aculadd
Well-known member
" Finally " sound clips added to Review of Moore Bettah Black Orchid " tenor
Well, it's been more than two months since I was lucky enough to be able to buy this beautiful ukulele from Chuck Moore. In the beginning of March, Chuck posted on his website that he had a newly finished ukulele for sale. The first 5 people who wrote him, he would draw I from the 5 names, and that person would be able to purchase the Uke. So, I won it!! If you go to Chuck's website, and click on " for sale ", you'll see Chuck's photos of the " Black Orchid ". I'm posting my own photos, but they are not as professionally done as Chuck's. Mine are from my I Phone ��.
When the "Orchid " was shipped, there was a delay in receiving it, as it got lost for a couple days in transit, but finally found it's way to my home. When I opened the box, and unwrapped the case from the packing ( it was VERY well packed ), and finally opened the case, I was
Immediately struck by how beautiful the uke was. Of course, my eyes were drawn to the beautiful inlay of the "Black Orchid " on the headstock. But as I picked it up and started really looking at it, I saw how much work had been put into this ukulele besides the inlays.
The Maccassar Ebony is gorgeous, especially with the sapwood, and Chuck had used the sapwood to set off the Ebony as well as the cedar neck. All of the beautiful abalone purfling on the headstock, top and back, and rosette( even where the strings attach to the bridge). The bound sound hole, the Ebony arm bevel. And when I looked closer, I saw that there were tiny black, white, then black again lines edging all of the binding, purfling, rosette, headstock, top, back, fretboard, actually everywhere. Very fine and beautiful work. The fit and finish were perfect everywhere, also.
The Inlays: Both the large and small orchid inlays are made of Black Tahitian Pearl Shell and dyed maple Burl. The Black Pearl shell was collected by Chuck and his wife on Tahiti. Chuck told me that it is difficult to do the type of inlays he makes. The front of the shell is white, and the back is black. First, he inlays the unsanded shell and then carefully sands down till he gets the colors and subtle shadings he wants.He says it's very easy to sand down too much and have to start over. Luckily, he has lots of experience
The finished outcome of these orchids is amazing. They shimmer with their silvery luminescence, and the leaves and roots of the dyed maple burl grounds it all. When I play for others, I am told that as the ukulele moves, the large orchid shimmers and shines like a 3D holographic image. Awesome.
The sound: I've been able to play some of the different makes of fine ukuleles, mostly thanks to Hodge Jenkins. I feel like Hodge is my mentor in the ukulele world. I bought my first ukulele for myself from Hodge at the end of last Nov., after playing guitar for 45 years. Hodge has given me so much great advice about ukuleles, allowed me to play his, and even tipped me off about Chuck's drawing for the " Black Orchid ", so that I was able to send in my e-mail. I owe him a lot! Thank you Hodge. Now, what does it sound like? It has great volume and sustain, and is very balanced over all the strings. The tone is warm, and every note is very clear. It is different from the Koa ukes I've played. Not as bright. A different feeling. Very strong, warm and clear. I love it! It has lots of headroom. Even though I play fingerstyle, there are times I play very strong, and there is no distortion. Every note is still clear.
The reason it's taken me so long to write this review is because I hurt my shoulder shortly before I got the "Orchid", and I couldn't play much for quite a while. Then, when I got ready to write the review, I wanted a sound sample, and when I recorded with my IPhone, I didn't like the sound. So then I remembered that I had a small hand held recorder that I hadn't used in years. I looked around , found it, and recorded these 2 songs. These are my own compositions. Of course they don't sound nearly as good as the ukulele live, but it's the best I have. The first song is called " Song for Pahoa ", and the second is titled " When I was a boy ". There are definitely mistakes on both, but I wanted to get some idea of what this ukulele sounds like.
Thank you Chuck !
Bruce
Well, it's been more than two months since I was lucky enough to be able to buy this beautiful ukulele from Chuck Moore. In the beginning of March, Chuck posted on his website that he had a newly finished ukulele for sale. The first 5 people who wrote him, he would draw I from the 5 names, and that person would be able to purchase the Uke. So, I won it!! If you go to Chuck's website, and click on " for sale ", you'll see Chuck's photos of the " Black Orchid ". I'm posting my own photos, but they are not as professionally done as Chuck's. Mine are from my I Phone ��.
When the "Orchid " was shipped, there was a delay in receiving it, as it got lost for a couple days in transit, but finally found it's way to my home. When I opened the box, and unwrapped the case from the packing ( it was VERY well packed ), and finally opened the case, I was
Immediately struck by how beautiful the uke was. Of course, my eyes were drawn to the beautiful inlay of the "Black Orchid " on the headstock. But as I picked it up and started really looking at it, I saw how much work had been put into this ukulele besides the inlays.
The Maccassar Ebony is gorgeous, especially with the sapwood, and Chuck had used the sapwood to set off the Ebony as well as the cedar neck. All of the beautiful abalone purfling on the headstock, top and back, and rosette( even where the strings attach to the bridge). The bound sound hole, the Ebony arm bevel. And when I looked closer, I saw that there were tiny black, white, then black again lines edging all of the binding, purfling, rosette, headstock, top, back, fretboard, actually everywhere. Very fine and beautiful work. The fit and finish were perfect everywhere, also.
The Inlays: Both the large and small orchid inlays are made of Black Tahitian Pearl Shell and dyed maple Burl. The Black Pearl shell was collected by Chuck and his wife on Tahiti. Chuck told me that it is difficult to do the type of inlays he makes. The front of the shell is white, and the back is black. First, he inlays the unsanded shell and then carefully sands down till he gets the colors and subtle shadings he wants.He says it's very easy to sand down too much and have to start over. Luckily, he has lots of experience
The finished outcome of these orchids is amazing. They shimmer with their silvery luminescence, and the leaves and roots of the dyed maple burl grounds it all. When I play for others, I am told that as the ukulele moves, the large orchid shimmers and shines like a 3D holographic image. Awesome.The sound: I've been able to play some of the different makes of fine ukuleles, mostly thanks to Hodge Jenkins. I feel like Hodge is my mentor in the ukulele world. I bought my first ukulele for myself from Hodge at the end of last Nov., after playing guitar for 45 years. Hodge has given me so much great advice about ukuleles, allowed me to play his, and even tipped me off about Chuck's drawing for the " Black Orchid ", so that I was able to send in my e-mail. I owe him a lot! Thank you Hodge. Now, what does it sound like? It has great volume and sustain, and is very balanced over all the strings. The tone is warm, and every note is very clear. It is different from the Koa ukes I've played. Not as bright. A different feeling. Very strong, warm and clear. I love it! It has lots of headroom. Even though I play fingerstyle, there are times I play very strong, and there is no distortion. Every note is still clear.
The reason it's taken me so long to write this review is because I hurt my shoulder shortly before I got the "Orchid", and I couldn't play much for quite a while. Then, when I got ready to write the review, I wanted a sound sample, and when I recorded with my IPhone, I didn't like the sound. So then I remembered that I had a small hand held recorder that I hadn't used in years. I looked around , found it, and recorded these 2 songs. These are my own compositions. Of course they don't sound nearly as good as the ukulele live, but it's the best I have. The first song is called " Song for Pahoa ", and the second is titled " When I was a boy ". There are definitely mistakes on both, but I wanted to get some idea of what this ukulele sounds like.
Thank you Chuck !
Bruce
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