Hand-made basses rooted in tradition
“This instrument is simply wonderful!” -K. Jones, Columbus, Georgia
Marylander Andrew William Brown studied bass with Ludwig Streicher and holds a Ph.D. In Music Acoustics. He made his first bass in 2015, completed Nr. 6, his 3/4 Guarneri model, in 2023. Andrew delivered Nr 7, a Guiseppe Ceruti five-string model, in September 2024, and accepted a commission for Nr 8 for delivery in June, 2025.
From 1991-2005, he made his living in Vienna, Austria as a founding member of Salonorchester Alhambra, as well as playing opera and contemporary classical music, pop and jazz. He worked in the violin shop of Christine Eriks and his first tonewood acquisition was in 2003. He harvested a premium spruce dating from 1803 from the Italian Alps, had it felled, milled and shipped to Baltimore. Poplar and maple have been sourced from Europe, upstate New York and the West Coast.
His models include an enlarged copy of his 1878 Enrico Bajoni, a Pietro Palotta currently with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, a 3/4 Pietro Guarneri, the 1820 Guiseppe Ceruti, and a pending copy of the most famous bass in the world, Giovanni Bottesini’s 1713 Carlo Antonio Testore .
Andrew’s work is the definition of “hands-on:” milling tonewood, brewing oil- and spirit varnishes, and machining his own bass tuners and other hardware. He uses impulse input admittance measurements to tune the top and back plates of new basses.
“Since 2017, I’ve dedicated my time and effort to crafting fine string instruments. I started collecting tone wood from Italy and North America in 2003. Coming from a family of craftspeople, I have extensive experience as aperformer, luthier, and as a PhD researcher in Music Acoustics. That makes me unique among today’s bass-makers! I choose high-quality materials and traditional models and methods, giving you an instrument you can rely on for years to come. I am still early in my career, so my basses are an exceptional value. I am honing my set-up skills with each new instrument and strive to offer you an attractive bass that sounds and feels delightful.”
“While I enjoy the creative models out there, I prefer traditional basses. Museums are filled with the instrument experiments of the past, but the best basses have been on the concert podium in use constantly for many, many years. I love to produce every piece of a bass from raw materials, from the blocks inside to the home-made varnish and even the tuning machines, one piece at a time. If you enjoy a beautiful bass with a complex and rich tone, please consider trying one of mine.
“I have a variety of instruments to try and buy at any given time. I run a successful small online shop at reverb.com and also offer my used and new instruments direct from awbmusic.com. You can also find instruments of mine for purchase at the bassviolinshop.com, or commission your very own custom bass by contacting me.”
