Isn't IBMA going on now?

[Peakbagr]

I thought IBMA is going on now. Sorry if I missed it, but is there a thread somewhere with reports, pictures, etc?

Thanks

[Big Joe]

The portion for the music industry folks is going on now. Not much to show yet. The festival portion starts Friday. The awards show is Thursday night. Many of the displayers will not be there till later in the week. Some of our guys are up there now, and I will leave early in the morning for Louisville.

[Christine W]

Yeah it's going on as we speak. No disrespect Big Joe, but there is plenty going on right now. With the suite showcases going on till 4am and jamming till much later in the night. I'd say that's plenty going on.
Listened to the Kruger brothers last night for about an hour with Mike Cleavland on fiddle (used to be Rhonda Vincents fiddle player). I"m taking my camera tonight I'll try and post pics later.:D

[Spruce]

Greetings from the Galt House...

Yeah, there's tons going on here, with the exhibition hall open, daily workshops, showcases in the evening till 2 a.m., and I've been pickin' my brains out when all else winds down...

Lots of great mandos here too...
Fletcher Brock has four beauties, Hans has a gob, Grady Jones, and Michael Lewis...

Saw a great set in one of the suites last night by John Reischmann and the Jaybirds. #Love to hear a great mandolin played by a great player in a small room with no PA...
Lovely stuff...

Did some taste testing on a couple nice sounding Loars yesterday, #'s 73725 and 71634...
Great sounding instruments...

I'll post some pics too when I get home...

[AlanN]

Bruce,

#'s 73725 - is this a 6/13/23 or a 7/9/23?

[Tom C]

I saw Kruger brothers with Mike Cleavland on fiddle about 4 years ago. The Orange Blossom Special they did still sends chills down my spine.
-Wish I were there.

[craigmurray]

Spruce and Christine
You should both try to get to the Roots and Branches Stage on Friday @ 3:00 to check out the Creaking Tree String Quartet. Their mandolin play, Andrew Collins is fantastic. I think he might also be teaching in one of the mandolin workshops. He is a good guy, and has a fantastic new Heiden A (and an older Heiden F) that I am sure you would both love try on for size.
Craig

[ericwall]

Bruce,
Take a picture of my Brock F5! If you're nice, Flech will let you play it. His other 4 new mandos are brand spanking new- I mean hours old!!
Have fun. Wish I was there.
Eric

[Darryl Wolfe]

Hey Spruce, is 73725 the Hoss of a Loar that I remember? I haven't seen it it over 30 years. Please send pics of 71634..I never seen that one.

Alan, it's a top bound July 9

[THP]

Tons of instruments everywhere! Just leaving now and it was a great week.
We had San Juan Mandos sharing the booth with us ( Hickory Project)..a killer new A model that did'nt even last 15 minutes before it was sold.
The Flatbush mandos are very sweet as well as all the others that were there too.

My friend Bryce has a new Holoubek #mando and it is a killer one! And Mitch Simpsons Loar has the greatest tone, volume and feel that i have ever seen/played and heard from a vintage axe..
A great week indeed..back to the road.
Anthony
www.hickoryproject.com

[Spruce]

"Bruce, Take a picture of my Brock F5! #If you're nice, Flech will let you play it. #His other 4 new mandos are brand spanking new- I mean hours old!!"

I'm rooming with Fletcher, and I did a nice little taste test of the 4 new ones with a Loar thrown in for good measure...
What # is yours?
All were just wonderful mandolins...

I]"Hey Spruce, #is 73725 the Hoss of a Loar that I remember? #"[/I]

Yes, sir...

"Please send pics of 71634..I never seen that one.

I'll do that...
It's also a cannon...

Man, the Loars were just coming out of the woodwork today...
Maybe a dozen or so...

[Mike McCoy]

Hey Spruce,
You interested in dragging a couple Blue Spruce logs back with you?
I've got a couple at my place outside Bedford Ky.

[Spruce]

Thanks for the offer Mike, but I'm flying and the last time I checked a log on as baggage, they threw a little hissy fit...
It came rolling down the baggage claim ramp at LAX and nearly took out a couple people waiting to be the first in line to get their luggage...
Pretty funny memory...

The Loar that Tony Williamson had for sale here at IBMA sold yesterday...
Big bucks and rising... #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

[Mike McCoy]

LOL!!! I can see it now... TIMBER!

