Some players attempt to coax superior tone by modifying their instruments sometimes in bizarre ways. For example, one (now deceased) incredibly talented player is reputed to have taped a mirror inside his banjo resonator to better reflect the tone outward. Whether he succeeded seems to be undocumented, but from what I know of the player I suspect that he was joking. In top-grade guitars and mandolins, as the instrument ages and is played frequently throughout its life, its tone will often improvedramatically. This is why Lloyd Loar signed Gibson F-5 mandolins tend to sound about as nice as a mandolin can sound, why 18th century violins from Cremona Italy sound as wonderful as they do, and why “old” Martin and other fine guitars sound as they do. The idea is that the wood settles as it also dries and cycles water (humidity) content, and the frequent stimulus of playing and thus vibrating the instrument components drives the rate of settling and the rate of tone improvement significantly. Many agree that a fine guitar stored in a closet for decades is unlikely to sound nice when first rescued, but tone improvement can be rapid as it is played. So, there is lots to the story, no idea can be evaluated scientifically with any rigor, and every idea can easily be falsified just by the subjective nature of the problem. It seems unlikely that we will ever have the complete answer. However, since this is my essay, I get to offer an opinion, bearing in mind that I am a professional scientist as well as a former professional banjo player. To me, the truth lies with the “settle-in with age and playing” idea. That is particularly true of banjos because they have so many independent metal parts that interact spatially and energetically with one another and with the whole (banjo), almost always pre-loaded (under heavy tensionwhether in use or in the closet). Playing constantly seems likely to make the wood shrink slightly and the metal parts settle in more tightly, so that the banjo parts assemblage will tend to act tightly together when played. That simply means that the instrument will expend less energy directed inward and have more energy available to direct outward when it is played, and the outward energy amplitude and frequency distribution spectratranslate to “tone,” if not immediately, then perhaps eventually.If that description is true, a well-made banjo is bound to improve in tone with time and regular playing. If that was untrue, who do players prefer a Mastertone with an original flathead tone ring? A replacement flathead ring should in theory sound about the same as an original, yet they never do, that is, until the passage of years makes the tone ring and other parts settle in together. Note: although I am a scientist I am not and have never been an acoustic engineer, so please take my opinion with some non-trivial amount of salt.
So, aside from the roots of tone, what about prewar Gibson Mastertone banjos commands such attention (and funds) from banjo players? In descending order of importance to too many players:
In my experience, the entire exercise of seeking and acquiring a prewar Gibson Mastertone conversion banjo is a play in three parts that reveal themselves in the following order. Part One is the REALIZATION as a budding banjo player that there is a class of instruments out there, instruments not really rare in all configurations but near-impossible to find usable “out of the box,” unless already modified for bluegrass, instruments no longer being made, instruments that might explain some of the marvelous tone we hear from established players, instruments legendary among professionals or at least among people who write about professionals, instruments that are front-loaded to intrigue and often obsess the budding player. Part Twoencompasses the LEARNING: the reading, discussing, listening, and understanding just what comprised prewar Gibson Mastertone banjos. This Part requires the initiation of three sub-projects: 1) determining however you can what prewar Gibson banjo you can reasonably hope to find and afford, and reasonably hope to be happy with next year; 2) Arriving through in-depth research at a fair price range for your target instrument and saving lots and lots of money (see 1) above); 3) devoting much of your life to THE SEARCH (luck is rarely much of a factor in this game—don’t hold out for a garage sale). These days quite a few lovely prewars, usually conversions rather thanoriginal Gibson Mastertone five string or flathead banjos, are available from established online and brick and mortar dedicatedbanjo sellers (none of whom I will name) but prepare to pay top dollar (brick and mortar costs lots in overhead). Otherconversions show up in smaller music stores (sometimes great deals but also including stores that way-overprice their prewar wares), or in private hands often at festivals, bluegrass clubs, and other likely venues (admission to this players’ group can require some jamming time and acceptance). Many hot rumors of those privately held banjos for sale simply travel by word of mouth. The Banjo Hangout site includes a classifieds section that is always worth a look, and you might get lucky—when doing a search do not neglect misspelled keywords, such as Masertone, Masterton, Gabson, etc., although it’s likely that sellers will quickly be alerted to such problems. I once answered a newspaper ad for a “Gabson” banjo and it turned out to be a lovely original five-string 19th century Dobson, whichbecame a member of my family for some time until I found an aspiring young clawhammer banjo player who much appreciated the gift. There is also the outlet that starts with an e and is near a large body of water that ends in y, and some surprising conversion and original flathead prewar Gibson banjos show up there from time to time. My favorite so far was a 1934 Gibson PB-4 with original flathead tone ring (and original calf skin head!) and of course original neck, just begging for a five-stringconversion neck. Perhaps 1000 enthusiasts watched that oneclosely, bids went stratospheric in two minutes, and as I recall it sold for more than the price of a new high-end pickup truck (circa year 2000). But I bet it sounded stupendous when supplied with a conversion neck and properly set up. Part Three is introducing yourself to the long-sought instrument. Arrange to see an instrument for sale, bring a prewar scholar to evaluate it for authenticity, condition, needed repairs, and likely reasonable tone production–listen to what this person tells you and DO NOT skip this step, even if it means waiting for the next banjo to come along. Listen first for “this banjo needs assembly and setup,” then listen for phrases such as “cut label,” “wrong neck,” “factory order numbers don’t agree,” “poorly taken care of,” “abused,” “dropped,” or, if your day is going well and you trust your scholar implicitly based on the other four recommendations you received from happy prewar owners, hear your scholar say “I think this is a good banjo, it has a nice replacement five-string neck and flathead tone ring but otherwise seems to be original, it has been well taken care of, the factory order numbers match between the rim and resonator, it could definitely use a pro setup, and it’s worth the money. Anddo not be concerned about the cut Mastertone label inside the rim—it just indicates that an original archtop tone ring may have been replaced with a flathead tone ring, possibly at the factory. Your decision.” At that point, and ONLY at that point, should you pick up that banjo, and play it if it is playable. Look it over yourself. If the owner gets impatient while you are looking it over and playing, move on to the next banjo. At this point, the owner’s attitude becomes a factor—someone who just wants to unload an instrument but only for top dollar (or, more frightening, a super bargain) and tries to hustle you out the door with it is usually a less than an attractive prospective seller, especially if large sums are involved. On the other hand, someone who has loved and appreciated that instrument, has taken good care of it, knows a lot about it, wants to see the banjo move on into good, caring hands, and is just ready to move on to the next banjo as banjo players are often wont to do, can often be a pleasure to deal with, maybe even the beginning of a nice friendship. If the banjo suits you, you will know it. If it does notsuit you, do not ignore the warning signs, which you will also know even if the “What it is” part lures you like the mythical siren. Otherwise, consider welcoming the new member of your family, but try to get a return privilege period too. It is that entire experience, but mostly the search, which makes a prewar acquisition worthwhile and fun—you will learn so much more about banjos in general and Gibson banjos in particular. If youhave found your grail, every time you open that case, you’ll remember the first time you did, you’ll probably still experience that “old banjo” aroma that issues forth, maybe still notice the bit of dust, and you’ll never forget the first time you played itafter professional setup. With luck you will have discovered that your playing is so much easier, the banjo so much more responsive than anything you have known. You will also discover that your playing improves dramatically, primarily because you will take every opportunity to play that wonderful banjo. Or, sometimes not. And, again, listen to the scholar. Hard. Good luck. And pay your scholar well for his/her time. It was more than worth it.
