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
This is the primary website and blog for Don Rickert Musical Instruments .
We are NOT a "Brick-and-Mortar" Retail Establishment Nor a Typical Online Operation (We are Better!)
We are not a “brick-and-mortar” retail establishment; however, many customers do choose to visit our studio and workshop in the beautiful North Georgia Mountains (part of the Appalachians). Being shopkeepers for a corner musical instrument shop would be completely at odds with our multifaceted focus on continuous research & development, innovative instrument design and customization, combined with our creation of meticulously accurate replicas of historically significant fiddles.
The nature of our business demands that sales be conducted primarily online. We have done this for some time. The predecessor to the new Don Rickert Musician Shopwas called the “Adventurous Muse Store.” We initially operated under the name “Fiddle and Bow Shop.”
Please note that this site has been around for a good while. While working diligently to clear out the "junk" (old obsolete articles), this is going to take some time. We thank you for your patience during this period and offer a blanket apology for any incorrect links to our old online store.
This article is by D. Rickert Musical Instruments and its online store, Don Rickert Musician Shop. We hope that you find this article interesting in its own right. That being said, the article is a background piece to an article that proposes a new graduated family of 4 or 5-string steel-strung instruments, tuned in 5ths and intended primarily for melodic playing rather than rhythmic chords. The instruments are designed to be played with a plectrum (pick).
The instruments, as well as plans and kits for building them, will be available very soon at the Don Rickert Musician Shop.
Introduction
The tenor guitar is more or less a fluke (i.e. an accident) of musical instrument design history. It is a bit smaller than a 6-string guitar with a slightly shorter playable scale (23” vs. 25”-25.5”). It has four strings tuned in 5ths (just like the violin and mandolin families). Okay, an instrument of the tenor guitar’s size tuned in 5ths would be appropriate for a melody instrument tuned an octave lower than a violin or mandolin; essentially a single course octave mandolin. Note: The Octave Mandolin did not appear until about 40 years after the tenor guitar. Well, it is not. What we call the “Historic Tenor Guitar” is tuned way higher than an instrument of its size should be (rather, it is tuned like a viola: C-G-D-A) and traditionally is NOT used to play melodic parts (except in the hands of Irish tenor banjo players…another story altogether). Rather, the historic tenor guitar was created to strum chirpy little chords in jazz-swing music, which was popular in the 1930s.
To call a Historic Tenor Guitar a guitar is a serious stretch. In other words, it is not really a solidly legitimate member of the guitar family. The Historic Tenor Guitar, was in fact, created for tenor banjoists (or band leaders) wanting to achieve more of “guitarish” sound to their choppy rhythmic chord playing. The tenor banjo is another musical instrument oddity, which was created to fill one need, which was to provide barely audible chord rhythm to jazz-swing music.
In our introduction to the tenor guitar, one could get the impression that we do not like jazz-swing. In the spirit of full disclosure, a little bit of this genre goes a long way for us; just as bagpipe or accordion music does for many people. Any reference to jazz-swing was simply to explicate the aberrant use of a potentially good musical instrument in an especially non-musical way.
One does wonder about the percentage of tenor banjo and tenor guitar players in the 1930s who really enjoyed their roles, or whether making a living played a larger role than musical fulfillment. This is not to deny the skill it takes to play jazz chords with good timing. In any case, we will not be surprised to hear from the various historic jazz-swing tenor guitar interest groups wishing to express their displeasure.
Despite its oddness, the historic high-tuned tenor guitar is currently enjoying a resurgence, as it has a number of times in its near century long existence.
Summary of Things that are Just Plain Wrong About the Historic Tenor Guitar
It is strung and tuned too high for an instrument of its size
It is tuned for melody (in 5ths), but used exclusively for chords
It is misnamed: The tuning is such that it is in no way a tenor instrument, but rather, it is an ALTO instrument!
Leave it to the Irish Do Things Their Own Way!
Irish musicians have well-established history of playing fretted instruments melodically. Early on, Irish musicians started using tenor banjos and tenor guitars as melody instruments. They had already set the precedent with their unique use of the 5-string and the plectrum banjos, for instance.
