Stick & Warr page

The Stick by Emmett Chapman

The Warr Guitar by Mark Warr

Joe's Stick And Warr Guitar Page

Joe Conti was a bass player in 1976 when he first heard Emmett Chapman performing on his instrument-invention, The Stick, at a small Los Angeles club called "The Cellar". Joe thought that it was a very cool and yet bizarre instrument but never did it occur to him that he would end up playing one.

Joe continued to play the acoustic upright bass, the fretless bass, and the four, six, and eight string bass. In1980, some of Joe's friends saw the fusion group King Crimson with Tony Levin on the Stick. After hearing his friends ecstatic reviews, he purchased his first used Stick for $400. Every 2 or 3 years Joe trades in his old Stick for a new one.

"I knew the Stick could function like a bass guitar, but I had no idea how much potential was just waiting to be 'tapped'!" Gradually, as he played and experimented with the unique instrument, The Stick became more prominent in Joe's repertoire.

Joe with an old 10 string instrument

Each hand can tap single notes or chords as on a piano, yet with string bending and slides as on guitar. Joe's current instrument is a "Grand Stick" with 7 melody strings and 5 bass strings - and the bottom 3 are fretless!

Joe has connected the top six melody strings of his Stick to a synthesizer, greatly expanding his sonic landscape. Joe now has the ability to produce bass , guitar, and keyboard tones all at once! With 5 bass strings and 7 melody strings, Joe plays many styles of music from rock, blues, jazz, Hawaiian, and reggae, to country and Latin music. Listen to some styles on Joe's Audio Sample Page.

"The Stick has such a great sound, a wide range and so many musical possibilities, it's like having the versatility of a piano on a portable, stringed instrument........

The ability to produce bass , guitar, and keyboard tones on one instrument is truly amazing. With the synth I can emulate other instruments like piano, organ, strings, vibes, as well as synthesizer sounds on the Stick.. I never tire of peoples' reaction to the huge sound coming out of this piece of wood with some strings on it!"

THE STICK'S BACKGROUND

In 1970, Emmett Chapmman at Stick.Com built the first Stick Touchboard in Los Angeles. This first Stick was the result of experiments he had been performing with his electric guitar during the 1960's. The Stick has been produced from 1975, and more than 3,000 instruments have now been sold worldwide. Joe's current instrument is a "Grand Stick" made of purpleheart wood with 5 bass strings (3 are fretless!) and 7 melody strings.

The Stick was designed for the two-handed tapping technique. Each hand can play single notes or chords as on a piano, yet with string bending and slides as on guitar.

The Stick is an expanded grid of strings and frets. With it, a musician can use the tapping method to its fullest extent. The bass strings are tapped with the left hand and then amplified with a bass amplifier. The melody strings are tapped with the right and come out of a guitar amp, producing a complete stereo effect.

THE WARR GUITAR

Mark Warr is a former Stick player and luthier who several years ago began building beautiful "touch style" instruments. Joe's Warr Guitar has 6 bass and 6 melody strings.

The Stick and the Warr Guitar are both played with the same two-handed tapping technique. Each hand can play single notes or chords as on a piano, yet with string bending and slides as on guitar. The bass strings are tapped with the left hand and the melody strings are tapped with the right producing a complete stereo effect.

The top 6 melody strings of each instrument are connected to a synthesizer, greatly expanding his sonic landscape.

"The ability to produce bass , guitar, and keyboard tones on these instruments is truly amazing. With the synth I can emulate other instruments like piano, organ, strings, vibes, as well as synthesizer sounds . I never tire of peoples reaction to the huge sound coming out of these stringed tapping instruments!"

The Warr Giutar sustains a bit longer and has a thick high tech guitar and bass sound, while the Stick is a bit more etherial.

WHAT PROFESSIONALS HAVE TO SAY:

Warr Front View

Leonard Feather of the Los Angeles Times Calendar:
"What did Emmett Chapman invent? The Stick - an instrument with an unusual range (5 1/4 octaves) enabling the performer to apply the two-handed tapping method to dazzling effect.

Warr Back View

The Stick sounds like no other instrument; rather, it sounds like several instruments at once, played by three or four musicians."

Larry Tuttle with the group Freeway Philaharmonic:
"The Stick is a string section posing as a 2 X 4."

Darryl Jones The Rolling Stones, formerly with Sting and Miles Davis:
"First there was the electric guitar, then the electric bass, and then the Stick! I feel as though I'm not limited by the instrument. The more I learn on it, the more limitless it becomes. It's not a guitar, not a bass, and not a piano, but it's all those things combined..."

Alphonzo Johnson formerly with Carlos Santana, and Weather Report:
"In the studio I've noticed that the bass register of the Stick has a precision and a deep bottom that I can't get from the normal electric bass. Melodically and chordally, the Stick has ultimate capabilities in expanding my musical vocabulary."

joeconti@kona.net