August 2014: After an exhaustive search, Logan acquired this bass as part of a senior award from SFJAZZ, for his work over three years in the SFJAZZ All-Star Jazz Orchestra, under direction of Paul Contos & the SFJAZZ All-star Jazz Combo, under Dann Zinn.
Found in Santa Cruz, it had been the rental instrument in Northern California for traveling double bassists for years. Though they look large and strong (this one is 86″ tall), double basses are in fact incredible fragile. The wood on double basses resonates with sound because it is super-thin, like veneer, but is actually carved from a single piece of wood. The flat-back is distinct from round-back basses by the fact that it is flat from the bottom up to midst of the upper portion, where there is a break or bend angling in toward the neck to allow the musician better access. In over 400 years, there has been no standardization in basses. Older basses, such as this one, are treated with great care and rarely travel other than locally in motor vehicles. A protective owner will be watching humidity, temperature & string tension at all times. A bass that switches American coasts can fall apart at the seams in days. A professional bassist will have a special relationship with his luthier, someone who builds or repairs string instruments.
Logan Kane 