It can do everything spruce can do...
My favorite Webers are a good example, for instance, and cedar-topped...
They are going for a straight-on copy of the Griffith Loar A5...
I've got one on order, and am pretty psyched as to how this one turns out...
#74003 is one of my favorite mandolins, and if you want one you pretty much have to build it...
...or have someone build it for you...
Orcas Island Tonewoods
Free downloads of my mandolin CDs:
"Mandolin Graffiti"
"Mangler Of Bluegrass"
"Overhead At Darrington"
"Electric Mandolin Graffiti"
Girouard #73--the video I posted above--is a cedar-topped Girouard, and indeed the wood is from Spruce himself! I'd say the sound is a little chunkier than red spruce. But there are so many factors, it would be wrong to over-generalize. I would say my particular mandolin is better suited for small-ensemble melody playing more than it is for full-on bluegrass barnburning. But it is not quiet by any means. It's just that it's tone shows itself to advantage better when it has more space.
Wait, you mean I've been saving up waiting for it to pop up on the classifieds for all this time...in vain?
"Pick it solid, boys." -Claude Debussy
Orcas Island Tonewoods
Free downloads of my mandolin CDs:
"Mandolin Graffiti"
"Mangler Of Bluegrass"
"Overhead At Darrington"
"Electric Mandolin Graffiti"
I think I'll join Spruce as an early adopter of The Griffith.
Both of my Girouard instruments have cedar tops. Love the tone. Max really has it all dialed in right now.
Perilous Deep: That's a keeper. Love that tone.
2010 Heiden A5, 2020 Pomeroy oval A, 2013 Kentucky KM1000 F5, 2012 Girouard A Mandola w ff holes, 2001 Old Wave A oval octave
http://HillbillyChamberMusic.bandcamp.com
Videos: https://www.youtube.com/@hillbillychambermusic
Oh it's a keeper for me for sure. I swooned for the tone when I first played it.
I tried the nickel bronze strings on D'Addario's trial. I didn't notice a big difference in tone, honestly. And the plain steel unwound strings corroded quickly under my hostile skin chemistry, so that was sort of a dealbreaker. If anyone's interested though, I made sample recordings with EXPs and Nickel Bronze so I wasn't just relying on my own memory to compare the strings.
https://soundcloud.com/user-58078391...parison-sample
"Pick it solid, boys." -Claude Debussy
The conversation about Girouard OM's intrigued me so I went to You Tube and found one being played in a video from TME. Sounds great, but why is it being played with a missing set of strings? Are my eyes that bad, I can't see them??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aV8EQEhSu9A
I own that GBOM, and it indeed has E strings, and A, D, and G pairs too.
"your posts ... very VERY opinionated ...basing your opinion/recommendations ... pot calling ...kettle... black...sarcasm...comment ...unwarranted...unnecessary...."
I can't see them either, but I can hear them--he's definitely playing them. And it sounds amazing. Congrats mandobar!
2010 Heiden A5, 2020 Pomeroy oval A, 2013 Kentucky KM1000 F5, 2012 Girouard A Mandola w ff holes, 2001 Old Wave A oval octave
http://HillbillyChamberMusic.bandcamp.com
Videos: https://www.youtube.com/@hillbillychambermusic
Sweet! Bonjour, mon frere. Is it a pumpkintop?
Nope. Reddish-brown burst, not as red as the photos. Lauri says it is her favorite red burst of all she's done. No binding.
I agree, no finer folks to do biz with.
Here is a Flickr set, the other mando under construction is yours :
https://www.flickr.com/gp/canerod/4R6590
Salut !
I've got #170, dated Feb 2018, purchased in March so pretty fresh.
I personally haven't handled much that I would consider a nicer and would be hard pressed to come up with any purchase that has brought me more pleasure. Have only handled a few relatively entry level mandolins myself, but have played some fancy fiddles and guitars. Don't think I would have been comfortable paying the mandolin price tag for those guitars or fiddles, though they would have been more expensive in most cases. No doubts regarding the Girouard, even though it was probably the biggest purchase I can recall for anything I didn't drive or live in. It wants me to play it and the more I play it, the more I like it and the more I want to play it again.
I'm not in a position to honestly compare to many other mandolins, but I'm also not much worried about finding something better that I could ever afford. Not that I would ever pass up a chance to play other mandolins, it's just that my Girouard looks, feels, plays and sounds how I want it to. I guess that's about the best honest endorsement I can make.
All this talk has me wondering why I haven't gone over the hill to Sylvan in Santa Cruz for a Pava Girouard shootout, and throw in a Weber or two.
Oh, now I remember, cost me $3400 last time.
Silverangel A
Arches F style kit
1913 Gibson A-1
I really enjoy my Girouard, December 2013, #66. It is fun to play, lovely sound, beautiful. Max and Laurie were still in NH at the time, and my husband and I appreciated their time and attention when we visited.
Someone got a fantastic deal today on Girouard #70, a bog cedar-topped mandola. This is 3 SNs away from my cedar F5 and looks to have a very similar burst. I was very tempted to snap up this twin mandola, but am happy for the buyer to get what I'm sure is a fine instrument.
"Pick it solid, boys." -Claude Debussy
I've played a lot of Girouards over the years, and this is by far my favorite:
http://themusicemporium.com/mandolin...5-concert.6305
I played it the day they received in new, and was always sorry to have not taken it home. Lo and behold I was in TME a few weeks back and there it was again. I took it to jam last night and it was very popular among the players (two of whom were playing their own Girouards).
"your posts ... very VERY opinionated ...basing your opinion/recommendations ... pot calling ...kettle... black...sarcasm...comment ...unwarranted...unnecessary...."
Very cool, Mary. Sounds like it was fate.
TME's blurb says that A5 is noticeably different than other Girouards. Does that refer to the Red Spruce top and the cremona burst, do you think? The description of the sound as "sweet, warm, and woody" seems in line with the typical Girouard tone, in my experience. Or maybe a better way of asking is: what is it about this A5 that makes it such a standout?
"Pick it solid, boys." -Claude Debussy
The tone is very much like the Gil A they had there for a while. Tons of volume. Big fat round notes that seem to just pour out of it. I told Max after I played it the first time that it was very different. Not that the other mandolins didn't sound great. There's just something about this one that just jumps out at you. Max has really hit his stride.
"your posts ... very VERY opinionated ...basing your opinion/recommendations ... pot calling ...kettle... black...sarcasm...comment ...unwarranted...unnecessary...."
wow, that's crazy Mary. glad you hooked it though, yes, please tell us all about it, I remember someone posting that when it was just available and loved how it looked. it sold within hours if I remember correct.
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