Resonator upright?

[mheintz]

I came across the Stroh violin today: http://www.strohviolin-shop.com. Apparently, they were very popular in recording studios before the invention of modern microphones. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stroh_violin. Have similar basses been made? Or are there any uprights with resonators? I'm surprised that I haven't seen a similar bass in pictures of early big bands. To think that during all those years of playing in brass ensembles in order to keep the tuba on time, I could have actually been heard...

[mheintz]

To answer my own question, boy, these look ridiculous.



Also see, http://www.springersmusic.co.uk/Library/Stroviols.htm

What about without the horn? I've seen acoustic bass guitars with single cones. Any uprights with a single cone or a tricone?

[pkivory]

This is what happens when mankind tries to play God. The end result is a crime against nature.

[MarkRubin]

Originally Posted by mheintz

Or are there any uprights with resonators?

Many years ago I saw a picture of a Dobro upright bass guitar with a massive resonator. It looked to be about 5 feet long with an endpin, triangular in shape. The picture was a band promo shot for an all girl string band posing next to an airplane from the 30's. Nobody I know seems to know anything about it so it may have been a one-off. I'll bet it sounded like hell.

[mheintz]

Thanks, Mark! I would love to see a picture. I once played on an aluminum bass that sounded, well, like a tin can. But slap a tricone on it and there could be some interesting resonance. Maybe painting flames on the side of the bass would improve the tone.

[relacey]

Joel Landsberg plays a dobro bass guitar with the Kruger Brothers. It's not upright but it does make low frequency sounds.

[Doug Ring]

I have a resonator bass guitar about the same size as the one in the photo, but mine has a steel body. It's way louder than any wooden acoustic bass guitar, but it's no substitute for a double bass, nor does it sound like a bass guitar through an amp, but it adds an interesting texture to an acoustic ensemble.

I don't use it much, unfortunately. It doesn't balance well on the lap, and I wish I'd realised in the shop that the scale length was 32" instead of the usual 34". Also, one problem with resonators is that they sound quietest to the player, so it's often hard to hear what I'm doing, even though the others can hear it all.

It's a Korean-made model under the name "Ozark", and although the neck is nicely done, the quality control elsewhere isn't so good. Despite all that, I'll keep it. People can't believe their eyes when I walk into sessions with it, and one day I'll find the right song to record with it!

[mpoppitt]

Our fiddle player has a Stroh Violin, and it sounds very cool. Real lo-fi and scratchy, and loud. He uses it for some of our gypsy sounding tunes, and when we play all-acoustic gigs, to be heard.

I bet the Stroh bass would sound great bowed, but not pizz.

[Anonymous75966]

German-Argentine composer Mauricio Kagel's "1898" is scored, in part, for Stroh instruments - the full string family including viola and bass.

Deutsche Grammophon commissioned the piece and had a set of updated resonator instruments built, I forget who by. The bass looks pretty wacky as I recall.

http://www.amazon.com/Music-Renaissa.../dp/B00000J9FV

[mheintz]

Originally Posted by mpoppitt

Our fiddle player has a Stroh Violin, and it sounds very cool. Real lo-fi and scratchy, and loud. He uses it for some of our gypsy sounding tunes, and when we play all-acoustic gigs, to be heard.

I've now heard a few recordings and the violins definitely have a great raw sound.

Originally Posted by Dave Chokroun

German-Argentine composer Mauricio Kagel's "1898" is scored, in part, for Stroh instruments - the full string family including viola and bass.

Deutsche Grammophon commissioned the piece and had a set of updated resonator instruments built, I forget who by. The bass looks pretty wacky as I recall.

Thanks! I'll check it out.