We are a specialist bassoon company and as such we had some unusual and rare bassoons to show off on our stand, which caused much intrigue and delight. To start with we had three Heckel bassoons on our stand which, perhaps not surprisingly, were tried by most of the professionals and students at the event. Many students had never before had the opportunity to play on a pre-1945 Heckel, and so this was a rare opportunity to see for themselves how beautiful these bassoons really sound. Needless to say, all three Heckels are now reserved for customers to try on approval.
We also had a Soulsby bassoon, made by the British maker Jeremy Soulsby in 1988. Soulsby made about 80 bassoons, which gained a world wide reputation for their sound and quality, and then he retired and never made another bassoon. We have Soulsby bassoon number 41 in stock - a very rare instrument, in perfect condition, that produces a delightful sound.
Another special bassoon we had was an Ernst Riedl, made in about 1940 (a dark coloured bassoon pictured on a stand at the far end). Some of the professional players at the day (BBC Philharmonic and others) had heard of Riedl bassoons but had never actually seen or played one. The sound of this instrument is astonishingly rich and even throughout. I am an Ernst Riedl player myself, having an identical instrument with a close serial number, and I am a huge fan. Famously, Will Jansen was a Riedl player, writer of the well known five book anthology 'The Bassoon'. He is photographed with a Riedl bassoon just like this in his book.
You can see all these bassoons, plus many others, on our website here:
www.DoubleReed.co.uk
A special hello to everyone who was there on the day!
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| Oliver Ludlow - Director and Bassoon Specialist at Double Reed Ltd. |
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