[Scott Tichenor]

I flew up in the morning and came home late last night. This was my first IBMA and I have to say for mandolin buzz, it's *the* event. There are literally mandolins everywhere. Someone else who was there correct me, but it seems like there's more mandolins than fiddles, guitars or banjos. Or more likely, that's all I can see--or I'm just seeing what I want. Like many events, there are these magic moments that will linger. At one point there were 6-7 Loar owners standing around the Gibson booth trading instruments back and forth. Somehow I'd wedged myself in there and got to try them all (I only brought a pick for the day). Also got to play a tune in the Collings booth with Dominick and Sara J. (the two whiz kids from Mandolin Symposium) with Tom Rozum on guitar. Met lots of builders for the first time like Dale Ludewig, Michael Heiden, Victor Smith (Flatbush), Martin Brunkalla and others that are escaping me at the moment. Also met lots of Cafe board folks, more than I can count and that was nice to put a face with a name.

Rumor has it there's another picture of Spruce and I floating around on someone's camera. I'm not telling, and I don't think he will either! Ah, and the employment "buzz" that everyone was talking about that I'd heard three weeks earlier from the source. Wonder how long it'll be until that gets posted out here. Shortly is my guess, but that one won't happen is my prediction. There is a disturbing large builder rumor going around though and I'm afraid it could be true. Stay tuned.

[onlyagibsonisgoodenuff]

I understood Collings debuted a varnished MF-5. Not the Deluxe $12K model, but a step between the regular MF-5 and the Deluxe. Should go for around $9K.

[Scotti Adams]

..ok Scott...you cant to do that....what is the "disturbing rumor"?.....spill the beans bud..

[Scott Tichenor]

Heh - just my job to provide this forum Scotti, not spread rumors http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif. Besides this would require its own sub-section on the board to discuss.

It's already been mentioned out here by a few folks. Hang onto your hats. If it unfolds--and I have my doubts--this place will go bananas like nothing that's been seen before. And I'll be one very, very unhappy person along with everyone else.

Added note: there was a custom blond one-piece back varnish that was one of the real crushers of the show at the Collings booth. Going to a store in North Carolina. Anyone else play that? $10.5K price it said.

[Scott Tichenor]

Adding on as I think of things here. Some other observations/experiences. Michael Lewis had a stunning mandolin in tow that I test drove. Real cutting edge kind of instrument with unique sound holes, head stock, etc. A real piece of craftsmanship with a crystal clear bell-like tone to die for. I almost regret seeing it if you know what I mean. Sim Daley had an A and F along and what a great job he's doing. Remarkable instruments. Grady Jones is someone I'd only heard of and he's putting out a terrific LOUD mandolin. Shocking almost. Good visit with the Ratliffs and their unique mandolins. Top notch, all of these folks. Sure I'm missing someone here. Ooops, hung with that boy Will Kimble too!

[troika]

What is going on with all these cryptic references to something happening with a large builder?

[Scotti Adams]

no doubt its probably got something to do with Gibson..

[jasona]

Good visit with the Ratliffs and their unique mandolins. Top notch, all of these folks.
Audy Ratliff or Ken and Laura Ratcliff? If the latter, how does the distressed varnish F sound?

[Scott Tichenor]

That'd be correct but I don't know enough to fill in details, but it's likely I will very soon. Apparently Henry is up to more tricks. We'll see.

[JimW]

Me thinks we'd better get ready for a foreign built FlatIron to hit the stores soon.

Just putting 2 and 2 together to get 5. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Since we're talking about rumors, I'd say it will be built in Czechoslovakia and will compete with the current crop of Eastman’s. How's that for a prediction?


Jim

[Bob Caldwell]

Scott, is it possible that Darth Henry wants to defend the Florentine shape?

[recklessmando]

Bob, I had exactly the same thought. Gibson could move production offshore or go public but neither would rival the annoyance factor created by unleashing their lawyer horde on every builder that produces an F model. The first two we could take or leave as we choose but by "defending the florentine shape" they may affect the whole community of mandolin luthiers and significantly change the look of future instruments. Don't forget that it worked against PRS guitars. And it could be an evil but brilliant move on their part. Picture a time down the road where Gibson has sole rights to build F style mandolins. If we had an emoticon that looked like "The Scream" I'd use it.

[G. Fisher]

I found this info on the IPwatchdog.com patent law page.

A patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the inventor, issued by the Patent and Trademark Office. The term of a new patent is 20 years from the date on which the application for the patent was filed in the United States or, in special cases, from the date an earlier related application was filed, subject to#the payment of maintenance fees. US patent grants are effective only within the US, US territories, and US possessions.

The right conferred by the patent grant is, in the language of the statute and of the grant itself, “the right to exclude others from making, using, # # # # # #offering for sale, or selling” the invention in the United States or “importing” the invention into the United States. What is granted is not the right to make, use, offer for sale, sell or import, but the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, selling or importing the invention.

