jdmeyers77
Apr-20-2014, 8:40am
I thought to post briefly on my recent experience commissioning Ben Wilcox to build me an "end of the line" instrument. Before you chuckle at my belief in "end of the line," allow me to recount briefly my evolution these past 10 years as I have continually narrowed through MAS what my ideal A-style mando would look and sound like.
1917 Gibson to Rigel A+ to Collings MT to Weber Bitterroot F (realized I don't dig the scroll) to Weber Bridger to Collings MT2...back to Weber Bridger...back to MT2...and then....
As much I loved the Collings sound, fit, finish, and company -- I wanted an Engelmann top but with the aesthetic bells & whistles of the MT2. I certainly could have had one made by the great folks at Collings, no doubt. But I have been hugely intrigued by Ben Wilcox for several years -- admiring his build philosophy and the impressed by the really experienced players who have extolled the tone he gets from his varnished mandos (and in particular his Engelmann ones).
So, after a some very cool chats with Ben, I sold my most recent MT2 to raise money for the build and girded my loins for a two month "mando-less" wait for my new BRW.
Throughout, the communication with Ben was really exceptional. In my own small way, I helped him evolve his new headstock inlays by allowing him to have free reign to do whatever his artistic desire wanted with mine. I was glad to be the first mando with his new design!
He sourced an incredible piece of Engelmann. We went with red maple for the rest. I requested five-way bindings and -- because I viewed this as the mando I'll pass onto my son (a Berklee College grad and awesome musician) -- went with Waverly tuning machines to make it a 100% Made in America instrument.
Te toughest thing was the color of the burst. I am 56 and a classical music fan and always have loved the glow of the 200 year old instruments in a concert hall. I said, "Ben, what if someone 200 years ago making a cello had wanted to do a burst. Can you try and give me that?"
All I can say is that the picture attached does not capture what he was able to achieve. It is the most subtly beautiful burst I have ever seen -- and somehow Ben managed to capture exactly what I so inarticulately tried to describe with my cello analogy!
But beyond fit, finish and feel that even exceeds what I had grown to love with my MT2, there is the tone. Mind you, this two week old mando will need at least a year to cure and the sound will change. But I have never, ever, heard a mandolin when plucked sound so rich. And "rich" is the best word to describe its tone. I play almost exclusively Celtic and folk, so the Adi/bluegrass voiced top of the MT2 was truly wasted on me. Not so my BRW. The songs I've been playing for years now sound, well, just richer.
Lastly, I'll conclude this too long post with this thought. I don't consider Collings mandos "factory made." They are made by a great team of artisans, employed by a great company that pays a living wage.
But my BRW was made, start to finish, by one fellow who took exceptional pride in each and every step. I have pictures of the instrument in every phase of the build process. It was a mandolin that I had a real part in helping to design and conceive.
Thank you, Ben. From the bottom of my heart and the tip of my calloused fingers. BRW #118 is the one I'll pass on to my son, also named Ben.
1917 Gibson to Rigel A+ to Collings MT to Weber Bitterroot F (realized I don't dig the scroll) to Weber Bridger to Collings MT2...back to Weber Bridger...back to MT2...and then....
As much I loved the Collings sound, fit, finish, and company -- I wanted an Engelmann top but with the aesthetic bells & whistles of the MT2. I certainly could have had one made by the great folks at Collings, no doubt. But I have been hugely intrigued by Ben Wilcox for several years -- admiring his build philosophy and the impressed by the really experienced players who have extolled the tone he gets from his varnished mandos (and in particular his Engelmann ones).
So, after a some very cool chats with Ben, I sold my most recent MT2 to raise money for the build and girded my loins for a two month "mando-less" wait for my new BRW.
Throughout, the communication with Ben was really exceptional. In my own small way, I helped him evolve his new headstock inlays by allowing him to have free reign to do whatever his artistic desire wanted with mine. I was glad to be the first mando with his new design!
He sourced an incredible piece of Engelmann. We went with red maple for the rest. I requested five-way bindings and -- because I viewed this as the mando I'll pass onto my son (a Berklee College grad and awesome musician) -- went with Waverly tuning machines to make it a 100% Made in America instrument.
Te toughest thing was the color of the burst. I am 56 and a classical music fan and always have loved the glow of the 200 year old instruments in a concert hall. I said, "Ben, what if someone 200 years ago making a cello had wanted to do a burst. Can you try and give me that?"
All I can say is that the picture attached does not capture what he was able to achieve. It is the most subtly beautiful burst I have ever seen -- and somehow Ben managed to capture exactly what I so inarticulately tried to describe with my cello analogy!
But beyond fit, finish and feel that even exceeds what I had grown to love with my MT2, there is the tone. Mind you, this two week old mando will need at least a year to cure and the sound will change. But I have never, ever, heard a mandolin when plucked sound so rich. And "rich" is the best word to describe its tone. I play almost exclusively Celtic and folk, so the Adi/bluegrass voiced top of the MT2 was truly wasted on me. Not so my BRW. The songs I've been playing for years now sound, well, just richer.
Lastly, I'll conclude this too long post with this thought. I don't consider Collings mandos "factory made." They are made by a great team of artisans, employed by a great company that pays a living wage.
But my BRW was made, start to finish, by one fellow who took exceptional pride in each and every step. I have pictures of the instrument in every phase of the build process. It was a mandolin that I had a real part in helping to design and conceive.
Thank you, Ben. From the bottom of my heart and the tip of my calloused fingers. BRW #118 is the one I'll pass on to my son, also named Ben.