It did take until the 1960s for Irish Traditional musicians to start tuning both tenor banjos and tenor guitars as proper tenor instruments (i.e. an octave below the fiddle). It was Barney McKenna, tenor banjoist of the Dubliners, who introduced the lower-pitched so-called “Irish tuning” (G-D-A-E) for tenor banjos. Use of the Irish tuning for tenor guitar followed. I have NEVER met an accomplished tenor guitarist who did not use the G-D-A-E nor have I met a tenor guitarist who used the instrument for anything but primarily melodic playing. Of course, I have heard recordings of the tenor guitar in jazz-swing. I have also heard the instrument when strung and tuned like the first four strings of a 6-string guitar (D-G-B-E). This is called either the “Chicago tuning” or the baritone ukulele tuning. Nick Reynolds of the Kingston Trio is probably the best-known chord strummer of a tenor guitar in Chicago tuning.
Side Bar: An Enigmatic Irony
At about the same time that tenor guitars were being re-strung, retuned and used for melodic playing, there was the introduction of the so-called “Irish bouzouki”, followed by the appearance of the “Irish Octave Mandolin”. The Irish Bouzouki uses octave stringing (like a 12-string guitar) on the lower courses and the subsequently developed Octave Mandolin generally uses unison courses (like all mandolin family instruments). Both the Irish bouzouki and the octave mandolin are tuned an octave lower than the fiddle (G-D-A-E).
Here is the ironic part: Common playing practice, established early on, for both of these instruments, is primarily chordal rather than melodic. Go figure! But I digress.
The Idea of the “Melodic Guitar” Instrument Family: The Melodic Guitar Quartet
In my next article, I will propose a 4-member family of instruments, graduated in sizes, as follow: Treble, Alto, Tenor and Baritone. These instruments are to be metal strung, tuned in 5ths and intended to be played with a plectrum (pick). The Tenor of this new instrument family is the tenor guitar strung and tuned an octave below the violin (G-D-A-E), a proper tenor tuning. The smaller Alto of the family will be tuned in the historic tenor guitar C-G-D-A (i.e. viola) tuning.
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.
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).
There are only a few other 5-string violins in the same class as the models we offer. We offer our own Fat Strad Deux 5-String Mezzo Viola (violin length with viola ribs and bass bar) and the Realist 5-String PRO e Series.
Baroque Pochettes (the ancestors of modern travel violins)
These are the 19th Century instruments used by itinerant Dancing Masters (Dance instructors), and the inspiration for our modern travel violins and fiddles.
Musical curiosities, especially cigar box fiddles, made to master violin standards (i.e. not cheap!)
We do not currently have any of these for sale, but when we do, they always sell quickly. Contact us if you want us to make you one (email, the Contact Us link or telephone…all available at Don Rickert Musician Shop). Get your head around a minimum of $1,000 before calling!
Authentic Baroque Violin reproductions
There are fake “replicas”, readily available on eBay (modern violins “dressed up” to look sort of like Baroque Violins, and authentic Baroque Violins, which are the kind we sell. Some of the finest Baroque musicians are proud owners of our higher end instruments.
Meticulously accurate historic period setup (violins, fiddles and parlor guitars)
When one purchases an instrument from us, part of the buying process is specification of period setup. We refine the setup preference with consultation, either in person at our studio, on the telephone, video conferencing (e.g. Skype) and email.
We also offer period setup as a stand-alone service. See…
While we have not advertised parlor guitar setup, particularly setup for Civil War re-enacting, we have set up quite a few modern guitars as plausible mid-19th Century gut-strung guitars. We have even set up re-enactor guitars with synthetic gut strings (generally Nylgut) that can be played with a stiff leather ukulele flat pick!
