www.josetorresguitarras.com/en/classical-guitars/jtc-75/.
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Karl, Katherine. “City Employee Perceptions of the Impact of Dress and

Appearance: You Are What You Wear.” Public Personnel Management,

vol. 42, no. 3, Sept.3 2013, p. 452 EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Nordlinger, Jay. “Down with Eleven.” National Review, vol. 66, no. 6, Apr. 7

2014, p. 23 EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Ono, Kentaro. “Effects of Regulatory on the processing of Sound Omission in a

Tone Sequence in Musicians and Non-Musicians.” European Journal of

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ebscohost.com/.

Palac, Judy. “Collaborating for Musical Health and Wellness: It Takes a Village.”

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EBSCOhost, ebscohost.com/.

Sound Advice. “Sound Advice.” New Scientist, 2017, p. 46, EBSCOhost,

ebscohost.com/.

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www.unionmusical.es/guitarras-y-bajos/.

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