WHAT'S UP WITH BLUEBERRY GUITARS?

[jingle_jangle]

A year or so I put myself on Acoustic Guitar's Mailing list. Local magazine, with some items of interest to luthiers and players.

For the last five months or so, I've been getting these notices of auctions of guitars with the "Blueberry" brand name. Today, another came, and hitting the hyperlink radio button took me here:

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Blueberry-G ... QQ_armrsZ1

It's apparently another case of marketing trumping reality. Say something loudly enough, exaggerate it to contemporary levels of hyperbole, and get it out onto the 'net so millions can see it (eBay is a good vehicle for this, though lowbrowish), and you've begun to create a niche. Enough people will see what they want to see (generally having to do with "craftsmanship" and "exclusivity"), and in doing so, ignore the distortions.

Interested readers can hit the website and read all the blather and back-story. Note that nowhere does it say exactly where their workshop is located (my guess is Jakarta). But you can read between the lines and see how the three principals saw an "opportunity", collaborated to position a "product", and are busy making hay while the Indonesian sun shines...

I'm going to guess at a landed price of around $250.00-$300.00 for each of these, with BINs in the $2500.00 range. Not a bad markup, and from the standpoint of capitalism, a potential success story in the making.

But, ugly? or should I say, "Butt ugly". My first impression brought to mind a visual metaphor: Blueberry guitars are to a true handcrafted acoustic instrument, what Capodimonte is to Navajo pottery. Overwrought and tasteless are two adjectives that immediately come to mind.

Again, the H.L. Mencken quote: "Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public." And this was said nearly a century ago. Mencken is spinning like a turbine in his grave, or perhaps chuckling at light speed at the ironic immediacy (not to mention omnipresence) of the situation to which he was referring.

It would be enlightening to hear opinions on this newest triumph of marketing hype over substance. Anyone care to air their views?

[wayang]

Well, Dr. JJ...I'll air my views on this. I hate to say it, but I don't think these are being made in Jakarta. Because of the amount of Balinese hardwood being touted, I think they're coming straight out of Bali, which really pains me. The Balinese wood and stone carvers are about the best in the world...some examples:

But Blueberry guitars are a different story...I'm confident that the artists are being told what to create by 'outsiders', i.e. the company's 'white boy' principles. If the Balinese were permitted to 'do their own thing', these guitars would be amazing...and worth a lot more than $350, which might translate into the artists being paid what their work is worth. Believe me, a Balinese would much rather carve Garuda or Ganesha than the creature from the movie Alien...

Then there's the issue of the dwindling rain forest in Indonesia (and elsewhere)...gamelan instruments are made of 'jackfruit' wood, a tree that's fast growing and ubiquitous in Bali. (This tree also produces the world's largest fruit, which is a staple part of the Balinese diet.) Why couldn't the inlay work on these guitars be made of jackfruit? The use of koa, rosewood and (this one really makes me shudder) 'temple' wood is about as wrongheaded as it gets at this point in the planet's history.

These Blueberry guys are good ol' Colonial-style creeps...

[wayang]

Cut out the middle man and you get this:

[jingle_jangle]

Thanks for your unique, and unfortunately, true-life viewpoint, DPT...

I stand enlightened and corrected on the origins, and of course the colonial structure of the undertaking is what affected me in a negative way, though you've put words to what to me was a feeling of discomfort.

The photos you posted are of exquisite local craft. The entire Third World is being "taught" to put their native arts aside and produce styles foreign to them and dictated by tourist demand and bad taste of the Overlords...

[longhouse]

They are made in Bali, according to Blueberry:

All Blueberry guitars are handmade and hard carved on the Island of Bali. Bali is home to the most gifted woodcarving artists in the world, whose traditions go back for thousands of years. Once our guitars are completed, they are sent to Montreal where tuners are added and final setup, inspections and adjustments are made. Prior to this project there had never been a guitar produced on Bali Island. It took twenty months from the conceptualization of Blueberry guitars in August 2005 until our Master Luthier agreed that our guitars were perfect and had his approval to be sold. The first “perfect” Blueberry guitars started arriving in Montreal from the Blueberry Guitar workshop at the beginning of May 2007. Most of our guitars are now in the hands of musicians and collectors. At full capacity, the Blueberry Guitar workshop can produce about 125 guitars per month. This is broken down by Dreadnoughts (45%), Grand Concerts (45%) and Classical (10%). Each guitar is handmade with different exotic woods and has carvings with various degrees of intricacy. We have had very favorable responses from accomplished musicians as well as fantastic receptions at trade shows such as NAMM, MIAC and SIMM. There has been a tremendous amount of media coverage from local and international newspapers, online and print magazines and TV. The suggested retail prices for Blueberry guitars range from $2250.00 for an entry model, $2,850.00 for a midlevel model and $3,500.00 to $10,000.00 for a Masterpiece series or custom made Blueberry guitar. Our goal is to always produce guitars that are acoustically and artistically perfect.

I like the overt hyperbole: This guitar is unbelievably light and sounds exceptionally clear and sweet - better than any other of our guitars - and it may just be the greatest sounding guitar ever built

[longhouse]

I like this one:

[jingle_jangle]

Yeah--that's the simplest one they sell, and reminds me of the floor tile in a church basement.

[kiramdear]

Like bad tattoos that one would just have to live with.

[manta]

Most wood carvers in Bali live in the Ubud area. It would be a simple matter to find them actually. And I'll be there for a couple of days end of the month. I'll see what I can dig up. Bali carvers are not the most creative people. But they can carve what they are taught or work to learn. If they are brought a sample, they can replicate it exactly time after time. But the item is still a one-off handcarved piece. We used Balinese ivory carvers to create tagua nut key chains and display items of marine life creatures. Their initial tries at critters like manta rays were a bit rough as there aren't many mantas inland in Bali. But once they saw some photos and got some coaching, they have turned out some very creative work.

Wood is getting scarce in Bali and the heavily wooded north central part of the island is where they must get their supplies or have it brought in from elsewhere.

Would love to see the "factory", which is probably is a small family compound.

Best,

T

[wayang]

Yeah--that's the simplest one they sell, and reminds me of the floor tile in a church basement.

Hey, there are a lot of guitars played in church basements, don't kid yourself...

Would love to see the "factory", which is probably is a small family compound.

Yo, Manta...give my regards to the lovely island of Guam. (I've been there a few times, but only at the airport at 3 in the morning for refueling, coffee and a cigarette...) Yeah, I'm hip about the Balinese 'factories'. I've stayed in Peliatan (just southeast of Ubud) each time I've been to Bali.

The continued deforestation of the entire archipelago is terrifying and sad, but it's only one of many problems there. One of the Ubud shop carvers told me that once they were coerced by the World Bank, et al, to convert to the 'new' rice (to get three yields a year vs. two), they discovered that the 'new' rice wouldn't survive without pesticides. Setting aside for a moment the 'unforeseen' monetary economics of this situation...the environmental costs soon became apparent. The guy, who was my age or a bit younger, said he could remember during his childhood catching frogs and eels in the rice field just outside his back door...and now: nothing...the pesticide ('obat' in Balinese, the same word they use for 'medicine') kills every insect the fish and reptiles used to live on.

Well, ennywaze...a friend of mine that I worked in Antarctica with spent some time in Bali. He commissioned a batik artist to do a large piece featuring a life-size group of Emperor penguins. The Balinese guy, as with the carvers you dealt with, had never seen (or heard of) a penguin, but used photos as a reference. He came up with some amazing, wild looking penguins...but you know they're penguins when you see them...

Om suasti astu, Om...

[longhouse]

The peghead is attractive at least. Man, those bridges are abominations!

Anyone see the doubleneck acoustics?

[marc61]

I was trying to look at the guitars with an open mind....can't. The bodies look like a stadium after they mow the lawn or something.I'm not even curious about the sound because I know there are Martins and Taylors that sound great for less money. Is it the PT Barnum theory that has people bidding on these things or what?

[johnallg]

Listen to the sound samples, especially when they strum. Modulated tonality -- reminds me of a 60s $49 Harmony.

[jingle_jangle]

I was trying to look at the guitars with an open mind....can't. The bodies look like a stadium after they mow the lawn or something.I'm not even curious about the sound because I know there are Martins and Taylors that sound great for less money. Is it the PT Barnum theory that has people bidding on these things or what?