And, to clarify, the foregoing applies to prewar Gibson Mastertone conversion banjos, originally tenor banjos with conversion five string necks and (maybe) replacement flat head tone rings. Gibson tenor banjos without desired modifications such as replacement five string necks and replacement fathead tone rings are the bottom rung of the prewar market and you will need to research that market separately. Grail level original five string flathead prewar Style 3, 4, 75. Granada, and Top Tension Gibson Mastertone banjos these days are usually made available and sold within a tightly knit network of professional players, usually for sums that zoom past $75,000. As you become an entrenched member of the bluegrass banjo community you willlearn about more of those instruments and perhaps find one for sale. Save your money for that day.
New and used contemporary banjos, including postwar Gibsons,are part of the “normal” instrument market, often including music stores, other players, mail order sources, and so forth. The important consideration for that market is to avoid paying too much. Your research should help you there.
Heresy: Several banjo large and small shop makers are producing banjos that in every respect rival or exceed in quality of construction and tone any Gibson Mastertone banjo ever made. Several great makers have closed shops since 1980 as well but their instruments are part of the current instrument market (think ODE, OME, Stelling, Rich and Taylor). Gibson itself, until the loss of its production shop (see below), was producing excellent Mastertone banjos. None of these widely available great instruments including Gibsons and others carry 5- or 6- figure price tags, unlike the prewar Gibson banjos we have discussed here. Given the history of Gibson Mastertone banjos and the introduction since 1960 of many great alternate-brand instruments, players who desire to increase their knowledge and appreciation of fine instruments should endeavor to play as many as they can and not be afraid to discover that a new or used contemporary banjo melts your player heart. Even without the playing, there is still the listening to other players on stage or in the living room, the seeing how the player and the instrument interact, seeing whether the player truly enjoys playing that banjo, whether there is any sign of a struggle to obtain tone and response, the tone as you perceive it from out front. This is all free information (other than the festival tickets) and it is a matchless contributor to your knowledge of banjos. Knowledge is power.
There are dozens of topics involving prewar Gibson Mastertone banjos that I have not discussed at all, primarily because I wanted to keep this essay below 100 pages. These are discussions of items such as the difference between serial numbers which very few prewars have and “factory order numbers” which most prewars have, and which offer a somewhat reliable way to “date” the banjo in hand. I have also avoided fine points of tone ring and resonator flange history and comparative construction, and likewise any discussion of 1925-1929 Mastertones. I omitted those 1920s banjos primarily because bluegrass players tend to ignore those very beautiful instruments in favor of 1930-43 examples. But all truth be known, tonewise the most spectacular prewar Gibson Mastertone banjo of any vintage that I ever played was the unlikely modification of a 1926 “ball bearing” Gibson Mastertone that had been converted to take a regular flathead tone ring and that sported a lovely conversion five string neck, on a two-piece resonator flange. I have played a few original 1930s Gibson Mastertone five string flathead banjos, and wonderful as they are, that ball bearing conversion blew all of them out of the water. I and several very savvy banjo players with whom I associated all agreed that this 1926 ball-bearing conversion was the loveliest-sounding cannon banjo any had ever heard. Sadly, I was but a low-income banjo teacher when I met that banjo so it bypassed my collection, never to be seen again.
I strongly recommend that interested people review very carefully the source references I have included at the end of this commentary. The moral of the story is that when it comes to tone and specifications the “rules” do not always apply and in fact may never apply at all. The other moral of the story is that on a properly set up prewar Gibson Mastertone banjo, tone is determinative, followed closely by playability. A great-looking “prewar” TB-3 conversion is of little use if you do not want to play it all the time because it lacks tone and playability. What a banjo is should be a factor in a purchase, but tone and playability trump that every time if you cannot obtain a super high degree of either. You can tell that a banjo is right for you because you can think of nothing else you would rather do than play that banjo. All the time. Rain or shine. Here, or THERE. In a house or with a mouse.