So, it would appear that the design is no longer protected under patent law. Also, I have looked a some of the buliders sites and they use very #careful wording in the discription of their instruments.

[Bob Caldwell]

With the warning about the Flowerpot logo last year, the PRS case, and the new price/distribution policy it does have a certain odor. They seem to have the legal and financial resources to intimidate the rest of the F style mandolin builders, even if they haven't defended the F shape for the 30 to 40 years people have been making (until recently, better) copies. Legally, I don't have a clue where they stand, but I'd be happy to kick in for a builders legal defense fund.

[jasona]

I'm not a lawyer. My wife is, and has done some research on IP related law, but I am not and what follows is simply my speculation from my fuzzy understanding of what she's discussed with me on numerous occasions. Nobody should plan legal action from my speculations, because they are my own and do not represent legal advice.

Those disclaimers aside, I can't possibly imagine that Gibson could have a case, assuming these speculations about defending the F style are correct, at least in Canada. For many reasons. HOWEVER, I can imagine that the intimidation factor would be huge, because which small builder could afford to defend themselves against the Gibson behemoth?

I look forward to learning the truth as it unfolds. And man, do I love the dish! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/blues.gif

[Jaded]

Rumor has been confirmed folks, it's a sad, sad day in the mandolin world.

Effective January 1st, 2005 Gibson will move all acoustic instrument production to China. #In an effort to better serve customers, Gibson will only market their product through a single well trained vender. #No internet sales or advertising will be allowed.

In order to refocus quality control Gibson will begin offering a single model. #The Gibson Master Model Banjolin. #List Price $23,500. #Pre-orders are being accepted now.

[John Bertotti]

Jaded how could that be with this release just happening.
http://www.cybergrass.com/....sid=596 (http://www.cybergrass.com//modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=596)
John

[troika]

That would be like Kleenex patenting or trademarking the "original" tissue shape. The Gibson F is likely the most copied mandolin in history. You can't stuff the genie back in the bottle. What's next, trademarking the phrase; "you're fired" or maybe "That's Bull-S@#t".?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Nalapombu]

Gibson couldn't protect the F Style mandolin anymore than Colt can come in and say that no one else can make a 1911 or a Peacemaker copy. There are dozens of companies that make copies of each one of them and if it were able to be done, Colt would've done it LONG before Gibson ever had the twinkling of the idea.

[Bradley]

How about some IBMA information, instead of another Gibson Witch Hunt.

Pictures,stories,Jam sessions,new product information,artist reviews, etc......

[AlanN]

Yeah, like was Gilchrist there? Who did you all jam with? Show Wayne or Alan or Aubrey or Bryan any licks?

Come on, people - forget Gibson for 10 minutes.

[Scotti Adams]

thats fer sure Alan..

[ethanopia]

uh I jut got back late last night and I can say that it really does stand for I've Been Mostly Awake.

I had low expectations going in because I was basically going down by myself and worried about not knowing anyone etc, but it greatly exceeded my expectations.

I met a bunch of fantastic people, and played a ton of fantastic instruments.

Will Kimble is super cool and makes some very very good instruments, ditto for Hans Brentrup, and Charlie and Big Joe. I didn't really have time to spend with many other builders but I wish I had.

I'd never played a Loar before this weekend #and wasn't really expecting too. But I played four. At one jam in particular I was handed a July 9th after just walking into the room, then after a few tunes was handed a Dec 22...pretty cool. I want specially thank the owner who was more than generous with his axes!

Lots of hot picking by lots of folks, far too many to mention anyone in paticular.

I played Dude #15 and I must admit that I didn't believe all the hype, but now I am a firm believer, Lynne if you read this that may very well be the best mandolin I've ever played! Incredible work!

That said I got to finally see John Reischman and his paying and his Loar were about as good I've seen, truly cool.

Steve Gilchrist was there, but I didn't introduce myself. I didn't want to feel like Chris Farley interviewing Paul McCartney you know, Wow your mandolins sure are cool, {long awkward puase... }

[AlanN]

Thanks, ethanopia, that's the stuff I want to hear!

And whose Loars were they, might I ask? I know most of the big dogs, so no worries. You can PM me, if you want.

[Spruce]

"Steve Gilchrist was there, but I didn't introduce myself."

Wouldn't have been a problem...
The man eats sleeps and drinks the F5 mandolin and loves to talk shop...
Learned a lot once again from him about his take on the instrument.
Walked into his room and there was the Dawg wailing on an old F2 with a couple Loars backing him up....
Pretty cool.

