Instrument Update

April 2006 Jazz Instrument Update

Gretsch Classic Black Brass Snare
Gretsch’s Classic series continues to grow. This 5” by 14” beauty has been designed as the ultimate brass snare for sensitivity and response. The black nickel plated 1.0 mm straight brass shell is accented with the new centre mounted Classic tube lug design (this particular model has eight), and comes with 20 strand snare wires. Permatone drum heads are held in place by die-cast hoops, and the black nickel plated shell sports the new Classic Gretsch badge. We reckon that these drums will end up by being as sort after as their illlustrious “badged” predecessors.

LP Compact Bongos And Stand
After the acclaimed Compact Conga, it was only a matter of time before LP would come up with the Compact Bongos. And what a product! Once again designed in collaboration with master percussionist Giovanni Hildalgo, these fully tuneable full size 7 1/4” and 8 5/6” heads, utilise the same aluminium alloy as their illustrious predecessors. Responding well to intricate hand patterns, they can also be played to good effect with drumsticks, producing a sound that is remarkably close to standard bongos. For those who wish to stand, or include a pair in with their kit, LP have produced the Compact Bongo Stand, designed to securely mate the top post/internal mounting mechanism with the upper portion of the stand. The stand is fully height adjustable with double-braced legs and generous non-slip rubber feet, giving a super solid base for even the most explosive of rhythm aces!

Roland SH 201 Synthesizer
The SH 201 offers a great opportunity for those who have not yet played around with sound modelling systems. Quite simply, it’s extraordinarily user friendly and a blast to play. With a wealth of features and very useable sounds, it’ll also remind those synth pros why they fell in love with synthesizers in the first place. Needless to say, this is no toy. It carries two beefy analogue-modelling oscillators, which together with Roland’s famous Supersaw waveform and resonant filter can blow down the preverbial doors. And the specs’ don’t stop there. There are high quality delay and reverb effects, saturation sound control and an arpeggiator for instant rhythmic motion. And if all that wasn’t enough, you can plug in external audio sources, connect up to a computer, or if you’re really looking for the full monty –wave a hand over the invisible ‘D Beam’ and modulate!

Bosphorus Master Turk Cymbals
If you’re looking for that truly original sound, then look no further than these hand hammered marvels! The Master Turk cymbals combine the clarity, depth and response of the super-thin Masters series, with the exotic earthy stick sounds and reduced overtones of the unlathed Turk series. The result? A stunningly dark and dry sound that every jazz drummer will wonder at. Perfect for either live or studio situations.

Yamaha CG-BN1Guitar
The New BN (Bossa Nova) acoustic guitar from Yamaha, is just the ticket for those fingerpickers who fancy a touch of the Copacabana. And it’s true that you will find plenty of authentic Byrd vibes ready and waiting to be coaxed out of this well specified little beauty. A thin layer of varnish to the solid spruce top and cypress back and sides, gives the Bossa Nova a speedy sound response and delivers a clear, defined and dry tone. While the handcrafted headstock and tortoiseshell machine heads, together with an overall matt finish conjure up a touch of real class. Priced with the player in mind, and with the rising popularity of the nylon strung instrument, we reckon the Bossa Nova could be yet

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Instrument Updates

May 2008 Jazz Instrument Update

Wisemann FGL550 flugelhorn

If there were marks for quality of finish, this flugelhorn would be up there with the best of them. It also handles well and has a good balance. But although it’s good to see a well turned-out instrument, needless to say, I’m really more interested in the sound it produces and the quality of the various parts and fittings.
The supplied generic 7 mouthpiece is clean with a standard cup and no surprises. Playing the instrument produces a straightahead, brassy sound that is easy to control, but at the same time, not very subtle. There is no smokiness here. I even tried an alternative mouthpiece, but the 550 still produced the same sonic characteristics. Interestingly enough, driving the bottom end proved to be a real pleasure, as the 550 sailed through the lower register.

April 2008 Jazz Instrument Update

Peerless Monarch KA guitar

The Peerless brand has been going from strength to strength since its instruments came on to the UK market just over a year ago. The Monarch, which is just one of the models in the jazz range, is a full 17-inch single cutaway and comes in all solid tonewoods with a rosewood fretboard, tailpiece and pick guard plus quality Grover machine heads. Originally available with just the standard Peerless floating pick up, it can now be purchased with a mellow voiced Kent Armstrong unit, hence the KA, which adds a whole new dimension to the dynamics of the instrument.

March 2008 Jazz Instrument Update

Akai EW1 - 4000S

The Akai EW1 4000S (pictured right) is an extraordinary piece of kit. An electric wind controller sound module, its fingering system incorporates touch sensitive note keys based on the same fingerings as those for the saxophone or clarinet, alongside its own idiosyncratic collection of plates, buttons and shift rollers. For instance, the octave shift rollers allow a player to shift pitch through an incredible eight octave range, while the adjacent glide plate gives a portamento effect, smoothly and continuously sliding the pitch up and down.