Ah Wooden it be Loverly
No opinion
this Saturday, just a question.
Well it is kind of an opinion.
What makes
wooden musical instruments so great?
That sent a
lot of people away. I know there are
still a few musicians out there to answer this question.
I ask
because the new guitar I bought a month or so ago is not all real wood. The top is solid Sitka spruce, which means nothing to me,
the back, sides, and neck are some sort of synthetic. It looks like wood, feels like wood and
sounds pretty good to me. The synthetic material
is one reason this is a relatively inexpensive guitar. It is also manufactured in Mexico. Mexican labor surely keeps the price down,
but from what I’ve seen of Mexican labor, I don’t think the quality is anything
but high level.
Back to my
question, what makes natural wood so good and preferred in the finest
instruments, particularly guitars and violins?
Golf clubs
used to have wooden heads and wooden shafts.
When metal shafts came out purists claimed they will never have the feel
of wood. When purists got their asses
handed to them in tournaments, wooden shafts became antiques and metal became
the norm.
Skiers all
used wood skis. When fiberglass skis
came out, purists said they could never have the same feel and flex as
wood. Purists were racing down the
slopes on fiberglass skis in the very next Olympics. Wood skis are prized as wall ornaments in ski
town bars.
Tennis
players held on to their wood rackets for several years claiming once again
that the new metal and composite rackets could not match the feel and control
of their wooden rackets. They switched
to modern materials when they got their asses handed to them by players using metal
and composite rackets. Wooden rackets
are now wall ornaments.
Expert
musicians will tell you that nothing sounds as pure and clean as natural
wood. The Stradivarius violin owes its
beautiful sound to old hard woods that grew through the little ice age and the
grain is tighter than the grain on any wood grown before or since. Makes sense, I can understand that, but why
can’t we manufacture a material that matches or even improves the sound of that
ancient hard wood?
Music purists
will not shift to manmade materials. In
music there is no sports-like competition where purist musicians get their
asses beat by new materials. They will
continue to say that nothing can ever improve on the feel and sound of natural
wood.
I
disagree.
We have
improved on wood for just about every other product other than maybe furniture.
I have heard
fly fisherman say the best rods are made of bamboo. The few friends I have who are avid fly
fisherman own antique bamboo rods. They
love them for their craftsmanship and beauty, but they only fish with composite
material rods.
Want to buy
a boat? Wooden boats are beautiful; their
craftsmanship is admirable. Fiberglass
boats are better.
Want to fly across
country? The Howard Hughes-built spruce
goose was incredible, but I think I’ll fly planes built out of modern
composites thank you very much.
Anyway, my
new guitar is made of “fake wood” and I think the material is probably just as good
as or better than real wood. Still, my
next guitar will be an upgrade to a top of the line real wood Martin.
If I can afford
it, I want the best, even if the best is not as good as a cheaper guitar.
Isn’t that the American way?
Isn’t that the American way?
That's an interesting question actually. I was going to ask my husband (who plays bouzouki) but as you say the wood purists don't always know best. We might have to wait and see if some future violinist gets his ass handed to him by someone playing a fibreglass violin.
ReplyDeletea good read, cranky. something i'd not thought of (as a non-musician, non-athlete).
ReplyDeleteThat's good news. Think of all the trees we've saved.
ReplyDeleteWhile i'm no expert, and not a musician, my Sweetie is and all of my kids have the music gene, so we have a piano. Our piano tuner talked about the difference between a real piano and an electric keyboard, saying that all the tones available do not resonate from the electric keyboard, the wood has a fuller sound, it resonates within the ear at higher and lower pitches than an electric keyboard can produce.
ReplyDeleteWhether the plastic that replaces the wood on a guitar is the same, i cannot say, it may be a new composite that can resonate properly. If so, use it.
Hi Joeh,
ReplyDeleteThat's a good question and I really think that if a guitar were made of something other than wood but sounded brilliant, I would buy it. I'd need to learn to play a guitar first, though.
:o)
Cheers
PM
I've not a clue, but I've heard this before. Has to be wood, not anything else. I'm sure there is a very good reason too. Or not.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day Cranky. ☺
Interesting question. Maybe athletic activities need the qualities provided by the composites/synthetics, such as strength and flexibility, but musical instruments need something quite different, to do with tone and resonance and sound waves. Maybe it has to do with what output you prefer or expect, which is a subjective thing - a matter of personal taste rather than measurable performance. Just speculating. I know nothing about athletics and very little about music. Keep us posted if you find out, eh?
ReplyDeleteChopsticks--the only song I can play--sounds just as good on an electronic keyboard as on a real piano!!
ReplyDeleteGiven a choice I would opt for the Martin. Having a budget, whatever gives the best sound for the money! I don't think I've ever seen or heard a non wooden violin or cello -- so it makes me think there is a validity in the wood argument.
ReplyDeleteI can only speak to the bamboo/fly rod issue, and actually many fly anglers like myself prefer the action of bamboo vs. graphite or composite. There are still many craftsmen making them too.....Orvis is just one.
ReplyDeleteI once watched a TV documentary on Stradivarius musical instruments that suggested the wood back then made better sound because of a mini ice age that enveloped Europe from 1022-1800 AD. Wood grew much slower back then so the wood was denser and thus provides better sound. I don't know if this is true, but I find it interesting.
ReplyDeleteInteresting Cranky and something I hadn't given much thought to. You make a good point about the new composites being as good if not better than the wood. A true purist will never jump on the band wagon. It reminds me of books. The purists want the feel, smell and heft of a real book. Yet I am able to carry a library of 982 digital books in a 5x7 gadget with one hand. I say go for what ever gives you the most pleasure.
ReplyDeleteOnce you have the Martin, you will never go back. My D35 fills the room with sound like no other. Playing a quality wooden instrument is a spiritual experience. On the other hand any guitar is better than no guitar.
ReplyDeleteSlingshots used to be made of wood. Now they're plastic or metal. Same with those little balsa wood planes with the rubber-band propeller. Now they're made of Styrofoam. Ticonderoga #2 wood pencils have been tossed aside by teens in favor of plastic mechanical pencils.
ReplyDeleteI'd stick with the real wood for musical instruments, though.
I am a lifetime avid fly fisherman, with some fantastic bamboo rods. I don't fish with them, of course. Nature is perfect, but God fishes with graphite.
ReplyDeleteI think it basically came from the time when wood was the only source of material available to build anything (right from ships to anything)
ReplyDeleteAs things changed some just clinged on to the belief that "wood is still the best"
If a musician has a heart he or she will not fuss about the instrument. Recording company is a different story.
ReplyDeleteOne has to have a heart before he or she can become a musician. It is a different story that after becoming famous, fame gets to their heads. They may fuss about an instrument, but if there is a difference of 2 percent or even 5 percent in the quality of back up music that should not matter, as a singer or even an instrument player will have enough talent or love for music to compensate for that.
ReplyDelete