Genre-specific setup (violins and fiddles)
Either in conjunction with a period setup or a contemporary setup (the most common case), we do absolutely correct genre-specific setup, including, but not limited to:
Classical violin
Scottish Highland fiddle
Irish Fiddle (and its many regional sub-genres)
Old-Time Fiddle (New England, Southern Mountain and everything in between)
Bluegrass Fiddle
Cajun Fiddle
Gypsy Fiddle
Things For Which We Appear to Be Not So Well-Know (Yet)
New Violins and Bows
These are violins and fiddles from the Post-Baroque or Pre-Modern Period (about 1770s) to the present (modern violins and fiddles). We offer a number of setup and accessorizing options to replicate any specific period or playing style from 1770s to the present day.
We are very pleased to announce our “Golden Era Old-Time Fiddles”. These fiddles replicate the very best (and most sought after today by Old-Time fiddlers) of the so-called “factory fiddles” imported by the millions from Markneukirchen, Saxony, German and neighboring Bohemia, Austria-Hungary (now the Czech Republic) during the years from 1880 through the 1920s..
We also have the best collection of authentic early 20th Century fiddle accessories that you will find anywhere. We are one of the few makers of late 19th Century and early 20th Century chin rests on the planet.
Unless you have been following Dr. Rickert’s experimental instruments over the past decade, you might not know that our workshop has produced quite a few electric violins and MIDI-capable electronic violins (as well as some truly odd contraptions). A few of these have entered in and done quite well in major international new musical instrument design competitions.
You might not be aware that Dr. Rickert has lectured on electric musical instrument design in major University Industrial Design programs, including the Georgia Institute of Technology (better known as Georgia Tech), where he was an Adjunct Faculty Member when living in Atlanta.
Dr. Rickert designed and built his first electric violins, mandolins, basses and guitars about 40 years ago. We still have an intact electric bass from among Don’s early work.
We have not seen the point of introducing new electric violins or mandolins until such time as we had some designs that were unequivocally better than any thing else on the market. That time has arrived!
When using any kind of amplified instrument, especially violins, in live performance, the live performance rig is essential. Relying on the sound engineers to cobble together a way to plug into the main sound reinforcement system and personal monitor system is ill-advised and done at your own peril. If you are using effects processors of any kind, the interconnection of these processors is extremely complex, as the correct sequence of the effects in a "chain" is critical. Getting the order wrong will often result in nothing working properly. Most professional performance have an expert design his or her performance rig.
With four decades of designing live performance rigs for amplified fiddles, violins, mandolins, banjos, guitars, basses and even instruments such as dulcimers and accordions, combined with live performance demonstration of experimental electric and electronic violins in major musical instrument design competitions, we have the knowhow and experience to design a rig for you!
Cost ranges from under $1,000 for a living room setup to several thousand dollars for a large venue setup.
Our performance rigs are guaranteed to work.
If you ever tried to do it yourself or rely on the sound technitians, you know what I am talking about.
Our rigs are ready to be plugged in and send the right kind (e.g. correct impedance) of balanced signal to the master sound board.
Fretted Instruments
Mandolins, Octave Mandolins and Mandocellos
The Octave Mandolin is a mandolin family version of a tenor guitar or tenor banjo that is tuned in the Celtic G-D-A-E tuning (in other words, an octave lower than a mandolin). The only important differentiator from the tenor guitar is that, instead of four individual strings, an octave mandolin has four (occassionaly five) pairs (called "courses") of strings. Each string in a pair is tuned in unison.
A mandocello is to a bowed ‘cello what a mandolin is to a violin. The mandolin is tuned like a violin and a mandocello is a large mandolin tuned like a ‘cello. The primary differences, of course, is that mandolin family instruments are played with a plectrum rather than a bow and they have twice as many strings…actually four, or sometimes, five pairs (called courses) of strings, each pair being tuned in unison.
These instruments are seeing increasing use in Celtic music, Progressive Bluegrass and In Alternative Old-Time (aka "Neo Old-Time", "Old-Time Punk" genres.)
Included here are guitars that replicate instruments from the early 19th Century (called the "Romantic Period") to the 1930s. In the interest of being able to offer quite affordable instruments (all well under $1000), these guitars are customized/modified modern factory-built instruments of the "parlor guitar" type. This basically means that they have much smaller bodies than contemporary guitars. They would not have been called parlor guitars in the 19th and early 20th Centuries. They were simply called guitars.
