In the late 1960s, St. Louis Music's founder, Gene Kornblum, met Master Luthier Kazuo Yairi who produced handmade concert classical guitars in Japan.

[13] In 2017, Artist Series began adding new key features and models including armrests,[14] travel guitars like the Delta DeLite and LJ2,[15] and ATR (Advanced Tonal Response) system.

[16] In 2014, Alvarez introduced the Masterworks Series, featuring all solid wood construction and high end appointments such as gold tuners, ebony bridge pins, mother of pearl inlays and maple or koa binding.

[19] Alvarez Yairi have been the guitar of choice for many professional touring musicians including Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Ani DiFranco, and Joe Bonamassa.

[1] Kazuo Yairi inspired many innovations that are still used in Alvarez guitars today, including the Direct Coupled Bridge, careful selection of tonewoods, and manual carving; a practice that he referred to as "listening with your hands".