Tears and flames
 

The pegbox
 

Full Monty
 

The makers mark!
 

Wow! That's a tour-de-force of carving prowess. You have to decide how much you want it and can use it. But for comparitive purposes, I'd assume it would cost about $35-40,000 to commission an instrument with that level of embellishment. I wonder how it sounds...

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words
 

Wow! What a glorious violone!

What a bizarre double-bass!

Specs?
 

Can I see the Specs like all the normal measurements as well as String length as used in the model shown on my website? Here is an example of the Measurements needed;http://www.kensmithbasses.com/Double...n/Pollmann.htm

Wow, very pretty. I don't see a bridge. Would you be having a bridge and TP made that matches the elaborate carving of the bass?

The shop has these already and both are original. It is not strung due to some separations. It's a "some assembly required" but certainly not much, situation. Ken, I'm sorry I didn't measure it. I didn't have a whole lot of time. It's something like a smallish 3/4 or largish 5/8. It's a full size violone, I think, but I don't really think I've ever seen two violones except for reproductions of existing instruments that share the same specs. As far as the overstand and projection angle, these are consistent with a period instrument. All is authentic reproduction in manner and form.

How does it sound, well, I did tap on it a bit! Don't laugh, now, but without strings on there how else can I tell? It's got a nice little POooMmm!

And Sam, Yusef Lateef's Eastern Sounds is one of my favorite recordings ever. So does anyone know if Paul Warburton is on that remastered [edit: Richard?] Hindman CD I linked to above? I haven't listened to the sound files yet. [No, these are all piano solos.]

david, i don´t want to derail your thread...but...
the pics reminded me of this: http://cgi.ebay.de/Kontrabass-Meiste...QQcmdZViewItem
bass. and i know, everybody here likes some special bass-pics.
the price went from 15.000 to 12.000 last two weeks.
and it already IS a doublebass

12,000 EU is about $16,000 US, right? Plus shipping and duties . . .

Thank you, Anselm. It puts the price in perspective doesn't it? I don't keep up too closely with the exchange rate and e-bay is such a strange market, but not irrelevant at all. And it offers an opportunity to discuss a somewhat philosophical issue. I don't want to dwell on it, but when you say, it already is a double bass.... I hope the point you are making is that if I want a double bass, I should buy something that already is one. I agree entirely.

Let me make it very clear: If I purchase that Pollmann violone, while I am it's caretaker, it will remain a violone, as intended by the maker. After that, someone else will have to recognize the value in that, regardless of the price of keeping it that way. There are many double basses Anselm, and Pollmann (this particular man) made many double basses. This might be the only Pollmann violone. It won a gold medal in Dresden in 1980. Those who judged it are far more qualified than I and which of them would sanction changing it ???

I already have a double bass that while it might not be the best, is fine for the expression of my poor talents. If a Kremona is good enough for Xavier Padilla, it's good enough for me. While the Pollmann violone might speak more loudly in the modern world as a double bass, sometimes there are things that we should allow to whisper sweetly. Who am I with a few foolish $$ to say this is not one of them? I would be satisfied with whatever sounds it makes as a violone. Put a good Neumann condenser mic in front of it.....:)

david, stan,

my post was not ment as a buying advice. the f-holes just reminded me at the blacht-bass. i think it´s looking nice and wanted to show it to you .

thank you, i was in fact a little bit worried about the conversion-thing.

sorry, no. look here: http://www.poellmann-contrabass.de/ http://www.poellmann-contrabass.de/indexframe.htm
the amore modell looks like one i think.
EDIT: had a closer look, i´m not 100% sure now, but you could ask them how many they made.

i think i confused pöllmann and grünert
(http://www.gruenert.com/gruenert_ins...rock_index.htm)
sorry.
grünert makes violones.

All other issues aside, I think the thing is a steal. Bigtime...

It looks more like the Venezia w/ a Violone set up and scroll;

http://www.poellmann-contrabass.de/indexframe.htm

Well, I'm thinking it looks like one of a kind. And I'm leaning heavily toward Arnold's assessment. So I'm trying to figure a way from here to there without giving up the "back forty". In the meantime here is the best general information resource I could find about these instruments and possible contemporary use. I'm pretty sure this is a G violone, the largest of the violoni family. I was hoping we might get a few players of them to report, but I suppose they are all busy rehearsing.

Try Bret Simner at bretsimner.com . He lives in Switzerland and has become an expert on early music bass instruments. Mention my name and duck.

Makers mark..
 

My Pollmann doesn't have a visible mark inside or out as it was not made as a Pollman model Bass but rather a custom design Italian Model for Wil de Sola made by Gunther Krahmer of Pollmann. It has a hidden Label in the upper Top marking the Bass as such.

http://www.kensmithbasses.com/double.../poll_back.jpg

Ken, it is amazing the similarity in the color of varnish and degree of flame in the maple and the orientation as well. I'm tempted to see if we can pursuade Anselm to inquire (I do not know the language well) to find out which maker at the Pollmann shop built the violone. The shop owner speaks of him as "Pollmann" which he pronounces "Pellman". He told me an interesting story that for his privacy's sake, as well as brevity, I will not repeat. But it makes me think this was an elder maker actually named Pollmann, and not Krahmer. It's a hunch, I'm not certain. I just don't know much about the specific makers. Seems I saw something in a Lemur catalog but I don't think I still have that.

What you tell explains why your Pollmann impressed me at first as being somewhat more delicate in design that most Pollmann basses I've seen. The Alexandria model is quite delicate, but most while beautiful are a bit on the bold or masculine side design wise. Yours is very light and elegant looking. I'm still amazed me at the consistency of the varnish and flaming. But these were built about the same time so I suppose the maple stock may have been the same. If we cropped the photos to just the join line and the flame, these could pass for the same back.