These are meticulously accurate hand-built replica instruments and cost between 5 and 6 times as much as our modified factory-built reproduction instruments. Hand-made in the workshops of D. Rickert Musical Instruments (Don Rickert Musician Shop)
Tenor banjos
Even though D. Rickert Musical Instruments has never sold a regular production banjo of any sort, old blog articles we have published over the years about the difference between tenor banjos and Irish tenor banjos and related banjo articles continue to be the NUMBER ONE (i.e most popular, predominant, persistent, etc.) topic that leads visitors to our blogs, and sometimes even to our online store, Don Rickert Musician Shop.
If we saw even a hint of possibility that anyone would actually buy a new tenor banjo from us, we would design and build a really nice one. We are considering instituting a “bounty” (i.e. finder’s fee) program to start rescuing vintage tenor banjos from their imprisonment in hundreds (or even thousands) of small music stores, flea markets, antique shops and pawnshops throughout the U.S. We would then restore and sell them.
Attention!: This is an older post. We are currently working on newer and better instruments in this category. Please visit the Don Rickert Musician Shop.
The 1920s Stromberg-Voisinet “Venetian” Style Octave Mandolin by D. Rickert is an octave mandolin with the same scale length as a typical commercial “Irish” octave mandolin; however it has a considerably larger body. The body design inspired by the Stromberg-Voisinet fretted instruments of the 1920s, particularly the tenor guitars.
This is a made-to-order professional performance level instrument, with a price tag to match. The instrument can be fitted with a pickup system to meet the needs of the buyer’s live performance needs.
The potential buyer should follow the links below.
The octave mandolin is a fretted string instrument with four pairs of strings tuned in unison fifths, G, D, A, E (low to high), an octave below a mandolin. It has a 20 to 23-inch scale length and its construction has generally been, until recently, is similar to other instruments in the mandolin family, particularly those of the flat-top type rather than the carved arch-top (e.g. Gibson “A” or “F” types) type.
Octave mandolins did not exist in the early 20th Century, which was the heyday of amateur mandolin orchestras. The primary use of the modern octave mandolin has been in Celtic music, particularly Irish Traditional Music, the genre from which the octave mandolin was born in the late 1960s.
Octave mandolins have also found their way into progressive folk music throughout continental Europe, particularly in Scandinavian and Eastern European bands. The Octave mandolin is also enjoying ever-increasing popularity among Bluegrass mandolin players.
The octave mandolin and its larger cousin, the modern mandocello, have generally been used as chord/basso continuo accompaniment instruments. The tenor banjo and, occasionally the tenor guitar, have tended to be the instruments on which baritone melody and counter-melody have been played. That being said, the best players, using the most state-of-the-art acoustically powerful octave mandolins, often play a combination of chords and octave melody.
The 1920s Stromberg-Voisinet “Venetian” Style Octave Mandolin by D. Rickert
Our luthier-built (made one-at-a-time rather than factory made) Octave Mandolin, despite its whimsical 1920s retro design, is a state-of-the-art instrument with the necessary acoustic power to serve as a solo melody instrument. Of course, it can play chord accompaniment as well.
For starters, our 1920s Stromberg-Voisinet “Venetian” Style Octave Mandolin, while having the standard octave mandolin 23” playable scale, has a tenor guitar sized body with an average depth of 89mm (about 3.5”). It is, quite simply, larger than the “traditional” Irish octave mandolin. Further, because our instrument is hand made by expert luthiers, the bracing is tuned (typically “scalloped”) for optimal vibration characteristics of the instrument top and back.
Who is this instrument for?
This octave mandolin is for professional performing artist or seriously dedicated musicians seeking a professional level instrument with far greater acoustic power (volume) than the typical commercial Irish octave mandolin.
The instrument is strung for an octave unison tuning of G-D-A-E). The player will have an octave mandolin that can compete sonically with a tenor banjo in the contemporary (a la Barney McKenna) G-D-A-E tuning.
