For the Musicians
LaVerne’s Gear
D’Angelico NYSS-3 Limited Edition semi-hollow body. The body is only 1.75″ deep. Has a nice jazz sound with a lot of sustain. I played this guitar pretty much on all jazz gigs in the Bay area.
D’Aquisto DQ-CRE. A small guitar with a chambered mahogany body. Lightweight and also has a jazz sound. Has a unique look with an arty bridge and no fret markers. It’s hard to make this one feed back and it’s fun to play.
1968 Gibson 175 used to record “East of the Sun, West of the Moon“.You just can’t duplicate this sound. A very playable guitar with a narrow neck. The 175 was used back in the day by guys like Kenny Burrell, Herb Ellis and Jim Hall. This one is equipped with a George Van Eps string damper which was used to avoid feedback from open strings vibrating. An instrument like this makes you want to play better.
New York luthier Rich DiCarlo made this jazz nylon string guitar for me. I used it for the last track on “East of the Sun, West of the Moon“. Beautiful sound and, of course, it’s gorgeous. The one-of-a-kind wood mosaic rosette and the modern cutaway at the 16th fret make it look very special. I play classical music on this guitar at Caesar’s Palace.
Godin Multiac steel string midi guitar. I use it hooked up to a Roland GI-20 midi interface with notation software if I’m doing a lot of transcribing. More of a tool than something I’d use on gigs.
Aria Sinsonido steel string travel guitar. Its rubber encased frame comes apart and it has condenser mic pickups along with headphones and a gig bag. The whole thing weighs about 4 lbs. and you can put it overhead on planes. Sounds a lot better than most travel guitars and you can play through an amp. Wright was the first company to get this right for classical players with their SoloEtte. They licensed their design to Aria.
I used an AER alpha acoustic amp in the studio for “East of the Sun, West of the Moon“; I also use a Polytone Minibrute II. Something I’ve been having fun with lately is a BOSS RC-50 loop station for creating another guitar part. I sometimes use it as a fancy metronome for practicing.
Mark Ruben says:
“I play a Kay Bass M-1 model built in 1961. My father bought it for me at a pawn shop and refinished it himself. On the recording I was using a Fishman pick-up but now I have a Schertler Electrostatic Transducer. It gives me a much more natural sound and I am very happy with it. I also recently purchased a Acoustic Image Contra Amp. It also gives me a great natural sound so that sometimes you can’t tell if it is being amplified or not. I also play a Kay cello for string ensembles. For musical theater, I’ll often use a Warwick Jazzman flame maple 5-string bass with a Corvette bodyline.”
Mike Candito’s Setup
Mike’s set-up for LaVerne Christie’s recording session for the CD “East of the Sun, West of the Moon” consisted of Custom Premiere Genista Birch kit with undersized shells for tonal properties. The kit was made to Mike’s specifications. The drum sizes are 18″ Kick, 14″ Snare, Rack Toms are 12″ and 13″ with Rims System. Floor tom with legs is 14″. The finish is Turquoise (clear stain). Mike’s cymbals on the date are 22″ K Zildjian Ride, 22″ K Zildjian Flat Ride, 14″ Sabian Hi-Hats and 17″ Zildjian Medium Crash. Mike uses his own Hickory sticks appropriately called “Candi Sticks” which he has designed and many of today’s top players are using. Mike also uses Gretsch and Yamaha Drums in concert, tv, recording and clinics.