Resonator mandolin
Encyclopedia
A resonator mandolin or "resophonic mandolin" is a mandolin
whose sound is produced by one or more metal cones (resonator
s) instead of the customary wooden soundboard
(mandolin top/face). These instruments are sometimes referred to as "Dobro
mandolins," after pioneering instruments designed and produced by the Dopyera Brothers, which evolved into a brand name. The trademark "Dobro" is currently the property of the Gibson Guitar Corporation
. When Gibson acquired the trademark in 1993, they announced that they would defend their right to its exclusive use.
The resonator mandolin was developed in parallel with the resonator guitar
. The resonator guitar was originally designed to be louder than conventional acoustic guitars. A resonator mandolin is generally somewhat louder than a standard wooden mandolin, and has a different tone quality and distinctive appearance.
Though resonator guitars are often played flat in the lap steel guitar
style, resonator mandolins are almost exclusively played in the conventional manner.
, who sought to produce a guitar that would have sufficient volume to be heard alongside brass and reed instruments. In 1927, Dopyera and George D. Beauchamp formed the National String Instrument Corporation
to manufacture resonator guitars under the brand name National, adding tenor guitars, resonator mandolins and resonator ukulele
s to their product line within a year.
National mandolins were produced until 1941. The company also made resophonic mandolins sold under the Supro brand.
. This company primarily produced guitars, but also produced resonator mandolins and resonator ukulele
s that employed a cone-and-spider resonator rather different than the one- and three-cone components of the Nationals. Dobro Manufacturing Company licensed designs and supplied trademarks and parts to a series of vendors such as Kay-Kraft, Harmony (Sears) and Regal. George D. Beauchamp retained control of the National String Instrument Corporation. The two companies clashed in court from 1931 until 1935, when the Dopyeras prevailed and the National-Dobro Corporation was formed. The company moved to Chicago in 1936-37.
Mandolins sold under the Dobro brand had wooden bodies. Mandolins sold under the National brand had metal bodies. Production of all metal-bodied resonator instruments ceased following the US entry into the Second World War in 1941.
Rudy Dopyera in particular continued to build instruments on his own throughout his lifetime, into the 1980s. He produced a few resophonic mandolins under the Safari brand name.
In 1938 and 1939, National made a limited number of "Silvo" electrics using the same triangular metal body as the Style 1 resophonic mandolin. The Silvo pickup was housed in a bakelite disc that replaced the cover plate. However, since Silvos do not have a resonator cone, they are electric but not truly resolectric.
Current Manufacturers
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
whose sound is produced by one or more metal cones (resonator
Resonator
A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance or resonant behavior, that is, it naturally oscillates at some frequencies, called its resonant frequencies, with greater amplitude than at others. The oscillations in a resonator can be either electromagnetic or mechanical...
s) instead of the customary wooden soundboard
Sounding board
A sound board, or soundboard, is the surface of a string instrument that the strings vibrate against, usually via some sort of bridge. The resonant properties of the sound board and the interior of the instrument greatly increase loudness over the string alone.The sound board operates by the...
(mandolin top/face). These instruments are sometimes referred to as "Dobro
Dobro
Dobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar...
mandolins," after pioneering instruments designed and produced by the Dopyera Brothers, which evolved into a brand name. The trademark "Dobro" is currently the property of the Gibson Guitar Corporation
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
. When Gibson acquired the trademark in 1993, they announced that they would defend their right to its exclusive use.
The resonator mandolin was developed in parallel with the resonator guitar
Resonator guitar
A resonator guitar or resophonic guitar is an acoustic guitar whose sound is produced by one or more spun metal cones instead of the wooden sound board . Resonator guitars were originally designed to be louder than conventional acoustic guitars which were overwhelmed by horns and percussion...
. The resonator guitar was originally designed to be louder than conventional acoustic guitars. A resonator mandolin is generally somewhat louder than a standard wooden mandolin, and has a different tone quality and distinctive appearance.
Though resonator guitars are often played flat in the lap steel guitar
Steel guitar
Steel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use...
style, resonator mandolins are almost exclusively played in the conventional manner.
National String Instrument Corporation
The resonator mandolin was developed by John DopyeraJohn Dopyera
John Dopyera was a Slovak-American inventor and entrepreneur, and a maker of stringed instruments. His inventions include the resonator guitar and important contributions in the early development of the electric guitar....
, who sought to produce a guitar that would have sufficient volume to be heard alongside brass and reed instruments. In 1927, Dopyera and George D. Beauchamp formed the National String Instrument Corporation
National String Instrument Corporation
The National String Instrument Corporation was a guitar company that formed to manufacture the first resonator guitars.-National resonator guitar designs:...
to manufacture resonator guitars under the brand name National, adding tenor guitars, resonator mandolins and resonator ukulele
Resonator ukulele
A resonator ukulele or "resophonic ukulele" is a ukulele whose sound is produced by one or more spun aluminum cones instead of the wooden soundboard...
s to their product line within a year.
National mandolins were produced until 1941. The company also made resophonic mandolins sold under the Supro brand.
