Between the 1st and the 3rd of November 2019, the first edition of the Leipzig music fair was held. Logistically, the Musicpark exhibition was very well-prepared although we did get the impression that the organizers had counted on a slightly higher turn-up.
A number of lecture rooms were the perfect venue for talks by music business personas, presentations of the latest handbooks, and lectures on music genres, playing techniques, as well as instrument exhibitions, both historical and contemporary.
“Sweat, Blood & Tears” was the name given to performance booths placed inside exhibition halls, where musicians could show the full scope of their skills and abilities without disturbing the exhibitors, visitors and business negotiations. A few amateur stages were a magnificent platform for any attendee who wanted to showcase his or her musical talent. All those who felt like testing the durability and dynamic range of the drum kits exhibited could do so in a few acoustically insulated rooms.
Let us get to the point, which in our case is the Leipzig Musicpark exhibition perceived from the low end of the spectrum. This is where we should be hearing the sound of a low E string being dropped. 😉 Despite quite a few really interesting instrument presentations, we feel a tiny bit of dissatisfaction as if bass equipment had been present in Leipzig because something “had to” be shown. It was with some envy that I was looking at my drummer colleagues, who were strolling the exhibition halls constantly smiling because of the undisputable domination of drummers and drum companies. Fortunately, there were also booths which caught a bass player’s eye. Cort presented a few of their high-end bass models at really reasonable prices. Ibanez bass guitars proved that their marriage with Aguilar pickups (the company is walking towards the light by using steadily more bright-sounding fretboards) can be a very good one for players. Dimavery showed that famous, even legendary, instruments can be purchased in “their’ versions at prices suited for bass students’ pockets. A world-famous company dealing with all kinds of music instruments exhibited bass guitars introduced 15 years ago at this fair. We are using the word “this” as we know they have recently released a signature model by a well-known American bassist and Musicpark would have been an excellent opportunity to showcase that one.
Quite unexpectedly, Ortega turned out to be the icing on the cake. Despite their strictly acoustic approach, the company exhibited a wide range of instruments – from acoustic basses with huge resonance boxes perfect for playing unplugged all the way through to fretless, diminished scale, and bass ukuleles, even fretless ones (see some of them HERE).
We are quite optimistic about the future of the Musicpark exhibition, at the same time hoping the exhibitors put more emphasis on the “low end side of the force” as it plays a very important role in music and should be presented to a broader audience. We see a chance for the event to develop be successful in the future.
Here is a photo gallery:
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Cort
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Dimavery
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Hohner
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Hohner
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