For only $6,000 you can now get a ukulele made out of a gourd. Okay, it's made by the legendary and mysterious luthier Danny Ferrington, but do gourds "open up" over time? Or just become seedy? I kid.But mainly this uke is $6,000 because it's in Needless Markup's Christmas Catalog.
The accompanying catalog blub sez that Ferrington "purposefully stays low-tech (no computers or Internet)". Apparently, so does Neiman Marcus's copywriter, who blithely asserts that the ukulele was "created in the Hawaiian islands by Micronesian immigrants in the 1870s".
Maybe "Madeiran" isn't in his/er spellcheck. Or maybe fact-checking is just so...déclassé. Link
8 comments:
Are these like akuleles? Do they have a gourdy contoured back side? Are they something like a fluke with just a top plate -- seems like these should be a bit cheaper with all of the backside labor saved. J/HU
They look like the kind of gourd that is often decorated to look like a giant pear. Maybe a "bottle gourd"?
http://huberb.people.cofc.edu/Classroom%20Visuals/325%20Visuals/Mesoamerican%20Plants/med_bottle_gourd_for_oil_lamp.jpg
Not only from Micronesia of all places, but per the catalog copy, Ferrington has "built everything from acoustics to double-neck electrics to classical string quartets." How does one "build" a string quartet? Are we talking about building robots to play the violins, viola and 'cello? Or does one build the instruments themselves and sit back and hope four folks who can play them walk in? This is what happens when you spend 50 cents to write copy for a $6K item. (Where's J. Peterman when you need him?)
"Madeiran" isn't in my spellcheck, either, and I think this is the first time I've ever used it. I like the Micronesia story, Gary. As far as I'm concerned it's as good as the official story, which we've heard so, so many times now [yawn], that we could use a new one.
Why not have a Ukulelia contest for a new ukulele creation story? Award one of those nifty Ukulelia tee shirts (made famous in Mighty Uke) for the best one(s).
The ukulele is a small instrument, and I can easily picture tiny immigrants from Micro-nesia building them.
Hmm, you've given me an idea, Ron...
My husband has a Danny Ferrington Uke. I watched him make it. He does everything by himself. He goes and picks hundreds of gourds at a time He scoops out the gourds himself. He cuts, he stains, everything is done by his hand, alone. the sound is gorgeous! And, Danny is a nice man. He is a master luthier. Great names in music have bought his pieces. He has a book out with all of the stuff he's done. It's called Classic Ferrington Guitars. I hope your opinions change after this.
Little Leslie: my jab was directed primarily at Needless Markup and their hack copywriting. I'd love to know more about Danny's gourd ukes. Can your husband post a video or a sound clip?
I don't know, I'll ask him.
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