Dobro
In 1929, Dopyera left National to form the Dobro Manufacturing Company with his brothers Rudy, Emile, Robert and Louis, Dobro being a contraction of "Dopyera Brothers" and coincidentally meaning "good" in their native Slovak languageSlovak language
Slovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...
. This company primarily produced guitars, but also produced resonator mandolins and resonator ukulele
Resonator ukulele
A resonator ukulele or "resophonic ukulele" is a ukulele whose sound is produced by one or more spun aluminum cones instead of the wooden soundboard...
s that employed a cone-and-spider resonator rather different than the one- and three-cone components of the Nationals. Dobro Manufacturing Company licensed designs and supplied trademarks and parts to a series of vendors such as Kay-Kraft, Harmony (Sears) and Regal. George D. Beauchamp retained control of the National String Instrument Corporation. The two companies clashed in court from 1931 until 1935, when the Dopyeras prevailed and the National-Dobro Corporation was formed. The company moved to Chicago in 1936-37.
Mandolins sold under the Dobro brand had wooden bodies. Mandolins sold under the National brand had metal bodies. Production of all metal-bodied resonator instruments ceased following the US entry into the Second World War in 1941.
Rudy Dopyera in particular continued to build instruments on his own throughout his lifetime, into the 1980s. He produced a few resophonic mandolins under the Safari brand name.
Fake resophonic mandolins
Some inexpensive mandolins sold during the 1930s and 1940s had a wooden top with a resonator cover plate screwed to it. These instruments had no resonator cone, nor did they have a hole cut for one. The cover plate served only as a decoration.Blue Comet "resonator" mandolins
Blue Comet is an inexpensive 1930s brand of mandolin manufactured by the Regal Musical Instrument Company in Chicago, Il that featured an extra wooden sound chamber encircling the body. Somewhat resembling a banjo tone ring, this chamber contained several small soundholes with metal screen covers. While the sound chamber may indeed affect the tone or volume of the mandolin, Blue Comets do not contain resonator cones and are not truly resophonic. They are usually dark brown with F holes. Similar mandolins were sold under the Beltone brand and a couple of other brand names.Reso-Electric
Although the original aim of the resonator was increased volume, some modern instruments incorporate electric pickups, and players add pickups to non-electric instruments, and use the resonator purely for its distinctive tone.In 1938 and 1939, National made a limited number of "Silvo" electrics using the same triangular metal body as the Style 1 resophonic mandolin. The Silvo pickup was housed in a bakelite disc that replaced the cover plate. However, since Silvos do not have a resonator cone, they are electric but not truly resolectric.
Former and Current Manufacturers
Former Manufacturers- Dobro Manufacturing Company (USA)
- Regal Musical Instrument CompanyRegal Musical Instrument CompanyThe Regal Musical Instrument Company was established in 1908 in Chicago. By the 1930s, they were one of the largest manufacturers of musical instruments in the world.Regal specialised in:...
(USA) - National String Instrument Corporation (USA)
- National-Dobro Corporation (USA)
- Rigel Instruments
Current Manufacturers
- Patrick Arbuthnot (Chanticleer) (England, UK)
- Beltona Resonator InstrumentsBeltona Resonator InstrumentsBeltona Resonator Instruments is a manfucturer of resonator guitars, resonator mandolins, and resonator ukuleles, based in Whangarei, New Zealand. Beltona Resonator Instruments was founded in England in 1990 by Steve Evans and Bill Johnson, later moving to New Zealand in 1998....
- Commodium
- James Curtis
- Del Vecchio (Brazil)
- Donmo (Australia)
- Fine Resophonic (France)
- Johnson / Recording King / Republic (these are various brand names for National copies made in China)
- Dave King
- Bill Little (Gadgie)
- John Morton
- National Reso-Phonic Guitars, Inc. (USA)
- Glenn Nelson (Mockingbird Music)
- Ron Oates
- Phillips
- Republic Guitars
- Kurt Schoen
- Tut Taylor
- Wailing Guitars (UK)
- Pete Woodman (Pete Woodman Guitars)
Players
- Bert Deivert
- Sam BushSam BushSam Bush is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.- History :...
- Rich DelGrosso
- Ry CooderRy CooderRyland Peter "Ry" Cooder is an American guitarist, singer and composer. He is known for his slide guitar work, his interest in roots music from the United States, and, more recently, his collaborations with traditional musicians from many countries.His solo work has been eclectic, encompassing...
- John KruthJohn KruthJohn Kruth is a singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist best known for his highly energetic “Banshee Mandolin” style of playing. He is also proficient on guitar, banjo, harmonica and various flutes. Kruth is also a music journalist and author....
- David GrismanDavid GrismanDavid Grisman is an American bluegrass/newgrass mandolinist and composer of acoustic music. In the early 1990s, he started the Acoustic Disc record label in an effort to preserve and spread acoustic or instrumental music.-Biography:Grisman grew up in Hackensack, New Jersey...
- Win ButlerWin ButlerWin Butler is the lead vocalist and songwriter of the Montreal-based indie rock band Arcade Fire. His wife Régine Chassagne and his brother William Butler are both members of the band.-Life and career:...