The One Of A Kind Mantolino-bouzouko

An  important prototype following the  historical research of the bouzouki ancestors' sound.!

The tradition wants the luthier Giannis  Tsoulogiannis , to always take photographs of his instruments -at their last stage-, resting on the beautiful stone wall of his workshop.

Even tho , many luthiers have tried in the past to convert an old mandolin to a mandolino-bouzouko (half bouzouki) the luthier in this case ,  in an attempt to keep all original parts of the old Sicilian mandolin, decided to use a very unique and difficult approach.

Usually, when converting  an old mandolin to miso-bouzouko / mandolin-tzourado , the luthier removes and replaces the wooden block-chock at the front of the bowl (where the bowl connects to the neck), the wooden block under the tailpiece, the complete neck, the head-stock, and most of the times the sound board, keeping only intact the mandolin bowl.

But such a musical instrument is too far apart from the sound output which a 1936  mandolin-tzourado , with its authentic soundboard, would produce.

Giannis Tsoulogiannis instead, kept all original parts of the old mandolin, both wooden blocks inside the bowl, the original head-stock, the original neck by adding an extension, and of course the original soundboard and bowl.

A very detailed and demanding process ,which hides many risks.

But at the end, here lies the uniqueness and beauty of this attempt!

Since up to today, only few people have heard the original sound of such a conversion , the attempt to convert a vintage mandolin to miso-bouzouko, deserved great importance in the  historical research of the bouzouki ancestors' sound.

Stay tuned, as the next post will include the unique sound sample of this beautiful half-bouzouki!