|
|
Vol. 13, No. 6: Dec.-Jan. 2008
|
Mutant Guitars: TogaMan GuitarViols
| |
|
|
by Jonathan Wilson
|
|
|
Page added in
October, 2003
|
| |
|
About the Author
|
|
Doctor Bow (aka Jonathan Wilson) is an experimental guitar noodler who
also doubles as a professional guitar technician, designer, luthier,
teacher, composer, and assistant manager of Cassells Music in San Fernando
Calif. His designs include the "Guillermo Roberto" bajo quinto line and,
most notably, the "TogaMan" GuitarViol (bow-able guitar).
You can hear his bowed guitar antics here.
Jonathan endorses Earvana compensated nuts and installs them on his TogaMan GuitarViols as a standard feature.
Whenever Mr. Wilson is not helping his nine year old son with math homework, taking Mrs. Wilson out on a date, or playing with his beagle, he can (sometimes) be persuaded to perform his ethereal GuitarViol music at house concerts, wine tasting events, church events, Chamber of Commerce events, business mixers, and Sade album sessions (well, not yet, anyway). Rumor has it that he may record a CD/DVD in his spare time.
If, by chance, he can find your email amongst unwanted "Viagroso" spam, send e-mail to Jonathan Wilson.
© Jonathan Wilson
|
Hello and welcome to the first installment of "Mutant Guitars". This column
is intended to be a celebration of "functionally unusual" guitars, their
utilitarian purpose, and the visionaries behind their design. Mutant guitar
designers not only dare to take the "road less traveled", they often blaze
new trails. In an effort to arrive at an intended result, they often make
surprising new discoveries along the way. Although M.G.'s often have bizarre
aesthetics, bizarre aesthetics do not define a "Mutant Guitar". "Alternative
musical function beyond common convention" defines a true Mutant Guitar in
the context of this column. The design must be somehow derived from the
guitar gene-pool.
At the close of each installment of Mutant Guitars, there will be an "off
topic" photo of a "Repair shop folly". In Repair shop follies we take a
humorous look at the desperate measures that amateur "do it yourself" repair
technicians will take to repair their guitars. Though the follies are real,
the identities of the guitars (and their owners) are withheld to protect the
guilty from public humiliation.
The first Mutant Guitar we will examine is the creation of yours truly.
While this may be perceived as shameless self promotion, it behooves me to
qualify myself (to you readers) as a true champion of mutant guitar
designers. It is to my Mutant Guitar building comrades that I tip my hat and
dedicate this column. -- Doctor Bow aka "Jonathan Wilson"
Preface to this months Mutant Guitar; a quick "bowed guitar" history
During the 15th century in Spain, viols and viola da gambas were essentially
bow-able guitars ("leg viols") that predated modern violins and cellos. They
usually had six or seven strings and a fretted fingerboard. Like today's
guitarists, viol players used varied tunings and improvised (jammed). For
more information visit Jonathan Dunford's excellent web site on Viols.
The "Arpeggione" was a bowed guitar invented by Viennese luthier named
Johann Stauffer in 1823. (Stauffer taught a certain apprentice named C.F.
Martin how to build guitars.) Franz Schubert wrote a fine sonata for it.
Today, Schubert's "Arpeggione Sonata" is commonly played on the Cello. Back
in the 1960's, Eddie Phillips of a band called "The Creation" may have
predated Jimmy Page's use of a bow on the electric guitar. Although some
cool effects were achieved, the guitars traditionally flat string plane will
not allow for effective bowing. Phillips and Page were limited to a few
psychedellic (and haunting) noises.
Today, the popular Icelandic art rock band "Sigur Ros" is well noted for
bowing guitars. It should also be mentioned that Mexico's emerging electric
guitar virtuoso Julio Revueltas has developed his guitar bowing techniques
to an astonishing degree (suggested Julio Revueltas album listening: "El
Alma" and "El Cuerpo").
This months Mutant Guitar: The TogaMan GuitarViol
The TogaMan GuitarViol is essentially is a bow-able guitar; the Jimmy Page
guitar bowing concept--on steroids. You may think that Mr. Page's bowing
antics were the inspiration behind the TogaMan GuitarViol. Indeed it was the
sound of violin, viola and cello music (Vivaldi/Paganini) that prompted my
desire to have a guitar that could truly accommodate a bow. The only problem
was; the precise embodiment of this instrument did not exist. Simply put, I
had to design and build it. (A dangerous thing for a compulsive guitar
noodler like me!) What was I after? A bow-able electric guitar of
contemporary design.
TogaMan GuitarViol features: Custom "Cana Gold" finished solid alder body,
21.00" scale, satin finished maple neck, paduk fingerboard (Radius 7.5" at
nut to 3.25 at 24th fret), proprietary Arco bridge/pickup system (for bowed
sounds), EMG magnetic pickups for plucked sounds, active EMG bass/treble
EQ., 6 channel gain buffer (for balancing individual string gain levels to
the Arco bridge pickup), round violin like string plane (essential for
bowing individual strings), hand carved violin/cello shaped body with
cutaway access to 24th fret (and beyond), proprietary leg balance cutaway
for stability and comfort in sitting the position, flush mount strap locks
in balanced positions for standing position, and Spertzel locking tuners.
Earvana compensated nut.
For more information, go to BowedGuitar.com.
Repair shop folly of the month:
"One of my favorite follies is the string splice. This one is a hybrid;
wound and nylon! Half way up the neck!! Talk about unique tone! Watch out
for the knot!"
|
|
Additional Columns by Jonathan Wilson
| |
|
|
