Don Rickert Musical Instruments

Don Rickert Musical Instruments, Makers of Violoncellos da Spalla and Other Fine Bowed Instruments

For more information about us, including our online store, the Don Rickert Musician Shop, see Introducing the Don Rickert Musician Shop. Don Rickert Musical Instruments is a premiere designer and maker of innovative custom and historic musical instruments. Since starting our musical instruments enterprise in 2007, we have dealt primarily in those of the bowed variety (e.g. violins, fiddles and related instruments such as octave fiddles). We have also designed and made a number of fretted instruments along the way: mandolins, parlor guitars, acoustic bass guitars, tenor guitars and the like. We will soon be branching out in a serious way into the world of fretted musical instruments. Look forward to some really interesting mandolins, octave mandolins, mandocellos, parlor guitars, acoustic bass guitars, tenor guitars and the like. Regular production items are usually available at the Don Rickert Musician Shop. If you want something that is not there, give us a call... Our email is [email protected] and main phone number is (706) 896-0909. Don Rickert's mobile phone number is (706) 400-1481 Mailing address: Don Rickert Musical Instruments 726 Hall Creek Road Hiawassee, GA 30546 See: Our new online store, the Don Rickert Musician Shop (www.DonRickertMusicianShop.com) Our companion blog, Don Rickert Musician Shop: Latest News (www.DonRickertMusicianShop.com/blog) The Facebook page of our owner, Donald Rickert (We still have a large number of photo albums there) (www.facebook.com/donald.rickert1) Our new company Facebook page, also called D. Rickert Musical Instruments (www.facebook.com/DonRickertMusicianShop) Our YouTube Channel: www.YouTube.com/DoctorFiddle >>>>>>> Click here for Our full contact information <<<<<<<< ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~... Read more →

Baroque Pochettes and Modern Travel Violins at the Don Rickert Musician Shop (Part 1 of 2 Parts): Pochettes

Attention!: We have more recent articles about Travel Violins. Better still - See the Travel and Backpacker Fiddle category at the Don Rickert Musician Shop. If it is Baroque pochettes, violins or violoncellos da spalla you want to see, go to the Baroque Instruments Category at the Don Rickert Musician Shop. Introduction D. Rickert Musical Instruments makes some of the world’s finest Modern Travel Violins (aka Backpacker Fiddles) and more models (6 models currently; one a 5-string). We also make two Pochette models; one a Baroque (early to mid-1700s) and one a Pre-Modern (1780s). All of these instruments are available at the Don Rickert Musician Shop. The article is about the pochettes, and some of the lore associated with them. Baroque Pochettes (the ancestors of modern travel violins) These are the 18th Century instruments whose popularity was primarily from the 1750s through the 1780s. The pochette (French for “pocket”) was a small violin. They are also known as “pocket fiddles” and “kit fiddles” (as kitten, implying small). The pochette’s development was driven in large part by itinerant Dancing Masters (private dance instructors), who preferred very portable violins that could be carried, with its short bow, in a sleeve (called a pocket or “pochette”, as many were French) sewn onto the Dancing Master’s coat. This was the origin of pockets in many items of modern clothing. The Baroque pochette is inspiration for the modern travel violins and fiddles by Don Rickert Musical Instruments. The Historical-Political Events that Gave Rise to the... Read more →

Don Rickert Musician Shop: Your Source for Unique Bowed and Fretted Instruments and Accessories Ranging from Baroque Period to Today’s Cutting Edge

Don Rickert Musician Shop (D. Rickert Musical Instruments): Your Source for Unique Bowed and Fretted Instruments and Accessories Ranging from Baroque Period to Today’s Cutting Edge Introduction It is quite clear that we are the place to come for the unique stuff…things you just cannot get at either the corner music store, traditional violin shops or the online mega-stores. What are these things that musicians, and the occasional museum, come to us for? Over the 9 years we have been in business, our analysis of search engine “hits” to our websites and online store, corroborated by actuals sales records, indicates that we are best known, in descending order for the following: Modern Travel and Backpacker Violins The world’s finest and more models (to meet different player needs)…5 base models; all customizable! We sell more travel violins than anything else, by a long shot. Yup, real musicians are willing to pay 3 to 5 times as much for a real luthier-built travel violin than for a toy instrument. See the Bowed Instruments (Regular Offerings) > Travel and Backpacker Fiddles at the Don Rickert Musician Shop Octave Violins, Violas and Octave Violas (aka “Chin Cellos”) Best and most innovative. Ours have been played by some of the greatest fiddle innovators in the world. Our instruments are on some CDs by some of the greats, including the musician responsible for the re-birth of the octave violin, Darol Anger (and most recently Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas, their “Abundance” CD). For our current offerings,... Read more →