Specs
The materials used in the construction of this instrument are the very best tone woods and can be shipped anywhere without restriction (i.e. they are not endangered!)
U.S. and Non-U.S. Markets
body shape: Shape inspired by 1920s Stromberg-Voisinet tenor guitar
bracing: X Bracing
top: Solid Sitka Spruce top
back & sides: Red Mountain Cedar (Peru)
neck: Sepele Mahogany (Africa)
Fingerboard: Katalox (Southern Mexico and Central America)
Bridge:
Pure acoustic option
Custom maple moveable bridge
Saddle: TUSQ (synthetic ivory)
Pickup option
Bridge will differ from acoustic bridge, depending on pickup option we design for your application
body binding: Black or crème colored ABS or natural wood
top purfling: Natural wood alternating white and black squares with black edging
fingerboard inlay: Pearloid dot inlay
tuning machines: Gotoh
Nut: Micarta (synthetic bone)
number of frets: 20
Saddle: TUSQ (synthetic ivory)
strings: Loop end phosphor bronze octave mandolin strings
finish back and sides: polished satin hand-rubbed oil varnish
finish neck back: Satin oil varnish
Scale: 584mm (23”)
Width at Nut: 35mm (1.38”)
Thickness at 1st: 20mm
Thickness at 7th: 21mm
Radius: 250mmR
Body Dimensions (SV Octave Mandolin)
Length: 18"
Width: 14.4"
Max Depth: 3.5" (89mm)
Pickup
For professional live performance, a pickup is recommended. The type of pickup depends greatly on your needs.
If you simply wish to amplify the instrument, the preferred options are:
Shadow Flat Top Mandolin Bridge W/ Pickup (about $150)
Fishman Nashville Series Flat Top Mandolin Rosewood Bridge Pickup (about $250)
If you will be using ANY type of effect box (“stomp box”), a custom designed bridge with a separate transducer for each string will be necessary. If you indicate that you wish to discuss performance rig design, we will discuss all of this with you.
Optional Payment Terms:
Due to the expense of this instrument and the long wait time (up to 120 days), the following payment terms are available:
50% up front
50% upon shipping
Please call or email us if you wish to discuss this option.
Attention!: This is an older post. We are currently working on newer and better instruments in this category. Please visit the Don Rickert Musician Shop.
These new luthier-built (i.e. not factory made and not cheap!) instruments by D. Rickert are all based on a design motif introduced by a company called Stromberg-Voisinet in the 1920s. The design motif is quite distinctive and is called the “Venetian” style.
Stromberg-Voisinet and Kay Musical Instruments
The Groeshel Mandolin Company was established in Chicago in 1890. In 1921, the company was renamed to Stromberg-Voisinet. In 1923, Henry Kay Kuhrmeyer joined the company. He later became president. In 1928, with help of an investor, bought the company. The new company, "Kay Musical Instruments" was formally established in 1931 from the assets of Stromberg-Voisinet.
Stromberg-Voisinet primarily manufactured mandolins, tenor guitars, tenor banjos and 6-string guitars under its own brand as well as a large number of other brands, as Stromberg-Voisinet was an OEM supplier to many other manufacturers. Kay Musical Instruments continued this practice; however, Kay did sell many instruments under its own brand, “KayKraft.”
Stromberg-Voisinet has a special place in guitar history. Stromberg-Voisinet produced the first commercial electric guitar, the Stromberg Electro, in 1928.
Stromberg-Voisinet is particulary well-known among serious students of stringed instrument design for its unique “Venetian” body shape, which was used for its mandolins, tenor guitars and 6-string guitars.
Kay continued the Venetian body style after acquiring Stromberg-Voisinet. In fact, the Venetian shape is probably better known for its use with many instruments sold under the KayKraft brand and other popular brands such as Recording King in the 1930s through the 1950s.