As I write these words, prospective prewar Gibson Mastertone banjo enthusiasts have largely snapped up those thousands of Gibson prewar Mastertone tenor (four-string) archtop banjos, converted them to five string (and usually) flatheads, and these banjos often remain in long-term private ownership. These have usually made very nice banjos. Few archtop tenor Style 3 banjos are still in the market although the prices of those few have seemingly not yet escalated dramatically, perhaps because of the significant added expense of commissioning replacement five string necks and purchasing and fitting top-drawer (i.e., very expensive) flathead tone rings. The inability to play a tenor banjo to get an idea of how it will sound as a five string is also a frustration. Nowadays, seekers of prewar Gibson banjos increasingly seek and accept the non-Mastertone prewar models (Styles 00, 1, 11) to convert with Mastertone flathead tone rings and as needed replacement five string necks. RB-1 and RB-11 are probably the most often encountered of those, and they arereadily adapted to accept either an archtop or flathead tone ringand they sound great as a result. Style 11 was quite ornate as low-end Gibsons go, with pearloid resonator, fingerboard, and peghead face, and they show up in the hands of such luminaries as Herb Pedersen. Soon enough, those banjos will be gone as well. This may be the time to go for the last of the prewar Gibson banjos, Mastertones or otherwise, but this is also the time to be very careful about what you purchase and about how much more money that you should not have spent.
The Gibson Mastertone banjo era closed probably forever in 2010, when the nearby Cumberland River breached its banks, flooded, and destroyed the Gibson shop. Gibson did not renew banjo production after that disaster and in fact Gibson sold the Mastertone name to another banjo maker. Gibson was an important player in the banjo market most years from 1925 through 2010, interrupted significantly only by World War II. Throughout its banjo making life Gibson instruments ranged in quality and desirability from very good to legendary, and few who purchased a new or authentic prewar Gibson Mastertone banjo were ever disappointed (but many have moved on, as banjo players are wont to do).
Full disclosure: I have been playing bluegrass banjo for 60 years (20 of them professionally). I have owned two prewar conversion Gibson Mastertone five string flathead banjos, but Imoved on from each, all because of the driving reality that 1) I was so worried that someone would steal my current prewar that I found myself not shopping for groceries very often and bringing the banjo when I did (to numerous inquisitive stares); 2) After some years of playing, neither banjo stoked my internal flames any more, a real problem for a dedicated musician. I sold both Mastertones and I have been playing a Stelling Red Fox banjo for the past 26 years, a banjo that truly does scratch my player itch in an incredibly fulfilling manner, a banjo that has been my primary instrument and road companion for nearly half of my playing life. I was fortunate enough to have found my grail new in a music store but I also played dozens of banjos until I found that one. Good hunting in the banjo world, to all.
Sources:
Bellson, Julius. 1973. The Gibson Story. Julius Bellson, pub. Not a great banjo reference but an interesting chronicle of Gibson corporate history
Gruhn, George, and Walter Carter. 1993. Acoustic Guitars and Other Fretted Instruments. A Photographic History. GPI Book/Miller Freeman. Amazing photographs of high- end Gibson Mastertone banjos (Bella Voces, Style 6, Florentines, All- Americans, etc.) and more information about why the lowly Style 3 can command higher prices than those icons.
Meiners, Larry. 2001. Gibson Shipment Totals 1937-1979. Flying Vintage. For the interested folks among us, an indispensable reference
Mills, Jim. 2009. Gibson Mastertone: Flathead Five String Banjos of the 1930s and 1940s. Centerstream. What can I say, a beautiful presentation of the rarest of the rare, original five string original flathead prewar Gibson Mastertone banjos, 1931-1941.
Spann. Joseph. 2011. Spann’s Guide to Gibson. 1902-1941. Centerstream. Another indispensable reference, much in-depth knowledge went into this book, much can be obtained from it. A classic.
Websites:
http://earnestbanjo.com/wp/ (probably the best prewar Gibson Mastertone banjo website ever)
https://www.siminoff.net/gibson (decent chronology of all the prewar Mastertone years, with good model descriptions bearing in mind the caveat that for Gibson, catalogue specifications were often just suggestions)
