See the problem is we aren't going to buy a guitar. We would just like to watch people make them by hand. Maybe a crafts school? We will be going through Madrid, Toledo, Segovia, Cordoba, Sevilla, Granada, Barcelona in August. Any suggestions? We certainly would love to hear classical guitar or flamenco and hope to run into a lot of wonderful music.

It may be a bit out of the way from Seville but there is a good guitar maker in the village of Algodonales named Valeriano Bernal whose studio you could visit, the town is pleasant enough as a stop on the way to Ronda as it is on the same highway.

Bear in mind that the process of making a flamenco guitar is long, drawn-out and meticulous, there really isn´t much to "see" per se as the cutting, sanding, crafting, assembly, etc. of one guitar can take several weeks! You may be able to see guitars in various stages of production though, and at least at his shop I know there is no pressure to buy...

Thanks for the suggestion. Yes, we're aware that guitar making
is a lengthy process. My husband does woodworking and loves to check out people who do something as lovely as a classical guitqr.

Hola lakey,

although it´s been two years since I was in Seville, I´d still suggest the Casa de la Memoria for an evening of flamenco. It is on a tiny street in the Santa Cruz quarter, Calle Ximenez Enciso. The place is a museum but at night they have flamenco shows, which to me had an unique flair. They take place in the inner courtyard of an old townhouse. Performers were then the advanced students of a well reputated flamenco academy in town, so you´ve got a lot of fresh talent there.
I think they even have a website which I cannot remember accurately, but it should be detectable by google.
I do not know about the other cities, but I know for sure, that Seville and Madrid both have a paper called "Guia del Ocio" which lists concerts and other events.
Enjoy!
Saludos,
la calma

it shouldnt be a problem, at least in Granada! i play the guitar, and bought one there while I was studying abroad. I had so much fun picking it out! Granada, especially along the little streets up to the Alhambra, and around the Plaza Nueva area, are many many little family owned guitarmaker shops. Most are very friendly, and if you speak spanish, just stop in and ask some curious questions, more than likely they will end up telling you and showing you more than you ever really wanted to know about guitar making:)
have fun!
kelly

Yes, as Kelar says, in Granada. On Cuesta de Gomerez (up from Plaza Nueva) you'll find a few "talleres" including Jose Lopez Bellido (at 36), and Antonio Duran, a one-armed maker. You may well find them working, especially in the morning. The other Bellido brother (Manuel) is in the barrio Realejo (on Plaza Realejo, I think) and they also have a workshop out front.

If you don't speak Spanish, you might try John Ray,
http://www.johnguitar.com/

Thanks for all the suggestions. We will be in Granada
and Sevilla in August. I look forward to checking out the
'talleres" If nothing else, to occasionally escape the
"solar experience" My Spanish is very functional, but I see I will need to look up some new vocabulary terms to handle questions. We will be staying in the Santa Cruz area and will certainly check out the flamenco place.

Ah, August! A lot of places will be shut for the whole month. It gets very hot.