D. Rickert Instruments Based on the Stromberg-Voisinet Venetian Body Shape
The first three master luthier-built (hand-made one at a time; i.e. NOT factory made) instruments being introduced by D. Rickert Musical Instruments are:
A 6-string concert guitar (about the size of an OM)
Soon to follow are two additional 100% luthier-built instruments of the Venetian style:
A mandolin
A tenor guitar
None of the new D. Rickert instruments are replicas of particular Stromberg-Voisinet or KayKraft instruments. First the Octave Mandolin was not even invented until the 1960s and Stromberg-Voisinet did not make a mandocello (note: Gibson had close to a monopoly on mandocellos in the 1920s; however, Kay did make a mandocello in the 1930s).
Second, the construction, particularly the bracing, of the D. Rickert instruments is state-of-the-art…far advanced to the the 1920s instruments.
Why did D. Rickert Musical Instrument Adopt the “Venetian” Body Style?
There are primary two reasons:
Sound: the Venetian shape affords a much larger capacity sound box than the ubiquitous teardrop or oval “Flatiron” used for flat-top mandolin family instruments, with no increase in overall instrument size. We designed our instruments to produce a BIG, full-bodied sound.
Cool Factor: The Venetian shape is simply as cool looking as it gets for a fretted instrument. Put simply, we just loved the design from an aesthetic perspective.
We believe that the world has enough “A” and “F” style mandolins and more than enough teardrop shaped octave mandolins and mandocellos.
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. It was at that time that the DBA (a designation for “Doing business as”) Don Rickert Research & Design and the DBA Don Rickert Musical Instruments were established.
Don’s main work is the role of owner, designer and luthier with Don Rickert Musical Instruments. He is joined in this work by Jeff Atkins, master craftsman, luthier and varnishing wizard. We also engage other top luthiers (stringed instrument makers) from other “boutique” musical instrument companies on a contract basis from time to time.
In addition to his many roles with Don Rickert Musical Instruments, as time allows, Dr. Rickert accepts engagements as a Consulting Expert and Testifying Expert Witness in patent and trademark civil matters related to musical instruments and consumer electronics. He has, in fact, served as lead Testifying Expert Witness in several major patent infringement lawsuits in the United States District Courts. The fact is that his work as a highly sought Expert Witness in patent infringement civil actions provides substantial self-funding to our continuous research & development while remaining independent from slavery to venture capitalists.
Mailing address: Don Rickert Musical Instruments 726 Hall Creek Road Hiawassee, GA 30546
We are not a “brick-and-mortar” retail establishment; however, many customers do choose to visit our studio and workshop in the beautiful North Georgia Mountains (part of the Appalachians). Being shopkeepers for a corner musical instrument shop would be completely at odds with our multifaceted focus on continuous research & development, innovative instrument design and customization, combined with our creation of meticulously accurate replicas of historically significant fiddles.
The nature of our business demands that sales be conducted primarily online. We have done this for some time. The predecessor to the new Don Rickert Musician Shopwas called the “Adventurous Muse Store.” We initially operated under the name “Fiddle and Bow Shop.”
What Makes us Unique?
At first glance, the Don Rickert Musician Shop could look like an online store that sells select good violins primarily in the $800 to $4,000 range, with a pretty good selection of bows and cases. A closer look reveals the following:
Part of the purchase of a new violin is customer specification of stringing and accessories appropriate for one of a number of historic periods, ranging from contemporary all the way back to the late 1700s. Consultation with us about correct setup for specific genres (orchestral violin, Old-time, Irish, Scottish, Cajun, etc.) is also included with the purchase of one of our instruments. As far as we know, this is completely unique to our company.
We make and sell one of the largest collections (6 different models) of meticulously authentic Baroque (1690-1770) violins available anywhere.
We have a large selection (about 50) of high quality true Baroque bows that is second to none.
We make and sell the finest innovative and ergonomically perfect travel/backpacker violins in the world. Several dozen customers a year opt for one of our travel violins, despite the fact that they cost from 3 to 4 times as much as our apparent competitors.
We make and sell one of best 5-string violins that money can buy (note: There ARE some very fine 5-string instruments by competitors)
We make the most advanced and best-sounding octave violins and octave violas (aka “chin cellos”). Dr. Rickert has been researching acoustic octave violins for more than 15 years. He has designed a number of such instruments over the past decade, each new one better than the rest. We sell a lot of these. A number are owned by top recording aritsts.
