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Extended-range Vibraphones - PASIC 2002 | |
| NOTE: Several extended-range (3.5 or 4.0 octave) vibraphones were on display at the recent Percussive Arts Society Convention in Columbus, OH. Vince Hyman has graciously chosen to share his thoughts on several of those instruments. Rather than attempting to edit his comments into the standard format in use here at the malletjazz.com database, I've included the text in its entirety.
The brands reviewed here are:
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Vince Hyman November 24, 2002
I attended PASIC in Columbus, Ohio on November 15/16, 2002, to check out the various vibraphones and to meet Nico vanderPlas, with whom I've been corresponding for four or five years. Here's an attempt at describing the various extended-range vibraphone options for those who are interested.
Caveats: First off, you need to know that the exhibit hall at PASIC is chaos. It is very difficult to hear, and a discussion with someone will make you hoarse quickly. Not the best situation for listening to any instrument. Nevertheless, I've tried to make some judgments about tone quality. Second, none of the makers had electricity available, so motors couldn't be tested. Third, while I spent time examining how frames were designed and built, I could not tear the frames down to see how easy they were to assemble for one-night playing jobs. This also made it difficult to study the construction details and make guesses about durability.
Four makers brought extended range instruments at PASIC. I've listed them in the order I encountered them at PASIC: vanderPlas (3.5m oct.), deMorrow (4 oct.), Bergerault (4 oct.), and Dynasty (3.5 oct.). Bergerault also makes a 3.5 octave, as does Yamaha, but neither manufacturer brought these instruments.
The vanderPlas had the best overall mechanics of the instruments. It is exceptionally solid and attractive as well. The tone quality was wonderful; different from other vibes, and because the booth was in a slightly quieter section of the hall, easier to hear. I kept coming back to it again and again. Nico vanderPlas has found a way to avoid the hollow, clanky sound in the lowest end of the instrument. VanderPlas offers a choice of alloys with different tone qualities and different color finishes, and builds each instrument to suit the customer's primary use. (Some bar colors can only be had in certain alloys due to the nature of the alloy.) The bars on the instrument on display had a somewhat abrupt shift in width at several points that made the first visual approach to playing the instrument a little disconcerting; this is something vanderPlas said he has corrected in more recent versions of the vibe. Evidence of this was a 3-octave set of gold bars on display, where the bars were evenly graduated. Also unique at his booth was a new frame that is the most compact yet sturdy traveling frame available. When I saw it, I though it was a bunch of sample building materials in a size less than an airline carry-on. Yet it set up into a very sturdy frame in about 5 minutes. It is an ingenious design, and something I would think any touring vibist would want. It is light-years beyond Musser's Pro-Traveler frame, which wobbles terribly in performance (at PASIC, I watched Stefon Harris's Pro-Traveler swing back and forth as Stefon played it; I thought it would collapse under his power). Nico has introduced many other improvements beyond those of other makers: the silicon damper pad (which Adams now also uses); an amazing damper hinge system that lowers the damper pad completely parallel to the bars, so that you get exact, even dampening of both accidentals and naturals simultaneously and the same amount of pressure on both accidentals and naturals (this is unlike most other instruments, even the advanced Piper; I think the DeMorrow was also using a superior hinge system); lower bar support pins that are specially mounted to completely stop energy transfer to the frame, so that the resonators receive more energy; nylon joints to stop rattles; use of high-grade aircraft adhesives to hold the frame together; and a design that is both rock-solid and good to look at. (The motor system was not on this instrument, so I can't report on it.) The resonators on the instrument are powder-coated aluminum, more attractive than many. On vanderPlas's web site, the 3.5 w/out motor is about $4,700; with motor it is $6,100. But since these instruments are custom built, I assume the price will depend on your specifications and also vary as the Euro-to-dollar exchange rate vary. VanderPlas really is a custom vibe-builder. He seeks to understand what the performer wants and then to create an instrument that achieves that sound. He also is an ingenious engineer, and has a vision to correct problems that most of us aren't aware of. The result is an instrument that surprises by opening up new avenues of expression. As an example of his design approach, he was far more interested in learning about the kinds of sounds and the playing problems I encountered than in my attempts to compare his instrument with other builder's instruments.
