I have just bought a new mandolin, a used Weber Yellowstone mandolin. This mandolin sounds great and I cannot stop playing it.
This is a album with some pictures of this instrument: http://www.mandoisland.de/album_weber_yellowstone
Bruce Weber was one of the master luthiers at the former Flatiron site after Gibson had bought Flatiron. Gibson built mandolins in Monatana until 19976 when the production was moved to Nashville. Bruce Weber and some other luthiers decided to stay in Montana, and one year later in 1997 Bruce Weber found his Sound to Earth company and started his own line of Weber mandolins.
You can find many details about the history of Sound to Earth on the homepage Sound to Earth in the sections About Us, History and Luthier Bio.
Weber has designed a very interesting line of mandolin instruments – mandolins, mandolas, octave mandolins and mandocellos. You can find almost everything from instruments for beginners to master instruments like the Weber Fern mandolin or the very special 10th Anniversary model that sells for a list price of 25000 $. Recently Weber has also added a line of archtop guitars and resonator instruments to its producton.
New instruments can be configured individually with all kinds of variations and upgrades. All the standard models are presented with pictures and specifications on the Sount to Earth homepage.
Bruce Weber has built some very special instruments for Bruce Graybill, a mandolin player from Pleasant Hill, Missouri. I have met Bruce Graybill two years ago during a workshop or mandolin symposium in Trossingen (Germany). Bruce is a great mandolin player who plays bluegrass, jazz and also classical music. For some years he was the presidant of the Classical Mandolin Society of America (CMSA).
Bruce Graybill has presented his Weber instruments in a very interesting set of youtube clips. Bruce shows his instruments and tells about the special features of each instrument. Then he plays the same piece on different instruments to show the differences between those instruments.
This is my playlist with the complete set of youtube clips
Playlist -Bruce Graybill and his Weber Mandolins
Not only Bruce Graybill shows his Weber instruments, many other proud owners of Weber mandolins have made youtube videos playing their instruments.From this video clips you can dicover the great sound of the Weber mandolins and at the same time discover some interesting music. I have mainly collected clips with Weber Fern and Weber Yellowstone mandolins in the following playlist.
Playlist Weber Yellowstone and Weber Fern Mandolin
On the Weber homepage you can find a gallery of owners of Weber mandolins with pictures and also many videos.
Additional Information
Weber homepage with many informations and pictures of the instruments and also from the shop: Sound to Earth
youtube channel of Bruce Weber – Bruce Weber has also collected many videos of Weber instruments, and he also has provided some videos from his shop: http://www.youtube.com/user/mandolin2010
also interesting:
FAQ about Flatiron mandolins: http://www.folkofthewood.com/page1732.htm
FAQ about Weber mandolins: http://www.folkofthewood.com/page606.htm
FAQ about mandolins in general: http://www.folkofthewood.com/Acoustic_Instruments_Mandolins.html