As far as we know, we are the only musical instrument company selling over a dozen high-quality replicas of the highly sought Markneukirchen (Saxony, Germany) “factory fiddles” roughly from 1880-1920s. The original “Markies” were, themselves, replicas of historic violins. They have been the favorite instruments for fiddlers, in the U.K,, Ireland, as well as the U.S. for more than a century.
We are one of the only U.S. based sources of extremely high quality Tertis wide-body violas, in sizes from 15” to 16.5” (note: viola size is designated by the length of the instrument body, from the saddle to the neck joint).
We actually have a bona fide “Custom Shop”, which has made over the years, custom instruments ranging from pretty normal to outrageously cool, such as the recently completed 10-string 3” wide pochette (pocket violin)…4 playable strings with 6 sympathetic strings running under the fingerboard (similar to the Norwegian Hardanger Fiddle and the Baroque Viola D’Amore).
BOTTOM LINE: We are not, in any way, the online store for an average violin shop.
This is an excellent question, and it comes up all the time from smart musicians.
The difference between the Tenor Banjo and Irish Tenor Banjo is, on one level, analogous to the difference between a violin and a fiddle. They are played differently.
But Irish Tenor Banjos are also tuned differently than regular tenor banjos, so maybe another analogy:
A tenor banjo is like a classical viola (tuned CGDA) and an Irish tenor banjo is tuned like an octave (often called a baritone) fiddle (GDAE, an octave lower than a violin).
Not captured by the analogies is the fact that Irish tenor banjos are usually set up differently, the most notable difference being a capo on the second fret (or even higher on some vintage instrument with long necks) in order to allow for less string tension and to shorten the scale length for faster melody playing.
The videos that follow illustrate the radical differences in tuning, setup and playing style. Both players are extremely good.
Irish Tenor Banjo: medley played by Gordon Johnston by using fingerstyle (less common than use of a plectrum, but allows for smoother playing on complex tunes like these) (direct link to this video on YouTube)
I am sure that you could hear the differences in pitch and playing style between classic tenor banjo style and Irish tenor banjo. They might as well be different instrumens entirely. When you acquire a tenor banjo from Adventurous Muse, we make certain that your instrument is set up for the genre of music you intend the instrument for.
The Second Myth: There is Special Type of Tenor Banjo Called the "Irish Tenor Banjo"
It is a common belief that the Irish Tenor Banjo (4 strings, tuned in 5ths) is somehow different from a Tenor Banjo, which was introduced around 1915 in America and was also known as the "Tango Banjo". The tenor banjo generally had 19 frets; however, shorter 17-fret necks were available.
According to none other than the acknowledged expert on Irish Banjo, Dr. Mick Maloney ( see The Banjo: A Short History by Mick Maloney), in the 15 or 20 years prior to the introduction of the Tenor Banjo, many banjo players, including Irish players, used either a 5-string banjo with the 5th string removed or its commercialized form, the Plectrum Banjo. At some point early on, tuning these former 5-string banjos or Plectrum banjos in 5ths became common practice for melodic playing, regardless of the nationality of the player.
See and hear Mick Maloney play tenor banjo with two fiddles and guitar
The Tenor Banjo in Irish Traditional Music From About 1915 to the 1960s
During this period, tenor banjos used in Irish Traditional music were generally tuned to the standard c g d' a' tenor banjo tuning (exactly like a viola, a 5th lower than the fiddle) or d a e' b', the later of which could also be accomplished by a capo on the second fret. The point is that tenor banjos in Irish Traditional music were tuned much higher than what one is accustomed to today.
The 1960s and Later
According to Mick Maloney, it was the popularity of the traditional music group, the Dubliners, that ultimately led to the different "Irish" tuning (G d a e') for tenor banjos, which is an octave lower than the fiddle. Barney McKenna, the tenor banjo player of The Dubliners, tuned his banjo in G d a e'. Maloney argues that it was the great popularity of The Dubliners AND the popularity of McKenna himself that led the new generation of tenor banjo players in Irish Traditional music to string their banjos with heavier gauge strings in the G d a e' octave tuning.
