Reviews

I'm looking for a very special instrument. Of course it has to be Italian. What can you offer me? To describe the double bass featured here we would use the term "extremely-fine". The instrument is by and labelled in black ink - "Lor° & Tom° Carcassi in Firenze nell anno 1752 all insegnadel Giglio". That sounds interesting. What does the term "extremely-fine" encompass? In this case the term can be used to describe the quality of the making, the overall condition of the instrument and also the tonal qualities of the instrument. Would you say that the instrument is rare...

How difficult is it to find an early German instrument of quality? To come across a German instrument that was constructed before the Second World War is quite difficult - so to find an instrument in exceptional and original condition - such as this instrument by Carl Wilhelm Blaun - that was built seventy-five years before The Great War is a pretty rare find indeed. It certainly is a very unusual model and without question it is most distinctive too. Yes - it is quite safe to say that the form and features of this instrument are both unusual and...

Gold series - what do you mean? Well at major athletic competitions such as the Olympic games - medals in bronze, silver and gold are presented to the three top athletes of each category or event - similarly the rising star maker Akos Balazs from Budapest in Hungary has a grading system that denotes the quality of each instrument that he makes - obviously with the gold series being of the highest quality. What will I like about this Gold Series bass? Really there are lots and lots of things that make this instrument a real winner. As you look...

Tell me briefly about the double basses made by Hawkes & Son. The instruments manufactured by Hawkes & Son during the latter quarter of the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth century were supplied to private musicians, orchestras and to the many military bands that existed especially in England. There were three models of instruments - namely the Professor which was based on the instruments of William Baker and the Concert and Panormo models - which were described in advertisements by Hawkes & Son themselves as "Copies of the celebrated Panormo Bass used in the Private Band...