THE INSTRUMENT.
The bass that changed the face of pop.
When Walter Höfner* introduced the first edition of the 500/1 Violin Bass* at the Frankfurt Musikmesse in 1956, little did he know that his hollow-bodied, short-scale and, quite frankly, peculiar-looking creation would come to change the course of music history. But indeed, only years later up in in Liverpool, England, the uniquely tubby, dark and earthy notes struck on this very model quickly echoed across the continents and resound just as vividly to this day. Frankly, no other model of bass is more iconic – visually or sonically.
Seemingly based on an idea of creating an instrument that was appealing to players of upright basses fed up with hauling a six feet colossus to gigs, this was the first of its kind: an electric bass with the inherent qualities of an acoustic – and vice versa.
Although it’s undergone numerous changes and remakes since its first rendition in 1956, the iconic hollow spruce top body has remained virtually unchanged. And make no mistake, this featherlight marvel surely carries its weight in tone.
“Capturing a rare gem like this for our line of EZbass expansions was a given on so many levels – for its unique tone just as much for the sake of its place in music culture and songwriting at large. I can’t think of a more identifiable bass tone or a more fitting instrument to attach the word icon to. This is more than a bass, it’s a piece of history,” comments Ulf Edlund, EZbass lead sound designer.
