Quote:
Originally Posted by Eric Swanson
Lovely bass! What strings did you put on, for this trial? For now, how is the low-end response under the bow? Upper register access? What are your first playing impressions?
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Passione G,D,A, and Stark E Passione.
The E is louder than the A. The bass has a powerful deep sound. The upper register as well as the low register is smooth and silky. Close your eyes and you will swear it's a 200 year old Italian. Someone yesterday told me the F-holes remind him of Testore but I highly doubt this bass is anything Italian.
The FFs are not evenly cut from one to another. Not the nicks, the holes, the curve, the placement or the fluting at the bottom. This is a one-off hand made original. The shoulders are not symmetrical either being that the treble shoulder is slightly more curved for playing then the other side. The C bouts are not even as well. Like my Gilkes was, the upper corners are opened up for bow clearance with the lowers being squared across.
This bass was
made for comfort. It was about a 43" string length before but after restoration, it's just under 42".
Speaking today with a former owner who spoke with the former owner HE got it from was told that HE, the 90+ year old German player bought it from another old player in the 1950's and that HE was told that the Shoulders were Cut down from even a larger bass. Just how and where the bass was cut I can't say and don't know but this was bigger when it was made.
So, I have some basic knowledge of the past 3 owners spanning a century or so. The bass was probably 100 years or so old before it was cut. That being said, the last previous owner who is also a dealer and player thinks the bass is much older than it's shape and model leads us to speculate at first look.