The Spanish luthier Manuel Adalid was born in Valencia in 1951. Son, of Manuel Adalid Lazaro (b. 1923) one of the founding partners of Guitarras Francisco Esteve, (established in 1957).  Working as an apprentice during his summers, Manuel did a degree in business at the University of Valencia, and then studied business administration. Afterwards, he opened up a guitar distributorship, and rapidly became one of Guitarras Esteve's most important clients.After five years, however, he decided to return to the Esteve workshop to dedicate himself to guitar construction. Under the guidance of his father and Don Antonio Monfort, he soon became a master luthier. When the founding partners of Esteve reached retirement age, because of his technical and business experience, they asked him to take over the management of the firm. Taking over the management of Esteve in 1980, Manuel built the workshop into a successful enterprise, employing 55 people, and occupying a building of 6000 m².