Valeriano Bernal

The Spanish luthier Valeriano Bernal was born in 1939 in a small village in the province of Cadiz in Andalucia. When he was only eight, Valeriano began learning the rudiments of woodworking from his cousin. After a stint in the Spanish navy, he set up a small workshop near Brussels in 1962. While in Belgium he worked closely with two acoustical engineers on the designs of tops. Returning to Spain in 1976, Valeriano eventually returned to his village and set up his own workshop. Working with his wife, Catalina Gil, and their two children — Rafael Bernal Gil (b. 1973) and Paula Bernal Gil (b. 1976) — the Bernal family produces 125-150 guitars a year. Although the Bernal workshop is larger than most individual guitar makers, each guitar is entirely handmade. Valeriano Bernal passed away in 2018, his family continuous the workshop under his name.