DeMorrow's 4-octave vibe was not quite finished. It is a very handsome instrument, with a stained wood frame and brass resonators and support hardware; it is quite heavy. The bars graduate evenly to the lowest note. The sound in the upper bars was gorgeous and delicate. The lower end was lovely as well, but very attack-sensitive-more so than other instruments, one needed to take care where the bar is struck. This would make it an excellent concert instrument; for me, as a jazz player, I would worry about the extra effort required to hit the right mark. But a soloist would find in this instrument a great range of nuance. The pedal was stiff and unpleasant to operate, and, because the instrument was not quite finished, the resonators wobbled. I spent some time talking with Doug DeMorrow, and I am sure that he will have these problems resolved on this or the next instrument. DeMorrow prices: 4-octave w/motor: $10,500; w/out motor: $9,500; 3-octave w/motor $6,500; w/out $5,500. No 3.5 vibe was advertised, but DeMorrow is a custom builder, and I think one could request a 3.5. Doug Demorrow is an extraordinary craftsman and one can only think that his vibes will be fine instruments. I think to be fair to this instrument, one would need to get it in a concert hall, where one could hear the purported differences in brass tunable resonators. Concertizing is clearly its design motive.
The Bergerault 4-octave instrument has a comparatively long history. This French company has been making extended range vibes for thirty years and mallet percussion for seventy years. As a result, the finish of the instrument was quite consistent, with fewer of the minor custom quirks or finish inconsistencies apparent in the vanderPlas and to a lesser degree, the DeMorrow, which have parts individually machined for each new instrument. Still, the Bergerault is a package that overall is less satisfying. This is a very good sounding instrument; the upper range was lovely, and the bars graduate evenly to the lowest note. The lowest notes had a good sound-not as attack-sensitive as DeMorrow, and less volume than the vanderPlas, but a very uniform tone across the entire span. The frame is very heavy at 220 pounds, and for all that weight, not as rigid as the vanderPlas. The pedaling system and damper felt were not up to the standards of vanderPlas or DeMorrow or any of the makers of 3-octave vibes, with the exception of being superior to Vancore. A leather strap is used to adjust the height of the pedal, and one had to quickly push down on the pedal to get the upper notes to sing correctly. This effect the Bergerault clinician (a fine four-mallet soloist) saw as an advantage for some reason, but I found it distracting. Overall, it is a very good instrument with a uniform tone, a fine but not outstanding appearance, and an unfortunate dampening system. I talked to one of the builders at length, and they are looking into ways to improve the dampening system. Bergerault offers a number of different configurations in 3, 3.5, and 4 octave, with fixed or removable bars, and list prices ranging from $4560 to $8,000. The one-time PASIC price for the 4 octave was $6,000-so someone interested in one of these could probably negotiate that $8,000 down. The 3.5 Bergerault is $6785.
The Dynasty 3.5 octave was a bit of a surprise. I had not heard of the company. The instrument is designed for marching use, with a marching frame designed for rugged use. The sound was actually not bad, although I couldn't hear too well since the Dynasty booth was in the heart of the drum exhibits. The pedaling system was decent, except the hinging technique for the pedal left me wondering if problems weren't to be expected. As the instrument seemed aimed at marching, I did not spend a lot of time examining it, but I did spend a good ten minutes playing it. I couldn't find a salesman to get a price.
Yamaha also makes a 3.5 octave instrument. I got to try one of these two years ago. Yamahas in general have a very fine sound, closer to the old Deagans but with much more volume. However, I found the low end of the instrument I tried (in a practice room at Berklee, courtesy of Matthias Lupri) to be unpleasantly clanky and not ready for use-certainly not up to the vanderPlas, Demorrow, or Bergerault. Note that all the instruments above benefited from being in the noisy hall-in other words, the Yamaha I tried was in a practice studio, which would open it to greater examination, while the others had the din of drums around them.
Overall, I most liked the vanderPlas, by a large margin in fact, but I would not suggest that anyone rule out DeMorrow or Bergerault for an extended range instrument. The vanderPlas was the kind of instrument that wants to be played-immediately comfortable, responsive to touch, and a long, singing tone could be described as somewhere in between the bright tone of older Deagans and the dark, warm tone of older Mussers. The larger manufacturers all seem to try to match either of these tones. Both the vanderPlas and the DeMorrow had the mark of instruments created by builders who had a tone of their own in mind, and sought to create that rather than match some other builder's sound.
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