Guitar and Pear-Shaped

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Matthew Tucker

What you say may be true. I guess I think there are relatively so few cornerless basses compared with regular basses that it's hard to make generalisations really meaningful, as there are still so many other variables. But we can try.

If cornerless basses sound so fine, generally, why then are they so outnumbered by regular ones?

(... and I was actually asking the other Ken about his rib depth on the build photo)

Yes, I know it was the other Ken but thought it valuable to once again throw in my two cents regardless..lol

Why so few? Well, tradition for one I would guess and pride maybe as well on the other hand. Guitar makers were not thought of as highly as Violin makers so that might be a mental block on their Cornerless beasts. Also, ever try lifting one around the stage or moving a few feet over from the player next to you? Where the heck do you grab the thing? I have a hard time moving it around but the sound makes up for it. Also, I can't lean it on the chair next to me like I do my other Basses. Should I glue a Block to the outside of the Ribs like a Horizontal 'bumper' to lift, carry and lean the Bass? This might be something to help with this problem I think as well as some Bumpers on the Upper and Lower Bouts to lay it down.

Cornerless Viol/Violin Family instruments have been made in Italy for hundreds of years but for some reason, they never change tradition. Even the Chanot's and others in France and England (19th century) made some cornerless Violins as well as others elsewhere. The Spaniards adopting the Guitar Form as their main style of making Basses after the Spanish Guitar itself took hold world wide. They are forgetting one thing here in Spain though! It's an Italian thing Bass-wise and not Spanish no matter how well 'borrowed' or adapted..