"How about some IBMA information, instead of another Gibson Witch Hunt."
"Come on, people - forget Gibson for 10 minutes. "

Sorry folks, but the hot mando scuttlebutt of the week was definitely Gibson related...
Not a "witch hunt" but merely "just the facts, ma'am"...
It'll all pop up on here in it's own due time...

I too, have never played or seen so many Loars in one place...
I must have played a dozen and seen 15 or so, and played Loars for hours longer than any other mandolin...
#71634 is just a stunning instrument....

My favorite newer instruments that I ran into included Will Kimble's 'dola, all 4 of Fletcher's new F5s, a blonde Collings F5 in birdseye maple and red spruce, a Michael Lewis take on the F5, Mark's stunning Gilchrist A4 snakehead (especially nice in the hands of the Dawg), Michael Heiden's newest F5, Han's great take on the Gibson 3-point F4 (one of my favorites of the show), #Joseph Cleary's violin-influenced F5, and the Gibson Distressed F5 with all it's pits, dings, and buckle wear. #There were lots more, but those are the ones that come to mind...
I'll post some pics when I get home...

My favorite stage music included the Jaybirds (nice to hear a great mandolin in a small room in the hands of a great player), The Creaking Tree String Quartet, and of course Dell and the Boys...

But I really loved the Cherryholmes. #What a great band. #
For those of you who love the choreography of the 1 or 2 mic setup, this family just nails it. #Three part harmonies, and then wham--a twin fiddle solo with a lefty and a righty jumping the mic.
Just a fun fun band to watch and probably one of the most entertaining stage shows I've seen in a long time...

[onlyagibsonisgoodenuff]

But I really loved the Cherryholmes. #What a great band. #
For those of you who love the choreography of the 1 or 2 mic setup, this family just nails it. #Three part harmonies, and then wham--a twin fiddle solo with a lefty and a righty jumping the mic.
Just a fun fun band to watch and probably one of the most entertaining stage shows I've seen in a long time...
The true definition of perpetual motion!

[Bradley]

[QUOTE]Sorry folks, but the hot mando scuttlebutt of the week was definitely Gibson related...
Not a "witch hunt" but merely "just the facts, ma'am"...
It'll all pop up on here in it's own due time...

Thats fine...let it pop up then just on another thread.This one is for the IBMA category.
Regardless of what Gibson does, I would feel safe in saying that everyone on this board will go on picking and playing and having a great time.But sadly enough too many posts lead to finding a fault with Gibson...get over it.I cant stand green peppers on Pizza but I dont spend half of my life complaining about it, I just order a Pizza without them.

Back to IBMA...I was wanting to hear some feedback on the Eastman Mandolins and Cases...Their new axes look great.
And it was great to see Steffey win the Mando Player award.

Happy Pickin
http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[Spruce]

"Back to IBMA...I was wanting to hear some feedback on the Eastman Mandolins and Cases...Their new axes look great."

I sat down and had a go at their whole line...
Love the archtops, but the whole mando line could have used a good set-up person.

I played a nice blonde Eastman F5 (#007) for about a week recently (see pics in the Eastman thread), but it had been set up pretty nicely after it hit the states. #The IBMA mandos could have certainly used the same treatment...

A year or so to get the bugs out will help the Eastman line considerably...

Nice to see their take on the oval-holed design...
Their oval-holed A model was perhaps the nicest sounding mando in the lineup.

From a tonewood standpoint, it was very revealing to see a dozen or so Eastman instruments in the same space. #The maple is some of the nicest wood I've seen regardless of country of origin, and was consistantly good. #
The spruce is good and well-milled as well....

[ethanopia]

Well said spruce I didn't get to see Dawg but once in the hallway, I guess I'm not hanging with the right crowd http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

I liked the Eastman cases, kind of an inexpensive version of Pegasus. Very nice case for a very nice price.

I didn't talk to Charlie or Big Joe about any of the scuttle because ultimately I could not really care less about what their business decisions are just that they keep making good mandolins.

And yes Will Kimble's new mandola is a an absolute monster. If he ever starts taking orders I will put my money on one of those without question, an absolutely stunningly good sounding instrument!

