Celebrity Musical instruments

With what help do professionals create their masterpieces? I would venture to suggest that with the help of no less masterpiece creations – musical instruments of the highest class. What instruments do celebrities choose and why? We’ll talk about this.

Elton John

Let’s start with the most sensational union:  Elton John and the Yamaha concern .

In 2013, at the Yamaha Anniversary, Elton performed an unprecedented concert that was heard live simultaneously in 22 concert halls around the world. It was done like this: Elton John played the Yamaha piano at Disneyland in Anheim, USA, and in Moscow (and at 21 other venues) the Disklavier played the same thing, which received a signal from Elton’s piano in real time. The direct pressing of the keys was reproduced exactly, but the audience heard a live piano standing right in front of them!

Sir Elton himself says about Yamaha: “I never cease to be amazed at the inventive talent and versatility of the Yamaha team of specialists. Over the past 20 years, they have not only built all of my touring instruments, including the amazing Million Dollar Piano, which is kept in Caesars Palace (Las Vegas, USA), but also improved the RemoteLive technology. Thanks to this, I will be able to perform a live concert in Anaheim on January 25, online and at the same time in numerous halls around the world! I am proud and grateful to be a Yamaha artist and to benefit from the amazing professionalism of Yamaha’s experts.”

Speaking of Million Dollar Piano. This instrument is not just a high-end concert grand piano, but something in the spirit of Sir Elton! His possibilities to express the artist’s expression are truly endless! See for yourself:

Yamaha is justifiably proud of its artists! Among them are the unsurpassed Chick Corea , energetic The Piano Guys – and more than 200 artists only on keyboards (not counting drummers, guitarists and trumpeters)! But the tools they create are of the highest quality.

Vanessa May

Vanessa Mae , like the British knight, chooses only masterpieces! Violin , on which she performs at concerts, the hands of a student of Stradivari – Guadagnini. The master made it in 1761, and Vanessa got it in 1988 for 150,000 pounds (parents gave it). The violin went through various adventures with Vanessa : in 1995 it was stolen and returned a month later, then Vanessa broke it right before the concert, but the craftsmen were able to fix it. Vanessa affectionately calls her “Gizmo” and estimates her at $458,000.

In addition to the classical violin, Vanessa works with electronic instruments, of which she has three. The first is a completely transparent violin by Ted Brewer. It shimmers and glows to the beat of the music being played, which makes it an ideal instrument for techno shows and at the same time famous all over the world. “My transparent violin is simply stunning. And I really like the feeling that this effect is enhanced if it is not used often!” – reveals to his fans the professional secrets of the violinist. Two more violins that Vanessa constantly uses are Zeta Jazz Model: white and American flag colors.

Vanessa consciously contributes to the popularization of this instrument, wishing to become Jimi Hendrix for electronic violins. And so far she succeeds! The production of electronic violins has been going on for a long time, but they have only just begun to be actively used in music.

Sting

Sting also excelled in the choice of special tools. Throughout his solo career (and this is already 30 years old), the singer was accompanied by several guitars made by Leo Fender himself ! For example, a guitar that is over 50 years old is the 50’s Fender Precision Bass. She plays in all Sting’s hits and travels with him on world tours.

At one time, the Precision Bass was the first mass-produced bass guitar, it is still produced to this day and is the best-selling bass guitar in the world.

He also owns a Jaco Pastorius Signature Jazz Bass guitar (there are only 100 copies of it worldwide!), one of the first Fender Jazz Bass models and several other unique examples.

Sting himself is not only a singer, but also a professional guitarist, he has an excellent command of the playing technique, including the classical guitar. But most of all he loves bass guitars.

James Hatfield

Guitars are a special love and passion of musicians. If Sting plays rare models of old masters, then James Hetfield, the lead singer of Metallica, is developing models himself with ESP LTD . The musician has been working with the company for several decades, and the result of joint creativity is a lot of signature models, which James himself plays during performances. James’ signature guitars are known for their reliability, excellent build quality and unique design.

John Bonham

And if we are already talking about rock, then it is worth mentioning one more instrument, without which this genre is unthinkable – drums! The most legendary drummer who made a great contribution to percussion technique – John Bonham – played on one of the best kits of that time – Ludwig with maple shells . These drums became famous thanks to Ringo Starr (The Beatles), who for the first time in the history of music placed the Ludwig logo above the band logo on the kick drum. And then they were chosen by the best of the best: Eric Carr (KISS), Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Ian Paice (Deep Purple), Michael Shrieva (Santana), Charlie Watts (Rolling Stones), Joey Kramer (Aerosmith), Roger Meddows- Taylor (Queen), Tre Cool (Green Day) and many more.

Ludwig drums are still being made today, but according to professionals, they are no longer the same as they were in the 60s. Although maple is still considered the best material for shells, it produces a warm, rich sound.

We will continue to explore which manufacturers make instruments worthy of the best of the best. If you are interested to know about a particular musician or you know “who plays what”, write in the comments!