Bass of the Week: Hannah Mayne Gamba Bass

I love the elegance of the double bass, especially this gorgeous Gamba model built by Hannah Mayne. Inspired by an 18th-century Italian bass, it’s crafted with Bosnian maple for the back, sides, and neck with an Engelmann spruce top.

“I modified the original outline of the bass, along with the dimensions, making it my own design. The sound holes, other than adjusting the dimensions to fit within the overall shape of the bass, are unchanged from the original bass,” Mayne explains. “This is the very first bass I ever built. It is owned by bassist Jon Burr in NY. The bass has been recorded on Sony Records, as well as many other independent record labels. It has been played at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center for the performing arts, and in many other concert halls across the country. Sharing the stage with many jazz greats at the Blue Note and the Village Vanguard.”

Here’s Burr playing the bass on a solo version of the jazz standard “Makin’ Whoopee”:

Hannah Mayne Gamba Bass Features: