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That guitar is a talisman and no doubt has shamanistic properties.
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02-01-2024 09:06 PM
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Nice tie-in to a thread about a trade show, since my working theory for the past few years is that the Bianka was only ever made as a showpiece for display at trade shows. It's no Fantastik (below, even sillier), but still quite fantastic. I think I'll suggest to my pals at Höfner that they do something along the same lines for future NAMM shows. Martin does it and it generates plenty of buzz.
Originally Posted by Ol' Fret
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And it'll double as a pitch pipe or life raft in a pinch.... Originally Posted by Hammertone
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If I remember correctly these maple tubes were originally used as some sort of resonator, either for a pipe-organ or some other instrument ... regardless, it IS a show-piece, just like the Bianca and when I look at the latest creations by John Monteleone I see a direct connection.
I recently found the website of a german luthier who is quite famous for his mandolins, both of his own design and for making replicas of vintage instruments. These old pieces are testament that "bling" is def. not a recent developement ...
Massaque 1790 › Woll Mandolinen
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Fortunately there were other individuals in my family at that time as well. One Jewish grand-grand-aunt related by marriage to my father's side died in Theresienstadt. One grand-uncle from my father's side was executed together with Bonhoeffer and Canaris in Flossenbürg one month before the Germans surrendered. One grand-aunt from my father's side hid two Jewish friends in her Munich flat and took them with her into the bomb-shelter. She got a tree in Yad Vashem as a Righteous among the Nations in the 80ies. My mother's biological father deserted from Crimea because he could not stand the mass executions of Jews he witnessed (which BTW were possible because of the collaboration of those who are celebrated today in Ukraine as national heroes). He immediately enlisted again which prevented his execution. He had a "return unwanted" stamp in his military documents. My father's father who had raised a red flag on Munich's university in the revolution of 1918/19 later believed in General Ludendorff's antisemitic Jewish world conspiracy theories but was in opposition to the Nazis. The mayor of the village where I grew up threatened to bring him "seven kilometres north" (KZ Dachau) if he kept on discussing with communists. He had the "return unwanted" stamp in WW2 as well. Originally Posted by Ol' Fret
Munich has always been a city of power somehow. Some people who believe in dowsing and radiesthesia say that some of the lines of power surrounding the globe are crossing here. I am an agnostic regarding those things. Although it was a very little town until recently it again and again played a role in history. Even Lenin lived here for a while.
The creeping turn to fascism you are talking about is unfortunately happening in a lot of places worldwide. USA, Hungary, France, Italy, India, Israel ... it's not only those usual authoritarian suspects hated by the "West" with its so called "values".
Regarding the Hoyer guitar and reading the comments I get the feeling that most people do not get what you are hinting at. BTW the SS runes (or the single "Siegrune" used by the Hitler youth) are flat and the bottom not pointed. Nonetheless ...
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It is not subtle. I am sure everyone can see it. But it is still just a guitar. Originally Posted by Bop Head
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I thought it was a lighting bolt. You're talking about the F holes.... I think?
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Yes. Originally Posted by AllanAllen
In Germany there was even a controversy about the original logo of the band KISS because of its similarity to the logo of Himmler's Schutzstaffel. Since 1980 KISS uses a slightly different logo for their German marketing.
Some of the members of of KISS are Jewish, Gene Simmons was even born in Israel to Shoa survivors. Maybe they chose the logo to shock the generation of their parents.
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The stylized S is just not a big deal here in America. I see lightning bolts. I vaguely remember learning about Kiss needing a different logo in Germany in High School history. That's about all I remember about the S. Originally Posted by Bop Head
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Have you actually played or heard the Fantastic? I love how it looks and I'd really intrigued to know if it's just a show poster or could actually serve as a musical instrument. Originally Posted by Hammertone
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The Hoyer 'Pipe Organ Guitar' got even mentioned in an American Magazine. Well, nothing to write home about - it was only the Popular Mechanics, but, wow, what an accolade back then! (Phil Are Go!: Pipe Organ Guitar - Primordial Goth Rock (phil-are-go.blogspot.com)
It's a pain in the a** to restore a Fantastik properly. It is mainly made of maple and rosewood tubes with a special interior framework, and yes, it has something of an own sound, electrified, of course. There are some nice stories about the few Fantastiks ever produced (five or six, I can't remember), including the story that once George Harrison wanted to buy one from a British Pro and got the answer he wouldn't have enough money for it ...
- Schlaggitarren.de – Diverses
- RESTAURATION EINER HOYER FANTASTIK von Herbert Rittinger – Schlaggitarren
I don't like to derail this wonderful thread of Hammertone about NMMA news 2024. Originally Posted by AllanAllen
Just for clarification some words about the Siegrune (sig rune) symbolising the consonant S for Sieg (victory). In Germany the use of this symbol is punishable. Designers of relevant right-wing extremist media and patches are trying to circumvent the ban with minor changes to the graphic design. Active Neo-Nazis continue to use the symbol very openly inside and outside the Federal Republic of Germany.
And then, there is this:
- Error code: 404 - bwahaha, error! The link refers to an article published in the Marine Corps News under the title "Marine scout snipers used Nazi SS logo" (Google or another search machine helps).
- According to a report in the New York Times, the sign is still used like a "secret handshake" within the Marine Corps in 2020.
- In the USA some public figures are working on a "National-Communist" orientation of politics. A vague expression, like most political drivel, but certainly something like the intensification of "National-Socialist".
I think my (German) grandfather was right when he claimed that some American and British parties might have gained a lot of National Socialist support - if the Germans hadn't gotten ahead of it and, with their sometimes unbearable perfectionism, set in motion a devilish machine that could only slowed down by war destruction. This machine is currently picking up speed again in many countries.
So , we have f-holes on the prettiest guitars. When looking at these fs (the shape is a stilized f, hardly ever F, isn't it?), we notice that the little nicks in the middle are spread by the guitar manufacturers like caraway on bread. On bowed instruments these nicks have a defined function of marking the bridge position.
Btw., the bodies of the Ibanez Pat Metheney Signature and similar new models are manufactured by thousands in China; you can buy them here for about $100 (including shipping).Last edited by Ol' Fret; 02-02-2024 at 02:39 PM.
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There was also this: German TV Shows Nazi Symbols on Helmets of Ukraine Soldiers Originally Posted by Ol' Fret
Rarely talked about recently ...
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I have never handled any of the very few in existence, and don't really care. IMO, it's a novelty, a wall hanger, like the almost-as-nutty Höfner "Fledermaus" guitar, or the Gibson map guitar. Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
History has a way of appropriating symbols and etching them into our collective memory with layers of added meaning. As far as the Bianka goes, well, I suspect lightening bolts are the intent, but perhaps Arnold might have been wiser to choose something else. I still think it was a show guitar - I've played a few of them, and the positively sedate-looking Hoyer Special is a better sounding acoustic archtop guitar, all day, every day.
He's not the only one. Osbama guitars are also quite, uh, electrifying.Last edited by Hammertone; 02-02-2024 at 04:03 PM.
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When it comes to amps ... tubes ... or ... SS
Just kidding ... weird thread drift ...
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So how was NAMM, good?!
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Thunderbolts can be seen in many places. The Nazi association is weakened by the ubiquity of the symbol.
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Those Hoyer guitars are a trip. I'd love to try one one day....
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Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles
When it comes to amps ... tubes ... or ... SS
Just kidding ... weird thread drift ...
Yes, one man's tube is another man's pipe is another man's Röhre...
Statements, perspectives, personal feelings and questions emerge, all justifiably. Some deserve comment, agreement, completion or simply response.
Hopefully, someone will comment on the fact that many new archtop guitars under different brand names must come from the same factories in China with just minor modifications - except the hardware and the finish color. Not exactly the same, but a similar thing happened with the mass of low- to mid-priced German guitars in the 1960s.
In the West, only the small-scale archtop guitar making, high-priced - justified or not, seems to survive.
It would mean too much of a drift to mention the fact that ALL compressors used in several heat pump brands offered in Germany are made in Asia. That would require some flexibility to think about possible parallels between guitars and heat pumps resp. their production ...
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I find it annoying that people constantly resort to ab recitations and emoji in everyday text messages. It's like trying to decipher a secret code instead of having a straightforward conversation. IMHO, these shortcuts often lead to misunderstandings, and the lack of genuine expression can be a major buzzkill. TBH, it feels lazy AF when someone relies on emojis instead of using actual words to convey their emotions. IRL, clear communication should be a top priority, and excessive use of abbreviations and symbols just adds unnecessary complexity. IDK, maybe I'm just old school, but I believe words are meant to be spelled out and conversations should be more than a string of emojis and abbrevs. SMH. Originally Posted by Sleeko
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Do you think this thread has drifted? Originally Posted by garybaldy
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Ha, well played! Yes, it was actually quite good. It appears that the venerable Höfner violin and club basses are attracting a new generation of young, funky players who are interested in them due to their distinctive sound and feel, and are less concerned or aware of their history. Originally Posted by garybaldy
Who knows, maybe the same thing will happen with big archtop guitars after they wander the desert for a few years.
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Did you happen to see the black short scale Collings with all the blingy binding that got roasted earlier in the thread? Settkng aside the binding, I love the idea of a quality guitar with a scale length that short. A lot of us are getting or have gotten to an age where that's a really useful feature. Originally Posted by Hammertone
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Fuck that guy. Originally Posted by jzucker
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Sorry, Jim - I didn't look for it. Ah, my one-off Seventy-Seven Albatross single-cut is better... Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
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What's the scale length on that? Originally Posted by Hammertone
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