Luthiery, as applied to acoustic guitars, is becoming a more exact science every day. Combined, of course with art, and the luck of the draw when it comes to getting some nice wood that contributes to a particular instrument's tone, there are lots of handbuilt instruments that are stunning to look at and equally beautiful to listen to.

We celebrate Martin for their unmatched history and close links to Americana and American music, but what they've usually done well is to walk the fine line between creating handcrafted instruments with a unique voice, and selling a factory-produced commodity of fairly consistent playability and identifiable sound. Lately, it's more commodity than high craft, but there's still some tradition alive behind their marketing juggernaut that produces lots of high-priced premium special editions. They are unscientific and production-bound enough to not have time to get each instrument "just right", as a small luthiery operation would through careful wood selection and tuning and sizing to pull the maximum from each component and assembly. This, of course, requires lots of experience in the craft, which is antithetical to the concept of mass-production, which is at its best with semi-skilled personnel trained to do a small bit of the whole operation.

Taylor have taken the production of acoustic guitars to a level of sameness and predictability that rivals a Big Mac, and (at least to me), the metaphor extends to the sound as well. You always know what you're going to get: very good build quality when cost to acquire is considered, a high and very consistent level of finish, and a certain dryness of tone. Taylor is the ultimate mass-producer of flat-top acoustics, and their scientific approach to every component and operation in designing and building a guitar is reflected in nothing else if not the sameness of the experience.

The whole acoustic guitar "thing" is so rich and complex that to delve into the variety offered by individual personalities pursuing a passion to its natural results when filtered through a single set of senses and hands, is an experience that can involve you and "suck you in" deeper, the more effort you expend. The pursuit of higher craft and better sound is (despite manufacturers' hype) largely an individual one.

What you do find when you investigate the current state of the art in acoustic guitars, is the visual tied very closely with the sonic. These instruments are highly decorative, but never present decoration as an end in itself, and always surprise with their tonal qualities and individuality.

What I'm seeing here (Blueberry) is a company that is contracting local workers to "build instruments" (based upon which standards and philosophy of sonic design?) to at least a standard that makes them able to be played, although my own ears, too, detect a "plywood midrange" quality to the sound that belies their asking price. To me. there is no question that less attention should be given decoration, and much more to coaxing a memorable tonal palette and perfecting consistency once this is achieved.

Yet, would a good-sounding but ordinary-looking acoustic guitar made in Bali, ever have a chance in a very crowded marketplace, at a time when disposable income for the middle classes is at an all-time low? The answer must be a pretty solid, "no".

So Blueberry create a point of difference (decorative surface design and relief carving, which cost money and effort to do but add nothing to the sound) and position the products to appeal to the occasional player/hobbyist who also fancies himself a collector of sorts. Then they fill this positioning out with claims of quality, craft, and sonic superiority that are transparently nonsensical, hyperbolic, and more subtle, to round out the palette. not of sound and beauty, but of sales angles. All to reassure the potential purchaser that he is contemplating the acquisition of something of innate value as a piece of collectible "art" that has a practical side of playability.

Want to see true playable art?

Look at this flat-top by Michael Bashkin:







Or this one by Michi Matsuda:









Yes, these are 2-3X the price of the Balinese Blueberries, but each is made by hand in the USA by a single luthier with vision, curiosity, and creativity pulsing in his veins. That's worth the extra time it takes to save up to buy or commission one.

Then I look at this:



I think, "yeesh"...the difference between hyped "craft" (like a badly-made piece of tourist souvenir "art") and true craftsmanship is really obvious.

[marc61]

Never seen a Michael Bashkin guitar. That headstock is awesome.

Well, I always blamed my poor bass playing skills on Rickenbacker because it was such a beautiful bass guitar, I never used to play it. Sometimes I'd just stare at the Jetglo finish in amazement. The look of it in the orange felt lined case was pure beauty. Maybe I need one of those Blueberry acoustics. I'd play the heck out of it, to get it reliced and/or worn down asap.

PS - Those Blueberries you just showed look like some bad tattoo art