Hawkes & Son.. (The Official KSB Hawkes Bass Discussion Thread)

[Ken Smith]

Here she is, the newest addition to the Hawkes Thread.

Concert model from Germany?



A Luthier friend of mind emailed me pictures of what he thought was a similar bass but other than the basic model and color of Varnish it was quite different. That one (not mine) has a Label in side from Josef Rubner, Markneukirchen. Josef (b.1864, d.1927) is the oldest of this family starting his shop in 1885. His son Otto (b.1885, d.1963) later worked with him and took over the shop. His son Johannes worked with him as well carrying ion the tradition but I think only Joseph or maybe Otto could have been involved in the Hawkes basses.

The differences between the Rubner Hawkes and mine differs in The Scroll, Tuners, F-holes, Back bend, Top bend, Neck Block and outer lining size. It seems that Hawkes & Son contracted them at some point to make Basses as this is labeled but mine by the Tuners seems older and the neck block more of a Mittenwald style than Markneukirchen. It may also be possible that Hawkes & Son contracted more than one shop at a time. In discussing the pictures of my bass it seems that it was more of a handmade bass than something from a factory. Perhaps 'shop-made' where they made a few at a time.

Mine started out as a 3-string and was converted to a 4 with a similar 4th gear added. The Rubner-made Hawkes bass was a 4-string from the start with the gears being quite different. Both basses have some type of French looking Gears but not 100%. The Rubner has French handles and German Gears. Mine has English handles with French Gears.

The two basses look like the same model but interpreted by the shop that was contracted to make them. Later Concert models that I have seen look totally uniform to each other but these two seem something like an early attempt at it.

[Brian Gencarelli]

Nice bass Ken!

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Brian Gencarelli

Nice bass Ken!

Yes, thanks.. This one I am fairly certain is from Germany. Another one that we are at least 100% sure that it's from Germany is different in it's features from this one but the model and outline are the same. The Varnish looked the same as well but if mine was a Mittenwald contracted bass and the other Markneukirchen made as labeled, then possibly these were imported 'in the white' and then varnished and completed in London. Also, the gears on both bass although different had 'parts' from France like we see on French basses mainly from Mirecourt. One had French handles on the tuners with nice quality German gears and mine has French Gears and worms but English handles. I doubt that Germany did much trading with France in that respect but I am sure that England imported from both thus my theory.

[Ken Smith]

I took the Hawkes out tonight to an Orchestra rehearsal to see how she sounded and felt. This was a 2 1/2 hour rehearsal with about 2 hours of actual playing (including counting rests and turning pages..)

I was surprised a bit on how it handled. It was actually easy to play a 2 octave C scale on the A string when I was warming up. Going up the D and G was not much of a problem but reaching over to play up the A string to the end of the fingerboard was the true test. I got over the shoulders just fine.

Jed Kriegel who used to work with Arnold made the current Neck and graft as well as setting it out quite nicely. This was by far the easiest to play Hawkes I have ever laid my hands on.