A Closer Look at Round Back Mandolins (12/97)
Richard Walz
CMSA member Richard Walz is a professional mandolin player and instructor living in Reims, France. Not one to shy away from travel, Richard made an appearance at the 1997 convention in Louisville.
In the United States the Gibson F-5 has become "The Mandolin" and in the minds of most mando people, it rules! The success of Gibson in America has left the greater body of classical players in other parts of the world perplexed and unconvinced as their American counterparts are about the merits of the 'taterbug' (Original Gibson Company derogatory smear used to win over the mandolin market in the early years of this century). For the classical player of today (as well as those from the past), the definitive mandolin, such as the Steinway established for the piano world, seems to be impossible to determine to everyone's satisfaction. The round back mandolin is quite clearly the original mandolin and, if a classical sound or tradition is our intent, this instrument should be given closer consideration with a better understanding of the qualities, differences and limitations of such an instrument.
A bit of background is in order here. There were many fine makers of the modern 'classical' or round back mandolin at the turn of this century. . Vinaccia, Calace (both from Naples) and Luigi Embergher achieved special recognition among players of the time. There were, of course, many other makers and factories churning out everything from junk to jewels and everything in between to satisfy the demand for what was then the most popular musical instrument (the guitar running a close second). I've played many examples of Vinaccia and Calace and, assuming the instrument has survived the perils of use and abuse over the years, they are usually fine sounding and playing instruments. However, most have suffered and there are precious few luthiers who have the experience and knowledge with this type of instrument to set them up properly. What usually happens is that they are over strung with BG type strings (Pearson, Monroe, D'Addario, GHS, and even Thomastik)... The tension is too great and if you add a nice humid and hot summer, you inevitably get the neck pulling forward and the top sinking (or both). Bridges then have to be pulled back to where they end up on the wrong side of the crease in order to have the strings play in tune. Sounds depressing but then the optimists would simply say go have it fixed. Well, here market forces and the general design of the instrument work against this option. One reason is simply that the round back mandolins have been terribly under valued over the last 50-70 years. Secondly, major repairs such as resetting the neck require the top to be undone and this is much more complicated procedure than with a violin style construction such as employed by Gibson, L&H and other carved top/back instruments. Cost of repair would go way over the cost of buying another (possibly healthy) round back mando and the instrument ends up a wall hanger (this can also provoke further damage). For some reason, I've found more problems with the early Calace mandolins than with Vinaccias or Emberghers in respects to the neck and top condition.
Embergher mandolins (as well as those of his disciples Cerrone and Peccaro) are of the Roman school and really quite different from the Calace type, both in design and sound). As was pointed out, Embergher preferred a slightly radiused and narrow fingerboard, smaller body and lighter bracing than those from Calace. The sound is exquisite in the mid-top range and generally less rich in the bottom register than those of the Calace. Embergher mandolins are not for everyone and there seem to be two quite distinct types of players who would have used one or the other models. My regular round back instrument is an Embergher and, though the sound is strong and of lovely character, the instrument remains difficult to play certain types of music employing chords that demand contorted fingering (Stauffer, Seigel, Calace, for example) though not impossible. Exceptional players from the past that preferred the Embergher mandolin were Silvio Ranieri, Maria Scivatarro and Hugo d'Alton and it is interesting to note the avoidance of Calace's more difficult music in their repertoire. On the other hand, these virtuosos tackled the most difficult violin pieces for which the Embergher mandolin is so perfectly suited. In the Calace camp were, of course, Rafaelle Calace and his daughter Maria Calace, Anneda, and among today's generation of modern virtuosi, Ugo Orlandi. Here we see the inverse with these players avoiding Ranieri's music and generally avoiding the violin repertoire. Many of the Calace instruments I've played tend to have a dry mid-top range (due to the heavy bracing) but can be made to sing clearly if the right type of strings and plectrum are used. The lower register is very full and deep sounding that makes this type of instrument an excellent vehicle for contrapuntal or unaccompanied playing.
Vinaccias are, to my ears, perhaps the best balanced in timbre but, because of the shorter fingerboard (usually 21 or 24 frets at most) and very low bridge, are more limited to the modern virtuoso player. Low bridges make it more difficult for a player to produce volume without extreme care with right hand technique. I've seen some or the finest mandolins from the Vinaccia family in Los Angeles, instruments that were imported at the turn of the century by a local music shop.
Other makers to look out for are: Emmanuele Egildo (excellent sounding mandolins), Stridente, Puglisi, Vega, Lyon & Healy, Martin. Most of the American made round back instruments had only 20 or at most 24 frets, enough the wealth of mandolin orchestral and popular solo material available in those days. German round back instruments such as those made by Seiffert and Knorr are also worth considering. They initially were inspired by the Calace model but have been transformed over the last 20 years into a model with very strong influence from the classical guitar design. I consider them more guitar than mandolin with respects to sound, specially when played with a rubber like plectrum.
VALUE?
There is perhaps no other musical instrument that has such an unclear market value. I've heard of prices from next to nothing up to the price of a Monteleone. In reality, round back instruments of quality rarely go for more than $1500 unless one is buying a new instrument. There is certainly a great risk in buying a round back instrument because the condition and repair costs are so hard to determine. I have been lucky with my first good round back instrument but I might have also ended up with an expensive wall hanger. Insist on seeing any old instrument before purchase. Look carefully at the bridge area for sinking and whether the bridge needs to be placed too far back for correct intonation. Play the instrument and try to get an idea of its potential sound. Inevitably the instrument will be badly or incorrectly strung. The frets might also be worn and cause buzzing in the lower positions. All of this has to be taken into consideration. Common repairs such as fixing most cracks and refretting shouldn't be of so much concern as the straightness of the neck and top. Again, don't be overly impressed by a name. Calace and Embergher also made inexpensive and lower grade instruments. Generally speaking, the higher grade instruments had more ribs and frets (e.g. top model of Embergher would have 39+ ribs and 29 frets).
Now, for my own "unbiased" opinion <g> as to the ideal 'classical mandolin'. If I had to choose the best instrument for classical playing (all pressures aside as to what constitute classical), it would be the Lyon & Healy A model. Of course, I own one but previous to the lucky day when a wonderful mandolin enthusiast realised my dream by turning over guardianship of this beloved instrument, I had always coveted my teacher's (Albert Bellson) Lyon & Healy. He also had one of the finest 1923 Lloyd Loar Gibson F-5's I've ever seen or heard but the L&H was his favorite instrument. If it weren't for the long diapason (or scale) of the Gibson, this type of mandolin could also be a fine instrument for a classical player. It is nearly impossible to play reliable 10ths on a Gibson F-5 unless you have huge hands. Living and playing in Europe has made it difficult for me to use the L&H mandolin professionally but I do prefer its sound over all other mandolins with the possible exception of Pettine's Vega (round back).
Richard Walz can be contacted via e-mail at richard.walz@wanadoo.fr