Jazz on a 10-string

  1. Tom Wright
    Tom Wright
    I joined a local jam that is run by a friend, and brought along my new Almuse. I had been using my Buchanan with a magnetic soundhole pickup, and that convinced me that the sound and range of a short-scale 10-string is excellent for jazz.

    It was a good test, since I was playing along with guitar and vibes, mainly. If electric mandolin was redundant that would have been obvious. But the somewhat different tone and response made it easy to claim a role. On top of that, my time spent working with my acoustic 10-string meant the electric was instantly comfortable and easy to play and improvise on. I had specifically asked Pete of Almuse to match the 14.25" scale length, but we went slightly slimmer for the neck profile and string spacing.

    I am sold on paired strings, since the rich sound means I can skip any effects and preserve dynamic response for better ensemble balance. I am absolutely dependent on having C string, but also the compact scale, so a normal mandola would not be useful for me with its larger stretches.

    The sapele wood Pete uses meant the instrument was heavy, but that likely adds to its tone---it never sounded small or dead. The double pickups meant I could employ a range of tone color, bringing in some Scofield or Hendrix tone as desired. If I pick lightly it sounds like single strings; if I drag the pick slowly across a pair it sounds like echo; and if I bend slightly it is a chorus effect.

    I'm in electric-mando heaven. I can practice on my acoustic to skip the wires, and also for travel, and trust that it will translate to electric without trouble. Thanks for a great axe, Pete.
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