The artists here freely share their experiences with Despiau bridges. These are their words, and we thank them for their sincerity.
For many years now, we've been playing on bridges made by the Despiau company. The bridges, an essential part of lutherie for quality sound production, are made in the Gers by a family business from maple wood imported from Bosnia-Herzegovina. These trees, several hundred years old, are chosen each year by Pierre-Jean Despiau for their exceptional acoustic qualities. But the number of these trees is dwindling, and even today, aesthetic criteria are added to the sound criteria, such as the need for wood without any knots or roughness. Some trees that have already been cut down are therefore not used, despite their excellent sound qualities... After numerous conclusive acoustic tests on woods with visual characteristics, Despiau Chevalets is now committed, through its Planet range, to preserving forests while at the same time providing musicians with extremely high-performance acoustic bridges. We are therefore delighted to support Despiau Planet in their quest for the best possible sound, while preserving these forests of trees that are several hundred years old!
Hello, I’m Stefano Trabucchi, Master of violin maker in Cremona from 1992. Always on my violins, viola and cello, I use to put the bridge of Chevalets Despiau. I think the bridge from this firm, from this company, then I know from many many years is a very good bridge, very good and the first quality wood. The wood is very hard and I never had some problem for the movement of the bridge because the wood is very good selection from Nicolas and I suggest to everyone to use this kind of bridge.
For me it's a fantastic quality, I can't find any difference with the normal Despiau bridges which are my favourite bridges, I love using Despiau bridges. So, your project, your Planet version, is of very good quality, the same quality as the others, just as good as the others. And I really like the idea of saving the planet and not cutting down trees just to have beautiful wood, just to see it, and even if there is a little thing, you can't see it. And the quality of the wood is fantastic, so this project to save the planet is a great one, so I support this cause. And so I don't find any difference, on the contrary. These are very good bridges, Planet bridges.
I have often seen the distinctive logo of new Despiau bridges in the workshops of my favourite luthiers, Harry & Sjeng Jansen and Melle Wondergem, both makers and restorers of exceptional double basses in Amsterdam, without knowing either its history or its provenance. I've had my own instrument and those of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra tuned by them for years, and have always placed my trust in them. I'm very happy to know that they select bridges of the highest possible acoustic quality for our instruments. When I asked them if they were familiar with these bridges, they both simply replied: "Despiau? Of course we use Despiau bridges. They are the best!" From the instruments used by students at Dutch conservatories to the RCO Young orchestra, not to mention the instruments used by double bassists from a wide variety of musical backgrounds and styles, I now know that these bridges are used by a large part of the Dutch double bass world. Thank you for your work.
When I put the bridge onto my cello that Nicolas Despiau selected for my instrument and sound concept, the change was a revelation. The sound was stronger, yet there was no loss of color. On the other hand, the sound of my Testore gained depth, while the overtones of the upper strings increased. The cello can be pushed now and it carries in a hall even more than it did before. I also love the look of the Normandie bridge. It gives me a feeling of power before I even start playing. My only worry is that the bridge might break or warp someday and I'll have to get a new one! I should also mention that the bridge was put onto the instrument by my violinmaker in Vienna, who did a fantastic job.
The choice of the bridge is not an obvious one... and chance does it well: I jumped at Nicolas Despiau's suggestion to try a new one. This is haute couture that enhances my stage companion on all levels: richness of tone, nobility of the bass, breadth and elegance of resonance... Yes, it is indeed haute couture, and we are ready to enjoy new possibilities with my beloved instrument: the observation is obvious to me!
I got my Despiau bridge back in Spring, in April. My double bass improved let’s say up to 50% of the sound. Which was amazing to see, it is a clear change of resonance and the sound in the big halls especially and I am really grateful for that. At the same time, it is very good for the environment, Despiau Planet was the right choice, I think it is very important at this point in the times we live in. I decided to choose one, I tried it and it turns out fantastic.
Why Despiau Planet: We have to respect nature and the Earth.
We have been introduced to the Planet bridges two years ago, it was in the Corona crisis and there was a time to think over, to change the future and … I wish that more luthiers or manufacturers for instruments are convinced by this idea not to waste the wood just because of a little black mark. It is not important because later it will be cut away for example. Why should we waste this material when you can save the material and have the same quality for high bridges. So I like this idea very much and I wish that the market would change the future to have more ideas like this to save our heritage from the world. It is a wood we have to save and not to waste.
The birth of a forest friendly bridge: This is Despiau Planet!
We are delighted and honoured to announce our new collaboration with Despiau Chevalets! The Quatuor Akilone is now the ambassador for the "Despiau Planet" range of bridges. Chevalets Despiau's commitment to maintaining the acoustic criteria of the bridge at the highest level, while avoiding unnecessary waste of wood, touches deeply with the values of our quartet. These small (but oh so precious!) pieces of wood are now installed on our instruments.