See and hear Barney McKenna on Tenor Banjo
By the 1980s, the octave tuning had become the de facto tuning for playing Irish Traditional music; however, Maloney and others are quick to point out that there are still "old-school" Irish tenor banjo players who favor the old high-pitched tuning.
Not all Irish tenor banjo players use a plectrum. See and hear Gordon Johnston demonstrating fingerstyle tenor banjo.
The Short (17 fret) Neck Story
The heavier-gauge strings required for the G d a e' tuning are more difficult to play fast, plain and simple. In order to enhance ease of playing complex melodies fast, many, but certainly not all, tenor banjo players in Irish Traditional music adopted the practice of tuning their 19 fret banjos a whole step lower (F C g d) and then placing a capo on the second fret, resulting in G d a e'.
This practice of placing a capo on the second fret of a 19 fret standard tenor banjo, in effect, creates a 17 fret short neck. Observing this common practice, used by all of the tenor banjo players I have ever played with (including my brother, Bob Rickert), some clever person (or committee) recently came up with the idea of a 17 fret necked tenor banjo tuned to G d a e' and calling it the "Irish Tenor Banjo." Bottom line is that the short-neck "Irish Tenor Banjo" is clever marketing idea of the banjo manufacturers designed to sell tenor banjos. The fact is that the 17 fret tenor banjo is simply a short-scale tenor banjo. There is nothing particularly Irish about it, although many Irish Traditional players use short-scale tenor banjos, including Mick Maloney on occassion.
Tenor Banjo Setup for Irish Traditional Music
Don Rickert Lutherie provides setup and refurbishment services for vintage and new tenor banjos to be used for Irish Traditional Music. See Tenor Banjo Setup for Irish Traditional Music
Conclusion
There are similar stories behind other instruments, such as the "Irish Bouzouki", "Irish Cittern" and the "Irish Octave Mandolin". I shall tackle the origins of these other instruments with fake pedigrees at some point in the future.
There are many myths about the banjo in traditional Irish music. It is commonly believed that a special type of tenor banjo (a 17 fret, 4-string banjo tuned in 5ths to G d a e' ), called the "Irish Tenor Banjo", has been part of Traditional Irish Music since at least the 19th Century. There are several myths implied by this notion.
The First Myth:
The idea that a tenor banjo, "Irish" or otherwise, has always been part of Irish traditional music could not be further from reality. It was most likely the American Minstrel Banjo, introduced to Ireland and England in the 1840s, that was first adopted for use in Irish Traditional music.
The Minstrel Banjo, the fretless precursor of the modern 5-string banjo, had evolved from the early gourd banjos (originally with 4 strings) invented by Black slaves centuries earlier in America, inspired by, but not copied from, similar instruments in Africa. Most banjo historians agree that what we know as the banjo was invented in America, by descendants of Africans (i.e. slaves). This is but one of a multitude of inventions by African Americans.
The fretless Minstrel Banjos were probably used mostly for simple accompaniment in Irish Traditional Music. Upon the introduction of the modern fretted banjo in the late 1870s by Dobson (a famous banjo manufacturer), this newer type of banjo became the type of banjo used in Irish Traditional Music.
The simple Minstrel style of playing evolved into the more elaborate "clawhammer" style. Not much is known about how widespread melodic clawhammer style playing became in Irish Traditional Music in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Melodic Irish banjo playing of the time might have sounded like the examples of Cooley's Reel and The Congress Reel by clawhammer banjo magician Cathy Moore (www.BanjoMeetsWorld.com) below.
See Cathy Moore play an outrageously great medley of these Irish tunes on YouTube (see player below)
While it is doubtful that there were many 5-string banjo players in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries who could play melodies as well as Cathy Moore in the video, hopefully I conveyed the point.
The tenor banjo in Irish Traditional music would not come until well into the 20th Century. Part 2 of this article will address the tenor banjo in Irish music and the mythology surrounding it.