Introducing the New Don Rickert Musician Shop

The Don Rickert Musician Shop is the new online retail face of Don Rickert Musical Instruments, premiere designer and maker of innovative custom and historic musical instruments. Since starting our musical instruments enterprise in 2007, we have dealt primarily in those of the bowed variety (e.g. violins, fiddles and related instruments such as octave fiddles). We have also designed and made a number of fretted instruments along the way: mandolins, parlor guitars, acoustic bass guitars, tenor guitars and the like. We will soon be branching out in a serious way into the world of fretted musical instruments. Look forward to some really interesting mandolins, octave mandolins, mandocellos, parlor guitars, acoustic bass guitars, tenor guitars and the like. They will start showing up soon as R&D instruments in our new Custom Shop. Our business is owned and run by Donald Rickert, Ph.D., IDSA, who has been playing, designing, making and modifying stringed musical instruments of many types for more than 40 years. Dr. Rickert is a Professional Member of the Industrial Designers Society of America (designated IDSA) We started out as a general product research & design firm in 2005, when we were incorporated as a Limited Liability Company (LLC) in the State of Georgia, USA. The original corporate name, which is still in effect today, is Wiederholt & Rickert Partners, LLC. The two founding Members were Brad Wiederholt and Donald E. Rickert, Ph.D., IDSA. In 2007, Brad left the firm to pursue his high-technology interests. Donald Rickert became sole Owner.... Read more →

So You Think You Need a Pernambuco Fiddle Bow, Eh?

Well, okay...some people actually do need a pernambuco bow. Read on. In a recent article, Making Sense of the New Carbon Fiber Bows, I expressed a strong preference for the new generation of braided carbon fiber bows, for violin, fiddle, viola and octave violin (sometimes called baritone violin) for meeting the needs of the modern player. Considerations I covered in the previous article were: Whether or not the bow is to be used to play violin/fiddle or octave violin/fiddle, concluding that the octave violin or fiddle player should use a viola rather than a violin bow Do you need a “forgiving” bow or does your playing demand a “race horse” bow? Are you a fiddler or a violinist? (a minor consideration really)  Considerations NOT covered in depth in the previous article: Cost, as the best high-performance modern carbon fiber bows are all in the $400 to $900+ range, which is FAR less than the cost of a good wooden bow Situations for which the player actually needs a quality wooden bow…that will be covered in this article Our Conclusions About High-Performance Carbon Fiber Bows: The CodaBow Diamond NX is the way to go if you desire a really nice but forgiving bow. The Glasser Braided Carbon Fiber Octagonal Shaft is the best buy for a fiddler in need of an extremely high-performance bow. The CodaBow Diamond SX is our second choice FOR FIDDLERS in the high-performance class owing to its higher price than the Glasser, but our first choice... Read more →

Making Sense of the New Carbon Fiber Bows

The bow is just as important, and in some ways more important, than the instrument it is used on. There are different kinds of bows for different instruments. For example, a bow for a viola or octave (baritone) violin or fiddle is heavier, with a different balance point, than a bow for violin or fiddle. The playing characteristics any specific bow makes it more or less suitable to the playing style of the musician. Bows for Violin or Fiddle (Price range from about $400 to $900+) CodaBow Diamond Series NX Violin Bow CodaBow Diamond Series SX Violin Bow CodaBow Diamond Series GX Violin Bow Glasser Braided Carbon Fiber Octagonal Violin Bow Bows for Viola or Octave (Baritone) Violin (Price range from $400s to about $1,000) CodaBow DIAMOND NX Bow for Octave Violin or Viola CodaBow Diamond Series SX Viola or Octave Violin Bow CodaBow Diamond Series GX Viola or Octave Fiddle Bow Glasser Braided Carbon Fiber Viola or Baritone Fiddle Bow, Octagonal Stick Deciding on a New-Generation Carbon Fiber Bow Deciding on which bow is right for you can be bewildering, as they all are so-called “braided carbon fiber” and look pretty much the same, except for color and appointments, such as gold inlay, goldfish abalone, etc. on the most expensive models. All models are made of an “acoustic core” (such as Kevlar), encased in graphite fabric saturated with a hard resin (e.g. epoxy). Only the new generation of braided carbon fiber bows has this acoustic core. Fiberglass and other... Read more →

It's All About the Bow

Assuming that you have at least a moderate-quality fiddle or violin (that is properly set up) and some skill at playing it, NOTHING matters to your playing, the sound your playing makes and your development as a bowed string musician than the bow. The old rule of thumb that we old people were taught is that you should spend at least as much on your bow as you do your fiddle or violin. How many of us really followed that advice. Especially those of us who practice the fiddle discipline played on the cheapest Brazilwood or fiberglass bow that we could get our hands on. Until you play a great bow, you just can't get it--you play a lot better with a high-quality bow. Not too long ago, a great bow could cost thousands of dollars. Invariably, great bows were always made of Pernambuco wood, or occasionally Snakewood (but Snakewood is more common for Baroque bows, and that is a different topic than today's). Pernambuco bows can be real a joy to use; but there is a serious shortage of Pernambuco wood, so buying a new one could be considered irresponsible, and a good old one is going to cost you some big bucks. Today, you can get a carbon fiber or carbon graphite (they are slightly different composite materials) bow for under $500. In the case of the IncrediBow, you can get one for about $150 or less. High-end carbon fiber bows that I have played are better than... Read more →

Is a Snakewood Violin of Fiddle Bow an Alternative to Pernambuco?

No! Snakewood is for Baroque bows, which are used for playing Baroque music on Baroque violins. The wood is heavy and does not hold the camber (reverse curve) that is so critical to Tourte (i.e. modern) bows. Francois Tourte explicitly rejected snakewood as being unsuitable for his bows. We nearly cried when we heard that a vendor (yes, a competitor) sold a snakewood Tourte bow to a young fiddle student who was considering buying an entry-level carbon fiber bow (OK, yes from us). Now, you might ask, why not use a Baroque bow for modern playing. We'll get into the details some other time, but suffice it to say that Tourte did not invent the modern bow just to be different. Snakewood looks really cool, but it sucks for modern violin and fiddle bows. Unless it is vintage or made from pre-embargo pernambuco wood, getting a Pernambuco bow is irresponsible. This means that if you buy a pernambuco bow (note: Don Rickert Musical Instruments DOES sell them), it is going to be made in Europe, as it is difficult to certify Asian-made bows as legal (i.e. pre-embargo). Got comments...bring them on! D.R. Read more →

Dr. Don Rickert Revisiting the Best Bow for Octave Violins and Fiddles Question

In an earlier post, I (Don Rickert) presented more or less a summary of what various musicians use to play octave violin or octave fiddle. In that post, I mentioned that the extraordinary 'cellist and also really good fiddler, Natalie Haas, uses a French-style 'cello bow on her octave violin. Natalie has since informed me that she is now using a violin bow. I did not ask her the characteristics of her bow, as we had other business to cover; however, I assume (i.e. if I were her), I would choose a "heavy" violin bow. ALL violin bows weigh in the 56-58 grams range. A "heavy" bow is one whose balance point is further away from the frog, so that it feels heavier and "grabs" the strings with more force. That update being covered, I will talk about my two favorite bows for octave violin; the Glasser Braided Carbon Fiber Octagonal Viola Bow and the new CodaBow Diamond Series NX Viola Bow, also a "braided" carbon fiber (meaning epoxy-saturated carbon fiber fabric wrapped around a core) bow. The Glasser is pictured on the left and the CodaBow on the right. The Glasser's core, as far as I know, is proprietary or I was not paying attention when I was told. The CodaBow's core is composed of Kevlar strands. The Glasser is slightly stiffer, the octagonal shape contributing somewhat to this stiffness, as the octagonal is far stiffer than the Glasser round shaft version of the same bow, which I do... Read more →

Don Rickert on Bows for Octave Violins

There is probably no topic that stimulates more debate than which type of bow to use on an octave violin, or a regular violin for that matter. For instance, Darol Anger, indisputably the prime mover behind the resurgence in modern octave violins, uses a violin bow exclusively and has very strong opinions about its benefits. But, then again, Darol favors an octave strung standard violin for his style of playing and the type of alternative jazz-grass fusion, which is far from the mainstream. On the other extreme, the great 'cellist, Natalie Haas often uses a 'cello bow on her octave violin (a Rickert-Fiddarci with Chanot-type soundholes). Our point of view is informed by formal observational research and depth interviews with hundreds of musicians conducted by Dr. Rickert. The answer is that whatever bow works for the type of music you are playing is the right bow. For virtually ALL players, however, the right bow is a high-quality braided carbon fiber viola bow. Wooden bows of any sort are completely unsuitable for playing an octave instrument, as they tend to have too much bounce. Perhaps a $5,000 pre-moratorium Pernambuco wooden bow could do the job, but who knows, especially when you can get a bow that we know will work for about $500. The stiffness of a high-end carbon fiber viola bow pulls sound from the large diameter strings of an octave violin with minimal bounce. We favor the Glasser™ Octagonal Braided Carbon Fiber viola bow or the new CodaBow™ Diamond... Read more →