PHOTOS: Wingspan™ 8-string guitar. Swamp ash. Patented Intonation Cantilever™ & Element™ component set. Custom Bare Knuckle pickups with 10-way switching.
VIDEO: Chris Buono plays Wingspan™ 8-string guitar. Two minutes of atmospheric improvisation through Fender Deluxe amp (Normal 2 channel with 12″ Jensen speaker) recorded via SM57 into Logic. Noble Bass DI blended in slightly to achieve stereo. Listen on studio monitors or good headphones to appreciate the clarity and depth.
Your work of art arrived at my doorstep this morning!
Although I’ve only had a few hours to get to know it, here are a few things I can say right away, in the order they came to me:
This is not a guitar, this is a sculpture, a work of art — visually it is stunning, and it felt right away comfortable to hold and play.
The neck is extremely comfortable — it is quite impressive how playing the low strings is much easier than with my other 8-strings.
I’ve never experienced such precision of the note attack and clean sustain — the best way I can describe them is piano- or bell-like, with excellent consistency between fretted and open strings.
Thank you so much for creating such a beautiful instrument!! (Jorge)
VIDEO: Fabio Mittino performs Kanashimi on Stealth™ 6-string guitar.
Dear Rick,
I would like to share with you my new composition from the album “Simple Music for Difficult People Vol.4”.
I think this song expresses both love and melancholy. For this reason, I titled it “Kanashimi”, which in Japanese usually means sadness. However, if Kanashimi is written 愛しみ instead of 哀しみ, it means love.
Everything is played in real time!
I’ll be touring the West Coast this July, but I’ll be on the East Coast this winter: I hope to be able to meet you again!
Many years ago we had chatted back and forth about guitar building. I didn’t have the opportunities to get into building my own creations the way I envisioned, but I still follow all the work you create. I’ve reached a stage in my life/career though where the possibility of obtaining one of your creations is within reach.
Your Orchid body shape has been one of my favorites since the first purple bass. I have been dreaming about almost this exact guitar and contemplating reaching out to you about the creation of a SSB Orchid Multiscale guitar for a few months now. To see this (Orchid 7-string) blows my mind, for me it exists in a way that feels like a future memory I’ve somehow tuned into.
Orchid design ideas: A sense of age/wear (Shou Sugi Ban, old wood, wear patterns?) Metal parts with patina, maybe even damascus (jack-plate, cavity cover, string anchor?) Scar(s) from a repair (kintsugi, butterfly/bowtie, knot patch?)
Any other specs like wood types, details, pickup type, colors I’m happy to leave up to you. I trust in your craft and creativity, whatever speaks to you or works well together. I just wanted to lead with some potential ideas and concepts, and let you take it from there! The pickup choice in particular might be dictated by the acoustic qualities of the instrument. Totally happy to get more granular and add input or decisions as well if needed though, and if any of the design ideas are too abstract, let me know.
Really excited for this! (Jesse)
Rick!
The guitar has arrived and it is perhaps the most stunning thing I have ever seen! It’s at once everything I hoped it would be, and still uniquely surprising. There is no question that nothing else like it exists, I absolutely love it. First play through unplugged and it’s clear and effortless; this is really what I needed to help take my playing to a new level. More to come when I have a chance to plug in and crank it up. In due time I aim to be a lot more active on Instagram and YouTube sharing my exploration into new edges of guitar composition and sound.
I can’t thank you enough for this creation and I hope to do it justice. (Jesse)
PHOTO: Patented Intonation Cantilever™ bridges. Bare Knuckle custom pickups. Forged aircraft aluminum. Swamp Ash with traditional Shou sugi ban Japanese wood finish.
PHOTO: Adam J. Wilson plays his fretless Spearfish™ 6-string guitar. Chris Buono is also fretless in the background.
Saturday, I hosted Chris Buono and Adam J. Wilson for a focus group session. Our mission was to evaluate two current areas of research: multi-scale fretless design, and Pisces™ tremolo performance.
We tested both of Adam’s fretless Spearfish™ guitars plus Pisces™ prototype through an extensive array of tube and solid state amps plus modeling: Roland Jazz Chorus, Carr, Fender ’64 Deluxe, AxeFx II.
Not many people in the world play fretless guitar, let alone exceptionally well, nor do many people build fretless guitars, let alone exceptionally well. Today, I got to hang with both varieties. With all that’s going on in the world, this was a welcome respite. (Adam J. Wilson)
In addition to intensive discussion, I was treated to several hours of duets and solo improvisation. You are already well familiar with Chris Buono and his mastery of the instrument. Adam is similarly gifted, employing a fascinating two handed fretless tap technique. He makes fretless shredding look absolutely effortless…micro-tones, scales, harmonies: eight fingertips on the fingerboard is just so fast.
A meeting of like-minded fretless freaks is a rare thing. This was an immensely important day for me on many fronts and will surely change how I approach fretless guitar going forward. (Chris Buono)
I have some new ideas for how to improve fretless design. Fretless is a tiny niche market of players who are super skilled and super dedicated to the almost limitless possibilities of a life without speed bumps.
Imagine the virtuosity of a solo violinist yet with the added capability of harmony.
Glorious day of exploration and learning. Most importantly…it was so good to see old friends in person. Magic happens when we share a space and music together.
VIDEO: Fabio Mittino explains polyphonic pickups then performs Toy Dreamer off his latest album (via livestream). Stealth™ radical ergonomic acoustic guitar. Lovely fingerstyle and ethereal sounds. Fabio has studied under Robert Fripp.