[RHS]

Living in Louisville, this was my 4th or 5th IBMA since they moved it from Owensboro and it gets better every year. #Particularly with the remodeling of the Galt House, the layout of everything was much improved. #Saw John Reischman for the first time playing with Kathy Kallick. #Wow, what a player. #His backup and harmony work is fabulous. #Then I saw him in the Mandolin workshop with Alan Bibey, David Harvey and a couple of others. #He makes mandolin playing look so effortless. #I agree with Scott that there was probably more mandolins there than any other instrument; and more than any other year. #I saw some Loars, but didn't play any. #Too timid, I guess, but that is not my regret. #It is the fact that they are moving IBMA to Nashville next year. #What a loss! #I had a jewel in my backyard and now it's gone. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

[Dale Ludewig]

Ah Yes, Scott and Spruce- the rumor is true. The picture turned out great. No one (except for a few that you could trust) have seen it. It's very funny. At least I thought so. My wife didn't understand the humor or it when I described it while I was at there and told her about it over the phone. The picture is great, and when I got home this evening, she still thinks it must be a "guy" thing. Ah, it probably is. But it's hysterically funny to me. But I'll send you copies and then you guys can decide whether or not to make it public. After all, it could ruin your pristine reputations- well, maybe Scott's. But it's very funny.
I'll leave the Gibson stuff alone.
Great Show, Great Musicians, Great Luthiers, Great Friends to remeet, meet, play with til the wee hours. Everyone who can should go to IBMA. It's a real blast. Who needs sleep?

[MEP]

The mandolin moment for me was seeing Bill Collings, Gilchrist, Heiden, and Brock all standing in the Collings booth talking mandolins.

Plus Bill Collings checked my MF5 over and I got a picture of him and Gilchrist checking it over.

I was impressed with the Sumi mandolins and think that they are a real bargain.

Michael Lewis builds some very nice instruments. I played a rosewood model that he had that was very sweet. Not a bluegrass mandolin, but would be a killer jazz or classical instrument.

The Bentrup's were exceptionally nice as were the Gibson's. I also got to play a couple of Loar's, but I didn't keep track of the serial #'s.

The rumor that I kept hearing was that Gibson is going to target Collings as they try to claim all rights to the F style.

IBMA was a great week.

[Big Joe]

Boy, I've sure missed something! I never get in on the good rumors. I had a great time with lots of great friends and builders. Played lots of exciting mandolins. Worshipped a dozen wonderful loars. Made lots of new friends. Heard no rumors http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif . I'm always the last to know! Oh well, if there is anything to them I'll know soon enough. If there isn't it won't make any difference. My problem is I don't know which rumors could be true. Lot's of speculation but not much fact on this thread. Such is life.

[Christine W]

-craigmurray, I got to see Creeking tree in one of the suit showcases they where great! The guy I brought was very impressed also he kept talking about them three days later. I've had their Cd for over a year now and absolutely love it and was thrilled to catch them live in a cozt setting.
-I hardly took any pics so my promise of photos I made earlier I can't back up, sorry I just got caught up in everything .... so many mandos so little time
- I actually got the nerve up to play in the lobby and even sing a couple songs of course it was 3am and everyone was #drunk so it wouldn' have mattered how many sour notes I hit.
-Caught a set by Abigal Washburn (bango player) she did some songs in Chinese- that was incredible.
What a terrific week...now back to reality. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

[carolynbeth]

Christine, I'm sure you sounded great. Good for you! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Carolyn

[Spruce]

"Living in Louisville, this was my 4th or 5th IBMA"

Well, maybe you can answer this question that has been nagging me for the past few days...

I was at the debacle that was Altamont, the student "riots" at UC Berkeley, the confused aftermath of a huge earthquake in Guatamala City that killed 30.000 people, and plenty of rock concerts, and I have never witnessed the obscene display of human behavior that I witnessed at the Galt House on every floor near the elevators on Friday and Saturday nights....

People (mostly without armbands or badges) throwing beer cans and cigarette butts on the carpet by the hundreds, puke in the corners, elevators, and on walls, bottles by the dozens on stairway bannisters where they could easily drop on somebody's head 2 floors below, bongs in full tilt mode (get a room!), people fornicating in the stairwells (get a room!), and just general obnoxious behavior at every turn.

I can absolutely tell you that if any of the above every happened at Wintergrass, the jerk who dropped the beer can or lit up on an evavator would be altering their behavior in a big hurry...

So, what's up with this?
I'm as up for a good party as the next guy, but some jerk who thinks it's a good idea to rip the towel dispenser off the bathroom wall and throw it out in the hallway needs to get backed up against the wall...

Hope the IBMA folks will get a clue in Nashville and find a way to let the folks who paid good money to attend to not have to deal with the hundreds of people who got wind that there was "free" beer and music in the hospitality suites....

Enough ranting....
Here's a great shot of Will Kimble, Fletcher Brock and Tom Ellis talkin' mandos....

[Big Joe]

Hey Bruce.. I missed all the fun! Nobody ever lets me know! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif .