the next sue lipkins

[levifly]

Who in your opinion will be the next great american bow maker? I hear stories of the lipkins bows bought early in her career at attractive prices. At least more attractive than what they are now. I would like to have one of those stories to tell. Mike

[LouisF]

My vote is for Bill Halsey in Maine. His cello and bass French bows have won various medals at internationalcompetitions.He'smaking his first German bow ever for me. It shows up end of April.

Louis

[Eric Rene Roy]

Hardly an up and coming bow maker, but I am always surprised not to hear Rodney Mohr mentioned here more often. His work is gold medal status and in the realm of hand made bows, a good buy.

http://www.mohrbows.com/

[bassbuck]

I have owned a wonderful Wm. Halsey french bow since last May. From frog to tip, it "drives" my huge 5-string Pöllmann on all strings and in all registers. It's not one of those high priced bows that everyone drools over (me included) but for the money I really lucked out on this one. It's quite comparable to a Roger Lotte bow I once owned. My understanding is Halsey bass bows go somewhere in the $2000 to $3000 price range, maybe more. Try a Wm. Halsey bow if you can get your hands on one.

Buckner Malcolm
Tryon, NC

[flint]

how much do you have to spend to get the "next sue lipkins bow"?.

What is the entry point for a good hand crafted, individual maker bow?

[levifly]

That was my next question. How much should you expect to spend to get a great bow from an up and comer? Thanks for the comments. Mike

[atrombs]

Well if you are willing to spend some more money. There is a really great italian bow maker. G. Lucchi. His bows are really loud and really clean. here is the website http://www.lucchicremona.com/

[Adrian Cho]

I hear good things about Lynn Hannings (www.lahbows.com/)

[Basschair]

Originally Posted by Adrian Cho

I hear good things about Lynn Hannings (www.lahbows.com/)

I've never tried one of her bows, but hopefully will get a chance in August. She's a bass player, so I expect good things...

[jsbarber]

Originally Posted by atrombs

Well if you are willing to spend some more money. There is a really great italian bow maker. G. Lucchi. His bows are really loud and really clean. here is the website http://www.lucchicremona.com/

G. Lucchi is not exactly an up-and-comer. He has been making bows longer than Sue Lipkins, but his bows are excellent. (John Patitucci and Garry Karr both endorse his bows on the Lucchi website.) His G. Lucchi bows are as expensive as the new Lipkins bows. The G. Lucchi & Sons bows are also excellent bows and are somewhat less expensive than the G. Lucchi, although still not cheap. There is a G. Lucchi & Sons French bow for sale in the classifieds below. (Here's the link)

http://talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=311483


Jim

[LouisF]

Also, hardly a newcomer, is Roger Zabinski in the Madison area. I understand his French bows are particularly well thought of.

Louis

[quenoil]

Originally Posted by LouisF

Also, hardly a newcomer, is Roger Zabinski in the Madison area. I understand his French bows are particularly well thought of.

Louis

Zabinksi is actually in Minneapolis.

[LouisF]

I knew it was up there somewhere where we Californians dare not tread. Anyway, his bows are supposed to be very good.

LF

[SamFinlay]

I agree. Roger's stuff is excellent. He's a real bow scientist.

[SamFinlay]

Lynn is great, but don't expect to get up-and-comer prices on her bows. Hannings Rubino bows have been around since the early 70s.

[jsbarber]

Originally Posted by levifly

Who in your opinion will be the next great american bow maker? I hear stories of the lipkins bows bought early in her career at attractive prices. At least more attractive than what they are now. I would like to have one of those stories to tell. Mike

The implication from this is that one could have obtained a Lipkins' bow for ~$1000 by purchasing one some years ago and saved themselves many thousands of dollars relative to purchasing a new one now. While this is true, it seems to implicitly equate the quality of the two bows based on maker, neglecting the decade or more of learning that has taken place. I would think that her newer bows are somewhat better than her earlier bows, based on her development as a bow maker. This is generally considered to be the case with Stradivari, who's violins from the late 17th century are generally not considered to be of the same quality as his violins during his golden era beginning in about 1715 and ending a few decades later, (or so I've read).

People are paying the $5 or $6k, or whatever Ms. Lipkins is charging these days for her bows, because they are placing them in the same category as the great bowmakers of all time. But were her earlier bows in that league? I don't know. They probably weren't quite as good, but were still excellent. Were they a bargain at $1000, sure.

So, I guess my point is: Even if you can predict who "the next Sue Lipkins" is going to be, if you buy one of her/his bows now you won't end up with an equivalent bow to what they produce when they are at the top of their game. But you would get a good bow at a great price.

Anyway, that's how I see it, FWIW.


Jim

[LouisF]

The bow from William Halsey arrived and it's amazing. Bill has won 2 Gold medals and 6 Certificates of Merit in the VSA international competitions. The bow he made for me is his first German bow, and, while he claims it was pretty much guess work (which I doubt), the difference between it and my other bows is just stunning (and this is after just a day or two of working it out). The clarity of the sound and the focus of the tone is just remarkable, as is the balance and craftsmanship - mostly a round stick (octagonal at the frog), small Psfretchner-style ebony frog (for my hands), silver wrap and mother of pearl in-lay.

I'll put up some photos soon, but it's an honor to own it.

Louis

[jdapodaca]

Originally Posted by LouisF

The bow from William Halsey arrived and it's amazing. Bill has won 2 Gold medals and 6 Certificates of Merit in the VSA international competitions. The bow he made for me is his first German bow, and, while he claims it was pretty much guess work (which I doubt), the difference between it and my other bows is just stunning (and this is after just a day or two of working it out). The clarity of the sound and the focus of the tone is just remarkable, as is the balance and craftsmanship - mostly a round stick (octagonal at the frog), small Psfretchner-style ebony frog (for my hands), silver wrap and mother of pearl in-lay.

I'll put up some photos soon, but it's an honor to own it.

Louis

Does Bill Halsey have some sort of website or a way to contact him about his bows? I am interested in having a German bow made if the price is reasonable.

[robobass]

Originally Posted by jsbarber

The implication from this is that one could have obtained a Lipkins' bow for ~$1000 by purchasing one some years ago and saved themselves many thousands of dollars relative to purchasing a new one now. While this is true, it seems to implicitly equate the quality of the two bows based on maker, neglecting the decade or more of learning that has taken place...

Absolutely! I met Sue when I was studying with Homer (Mr. Mensch to you and me!:-)) I auditioned two of her bows ca.'92, back when you didn't need to get on a waiting list. They were $1800. We both played them, liked them, and agreed thet they were worth the money, but I ended up going with something else. I probably made a mistake - from the investment standpoint - in not buying one, but I really don't think these bows would stand up against her current stuff. I haven't played a recent one, but she must be doing something special to be creating this kind of buzz.

This idea of attaching value to the name, regardless of the maturity or quality of the work, is an interesting paradox
throughout the art world, and perhaps puts players and performers at a disadvantage to luthiers and artists. On one hand, a musician might be always considered second rate by a certain teacher/contractor/etc. because of the way he played when he was 18 years old. On the other, a truly second rate bow/violin/painting/sculpture might be considered highly valuable only because the maker went on to create great work.

Now, Please! I am not criticizing Sue Lipkins' early bows! I am only agreeing with jsbarber, that just 'cause her current work is so highly praised doesn't mean that you could have gotten the equivalent bow from her cheap 15 years ago. I hope she would agree. What's the point of going through life if you don't gradually get better at it. I know I have!
Robobass

[LouisF]

Jesus,

I'd be happy to give you Bill Halsey's contact info, but maybe you should contact me first via email to discuss "reasonable".

Louis
LF101@excite.com