by John Rihani | May 28, 2019 | Uncategorized
We’ve been excited about the International Society of Bassists convention being held in Bloomington this year ever since it was announced! Encore has always had a soft spot for bassists and we are one of the few shops in the area with enough room to stock a...
by John Rihani | May 21, 2019 | Uncategorized
While the Coda Marquise GS – their new top offering – has been out in the wild for a while, I have not heard much formal feedback from owners at this point. When one of our long time customers bought one six months ago, I asked him if you would write up a...
by John Rihani | May 7, 2019 | Uncategorized
I recently used social media to ask my cellist friends what kind of rosin they liked to use. I’ve been using the same rosin – Pirastro Oliv – for nearly twenty years. My reasoning has always been the old, “if it ain’t broke, don’t...
by John Rihani | Apr 30, 2019 | Uncategorized
While there is no way I could cover even an overview of violin family instrument varnish in a single blog post, it’s been on my mind this past week. Several of the makers we work with either send me pictures of the instrument in various stages of construction,...
by John Rihani | Apr 24, 2019 | Uncategorized
As I helped a cellist choose a bow last week, it struck me what a wide selection of cello bows we currently have at the shop. In pernambuco bows, we have everything from nickel-mounted workshop bows all the way to gold-mounted, master-maker bows. In carbon-fiber, we...
by John Rihani | Apr 16, 2019 | Uncategorized
A few weeks ago I shared two beautiful basses by Andrew Hassel of Chicago Bass Works that were in the shop. We had previously helped match one of Andrew’s basses with a talented college student so we were excited to have his next two instruments in the shop. ...
by John Rihani | Apr 2, 2019 | Uncategorized
Sound is a big part of what I do. I realize that might sound obvious, but I’ve been thinking a great deal lately about the role of sound. When shopping for an instrument or bow, I often hear statements like “sound is most important” or “it...
by John Rihani | Mar 26, 2019 | Uncategorized
I love hearing about a new product in the cello world. So much of what we use every day has been around for so long, and I find it wonderful that there are still new ideas and people willing to bring them to market. Rostanvo was a name I’d never heard before...
by John Rihani | Mar 19, 2019 | Uncategorized
Although I spend the bulk of my time in the shop, there are days I get to load up a couple of basses, grab a cup of coffee, cue up some Taylor Swift, and hit the road. Today was such a day, delivering two basses to one of the professors at the IU Jacobs School of...
by John Rihani | Mar 12, 2019 | Uncategorized
For the next week these two beautiful basses by Chicago Bass Works luthier Andrew Hassel will be in the shop. This is a fantastic opportunity to play on hand-crafted, US-made instruments with premium hardware, innovative bracing, and incredible sound. We had bass #2...
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