by John Rihani | Feb 20, 2018 | Uncategorized
We have an absolute plethora (El Guapo, anyone?) of case finish choices these days. While most bass players us some version of the padded nylon bag, the smaller strings (cello included) have a myriad of finishes from which to choose. The question is, how much does...
by John Rihani | Feb 13, 2018 | Uncategorized
I’m always excited to welcome a beautiful new cello into the Encore family of instruments, but there are times I’m REALLY excited. We’ve had the pleasure of representing an unantiqued cello by Michael Koeberling before, but this is the first...
by John Rihani | Feb 6, 2018 | Uncategorized
I came back from NAMM full of new information, new ideas…and the flu. After being down for the count for almost five days, I’m back at work ready to sift through everything I saw. I’ll just right in to a couple of the highlights: Eastman Strings is...
by John Rihani | Jan 23, 2018 | Uncategorized
I’m headed off to sunny California for a couple of days in order to attend the NAMM show. NAMM stands for “National Association of Music Merchants”. Paige’s Music’s owner, Mark Goff, just finished his tenure as President of the...
by John Rihani | Jan 16, 2018 | Uncategorized
I’m going to be a broken record for a few weeks while we’re experiencing extreme cold – stable temperature and humidity are goals worth pursuing for your beloved string instrument. For solid-wood basses and cellos, this is a trying time. We...
by John Rihani | Jan 9, 2018 | Uncategorized
We have a few days reprieve from some of the coldest winter weather I can remember. The fact that it occurred over nearly two weeks when most schools were out and buildings were cold didn’t help our local orchestra directors! We have seen an unprecedented...
by John Rihani | Jan 2, 2018 | Uncategorized
I guess I’ve never been much for New Year’s Resolutions. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with them and I’m as big a fan of fresh starts as the next person. I’m even willing to lay some of my aversion to making big changes on January...
by John Rihani | Dec 19, 2017 | Uncategorized
As 2017 draws to a close, I thought I’d play a game of “did you know?”… Did you know that Encore… offers price matching from respected sources on strings and accessories? offers 100% trade-up on instruments purchased here? routinely...
by John Rihani | Dec 12, 2017 | Uncategorized
A now-defunct appliance store ran a series of radio ads talking about “FOBO” – fear of better options. I chuckled every time it came on because that perfectly describes one of the most anxiety-causing factors when searching for an instrument or a...
by John Rihani | Nov 28, 2017 | Uncategorized
It’s that time of year again! For me, it means being greeted by slipped pegs, loose strings, and open seams when I arrive at the shop. Although we work hard to keep things humidified, with this many instruments, winter problems are inevitable. Slipped pegs...
Recent Comments