As the Gibson Company works to build a better mandolin, the ears of many American plectral enthusiasts turn toward the sound of the banjo.
This ad appeared in Crescendo and Cadenza magazines on page 2 in the months of May, June, July and August of 1922. Photo features F. C. Bradbury’s Vega Banjo Quintette of Hartford, Connecticut.
The Hartford Serenaders, W. C. Knipfer, director, with Vega Whyte Laydie and Tu-Ba-Phone banjos. Ca. 1922.
Within two weeks of the closing of the 1922 American Guild Convention, the music magazines of the Northeast were filled with articles and advertisements singing the praises of the Vega banjo. Some of the most highly acclaimed performers at the convention, such as F. C. Bradbury’s Vega Banjo Quintette and W. C. Knipfer’s Hartford Serenaders, played Vega banjos exclusively. Toward the end of the last century, A. C. Fairbanks had improved his designs and dethroned S. S. Stewart as self-proclaimed builder of the world’s greatest banjos. Fairbanks became Fairbanks by Vega and then Vega, and the banjo grew more popular with each transition. By 1922, Vega had captured a huge share of the music merchandise market. Surely this had not escaped the notice of the front office staff at Gibson.
Cadenza, June, 1922.
1910 Fairbanks by Vega Tu-Ba-Phone #3, serial number 26759.
Crescendo, May, 1922, proclaiming David Apollon and Giuseppe Petinne as the latest Vega endorsers.
In 1919, Vega introduced the Cylinder-back mandolin, attracting teachers to recommend this hybrid of the Old World bowl back sound with a distinctly American twist. With David Apollon’s endorsement and an affordable price tag, Vega was set to challenge Gibson on the mandolin front. Giuseppe Petinne was unable to perform on his new Vega at the Guild Convention as advertised, for he was in mourning after the tragic death of his young wife Amelia Capone. By the end of the year, however, he had returned to performing and had set aside his Calace in favor of the Vega cylinder back mandolin, and in fact, had agreed to outfit the entire Providence Orchestra with Vega mandolins and banjos.
Crescendo, December, 1922.
Circa 1922 Vega Cylinder-back mandolin. Flat spruce top, carved walnut back with a cylinder-shaped bowl.
Ca. 1920 Amendola bowl back; 1922 Vega Cylinder back and 1922 Gibson A-4. Vega attempted to find a market between the two designs.
While the quality and extent of the Gibson catalog of mandolins was undisputed, the growing popularity of the banjo could not be ignored. Gibson had entered the banjo market much later than other companies, but many at Gibson were trying to make up for lost time. Gibson employees James “Jazz” H. Johnstone had taken up pen and plectrum while Ted McHugh, D. C. Mafit and Victor Kraske contributed designs and filed patents. While companies like Vega and Stewart championed the traditional 5-string banjo for either minstrel or classical playing styles, Gibson saw the coming of jazz music as the wave of the future. Therefore, they focused on the 4-string, or tenor banjo, which not only provided the sound jazz musicians of the time wanted, it was tuned in fifths like the instruments in the string section of the orchestra. This made it convenient for mandolinists and violinists to adopt it.
May, 1919, Cadenza. Johnstone also completed a series of articles for the Cadenza entitled “How To ‘Jazz’ on the Banjo.”
The patent for the lag-bolt neck attachment and heel-cap was filed May 2, 1921. This feature, like the truss rod, became standard on all Gibson banjos and remains so today.
Filed October 8, 1921, but not granted until August 5, 1924; the tightening mechanism for the calfskin head became standard features of Gibson banjos. The text of the patent states that this design is “especially adapted for jazz music.”
Gibson’s ace-in-the-hole was the style 5 mandolin. Surely the new mandolin would be more versatile in performing many styles of music. To prove this, a stellar quintet of musicians was retained for the summer tour of the Gibsonians. They would debut the new instruments for the public, the players and the teacher/agents. In addition (or to hedge the bet?), Lloyd Loar was at work with a new series of articles on banjo construction that would be published in upcoming issues of the Crescendo. A style 5 banjo was in the works to complete the summer ensemble. Loar’s most recent writing, however, addressed the issue of expanding teaching programs, an essential aspect of the Gibson sales dynamic.
Crescendo, February, 1922, p. 21.
Next week we profile one of the stars of the Gibsonians of 1922.