Changing Tune
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FEATURE FEATURE Changing tune Guitars Blackbird Ellis Davies looks at the composite materials being used to create a new generation of musical Opposite: Alessandrini Above: The El Capitan is instruments. hopes to have his violin entirely handmade from on the market by 2017. a flax linen and bio-resin composite. Carbon chords Since the late 1970s, carbon fibre and carbon fibre- instruments do, therefore maintaining tuning and taking reinforced polymer have made it into the global a beating with relative ease. market in various fashions. By 2000, the material, a Carbon fibre and graphite guitars are becoming combination of carbon fibre strands and plastic resin, more common, with Composite Guitars, USA, had applications for highly sophisticated machine showcasing its new travel-sized edition, Cargo, at the parts in Europe, and was becoming an important 2016 National Association of Music Merchants show composite material. Carbon fibre can also be used to – NAMM. The instrument is made in a single mould, so usical instruments are ever-evolving objects. make composites with other materials such as glass, there are no gaps in the construction apart from the Even today, weird and wonderful instruments aluminium and aramid. offset sound hole. M made from a variety of different materials Perhaps unsurprisingly, carbon fibre has also This trend continues in more specialised areas. In 2015, emerge each year. From theremins to earth organs, the become a viable alternative to wood for many stringed Nageli Swiss AG developed a trumpet bell made from world of musical instruments is hard to keep up with. instruments. One such example comes from the USA carbon fibre-reinforced plastic. Nageli claimed that its The origin of the first instrument is unclear, with the guitar manufacturer Rainsong. Formed in the 1990s by design allowed for a measurable and noticeable decrease discovery of a Chinese flute between 7,000 and 9,000 Dr John Decker, an aeronautical engineer from Hawaii, in blowing energy required for playing the trumpet. years old being the most definitive example of an ancient Rainsong claims to have made the first advance in guitar Using resin transfer moulding technology, dry fibres in musical instrument. The materials that instruments making material since the use of wood nearly 400 years the form of braided tapes are preformed and put into are made of have historically depended upon what ago with its all graphite/carbon fibre acoustic guitars. a mould, before resin is injected into the closed and was readily available. Many instruments were made of After a rained out wedding in Maui brought a halt to heated mould at high pressure, as a vacuum is applied. perishable materials, such as animal skins, while others, the musical accompaniment, Decker wanted to create Following a curing cycle, the bell is demoulded. To ensure such as flutes, were made of bone and therefore lasted a guitar that could stand up to the elements, while the surface of the trumpet bell meets the high-quality longer. The flute is now more commonly constructed competing with the tonal quality of the classic wood- finish required on the inner side as well as the outside, the from silver, while stringed instruments typically use based acoustic. viscosity behaviour of the resin system must be suitable various woods to project a variety of sounds. Rainsong claims that its guitars give a more for injection at high temperature. The trumpet, called the Composite materials have over the past decade begun ‘complete’ sound than traditional wooden alternatives, daCarbo, is now being manufactured in Switzerland. to find their way musical instruments, particularly those because of a consistent dampening effect that allows The stiffness of the instrument panel, coupled with with a large market, such as guitars. With concerns over high and low frequencies to resonate on a level plane, the damping properties of the composite materials, deforestation and the wasting of wood, many companies making the higher notes less muddy. Using a patented resulted in the reduction of non-audible vibrations of are now forced to look outside traditional construction construction technique, Performance Shape Casting, the bell and the subsequent increase in the reflection and seek new ways to produce their products. The needs Rainsong necks and fretboards are cast simultaneously component of the sound. The geometry of the bell is of the musician have also bolstered this change, with in a single graphite matrix. Holding true to the original designed to create a clear tone, and the production increasingly vigorous touring schedules of professional goal, Decker claims his creations can face any weather, process is largely automated to deliver a consistent artists taking a toll on their tools – sometimes dealing with graphite’s famed strength ensuring the instrument level of quality, while bypassing the corrosion and more pressure than traditional materials can handle. Design Week does not warp in hot or wet conditions as wooden condensation issues of traditional brass instruments. 38 MATERIALS WORLD SEPTEMBER 2016 SEPTEMBER 2016 MATERIALS WORLD 39 FEATURE FEATURE Nature in music Pick and paper Harking back to early instruments made from animal (dalbergia melanoxylan), with which it shares many While plastic may seem an odd choice of material, the skins and bone, innovations in composite materials for properties such as density, acoustics, and colour. Where use of paper is likely to confuse many more. Gibson musical instruments have also come from nature. One Grenaditte excels is in its immunity to temperature Guitars, USA, has for the past two-decades looked for such material is Ekoa, a composite of flax linen and a change and light weight, as well as being ideally suited an alternative to the increasingly rare wood ebony, bio-resin made from industrial waste, also described for production methods employing the intricate design. commonly used to make fret boards for guitars. as solid linen. Initially developed by Blackbird Guitars, Following the Executor, Guo produced an entire flute Their solution is a paper and phenolic resin composite USA, as a 10-year project, Ekoa is designed to be an made of Grenaditte designed to combine the qualities material called Richlite, created by stacking sheets of alternative to wood that looks and sounds as a wooden of the early conical flute with a modern silver flute, paper and saturating them in resin, before applying heat instrument would. Producing carbon fibre guitars bringing the conical tone and feel together with the and pressure. Dating back to 1943, when it was used to such as the original Rider guitar, Blackbird founder Joe responsive dynamics of the modern flute. Guo has also make drop boxes for the US military, its waterproof and Luttwak noticed a trend in feedback for the carbon worked with engineered high polymer plastics for his durable surface allowed Richlite to withstand drops from fibre model. Luttwak mentioned in a recent article that more affordable instrument, the New Voice flute. supply planes, along with adverse weather conditions. customers often complained that the Rider did not look The Quadrant Group has recently turned its Since then, the material has been used by Boeing like wood, despite its durability and sound. This led to attention to guitar nuts. Commonly made of bone, Airlines, as well as becoming a popular option for interior the development of Ekoa. metal, graphite and even ivory on older examples, the and exterior architectural surfaces and furniture. Blackbird first used Ekoa to make its Clara Concert nut is a notched strip attached at the end of the fret In 2012, Gibson began to use Richlite on its Les Ukulele, launched in late 2013 to much acclaim. Its latest board on the cusp of the headstock. This insignificant Paul Custom production model guitar instead of the creation is the El Capitan, a handmade and entirely looking piece of hardware not only keeps the strings traditional ebony. Gibson claims that Richlite is actually composite-constructed acoustic guitar. Built in San in the correct position, but also has an important role superior to ebony as the quality is consistently high, and Francisco, USA, the El Capitan is uniquely constructed to play in the tremolo system, if one is present, by no material is wasted searching for supposedly ‘good’ using a mould to create a one-piece hollow body and providing tuning stability. ebony, based on grain and colouring. Of course, there neck. To do this, each mould is filled with 100 pieces of The nut is a piece of hardware frequently are those who dislike the new material for its different Trumpeter Ekoa, and cured under high temperatures before being experimented with by guitar manufacturers. Quadrant feel and look, but this has not stopped Gibson from now preserved for several hours. Once the mould is set, has worked with Raygun Guitars, USA, to use an A using Richlite as standard on its Les Paul Customs. the soundboard is bonded to the body along with the grade of Techtron-brand High Pressure & Velocity (HPV) Moving away from high-end guitar manufacturers composite fretboard. The soundboard is constructed with Alessandrini's violin is made of a composite material Above: The carbon Below: The Gibson PPS to manufacture high quality nuts. The material is to a novel product making use of cardboard, the a slight bowl to improve strength and rigidity, as well as combining silk and resin, with three strands of golden silk fibre bell prevents Les Paul Custom now self-lubricating, chemical- and hydrolysis-resistant and Corrulute is an interesting take on the classic lute, providing a resonant projecting surface. spun by the Australian golden orb spider embedded in condensation and features a paper-based has good dimensional stability and electrical insulating/ and gives an insight into the construction of stringed Blackbird claims that using Ekoa produces a bigger the top side.