The Brescian Model Double Bass was being designed and prototyped at the same time we were raising our post-and-beam workshop in 2012. From the original Upton Hawkes pattern, our gravitational pull was always towards giant Italy-via-England contrabasses - violin patterns with broad proportions built enormous for lavish orchestra sections. The Upton Brescian Model was our new push to create a wide-ribbed bass in this classic style, while applying all of our invention in construction and ergonomics. When we think of a 'Brescian' style (from Northern Italy), we reference the masters such as Gasparo da Salo, Maggini, and Rogeri. Vincenzo Panormo…
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The Concord Model double bass was one of our first ambitious design projects once Upton Bass moved into our own post-and-beam workshop in Mystic. It was born out of a long admiration for Prescott basses and a realization Upton Bass had to have a model paying tribute to New England stringmaking history! An homage to Abraham Prescott, the Concord would incorporate the 'Busetto' recurved c-bouts of the most famous Prescott double basses. The Concord would also carry forward ingenious design principles from the original Concord, New Hampshire Prescotts - deep ribs and high-arched tops carved thin with attached ff-holes to…
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Basses take a LOT of tonewood - and as we work and watch the scraps fall, we couldn't help but think - they don't all have to go into the wood stove! Here at the workshop we get some nice trim pieces cut outside the lines on our bass backs once joined - they are now being repurposed as inspirational wall art for our bass playing friends! This is our first series of artist-approved bass-centric wisdom. We'll be debuting them on Etsy, but as we ramp up we're offering you, our friends on the mailing list early dibs! These corners…
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Our approach to creating your perfect bass - communication is key! Buying an Upton bass is a personal process that we are happy to guide you through. We love it when you can visit the shop, but not all can, and most do not! The majority of our customers order basses from their homes around the world. By taking our time together, we can arrive at the perfect bass for your musical dreams, ability level and budget. Gary speaks to this process in this new video: https://youtu.be/5XlOSAuHhD8 For the complete video, click here. Often a bassist who comes to us…
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