The hotel was trying a jazz policy in one of its restaurants, but had provided the band with a disgracefully out-of-tune spinet piano that had several broken keys. I dropped in at the Plaza Hotel one night to hear Lionel Hampton's band. As Bill Crow describes in his memoir, From Birdland to Broadway : ![]() Although some musicians were skeptical about the Wurlitzer's tone (note that this piano was released decades before the synth age: nothing at the time sounded quite like it), most considered it an upgrade to the usually neglected and out-of-tune backline spinet. It wasn't long before gigging musicians saw the appeal too. It was designed as an alternative to heavy, expensive spinet and upright pianos. The 112 was marketed towards parents, students, and home users. Even the transistor models of the 60s and 70s have their own sound: similar, but not exactly the same as their earlier counterparts. There's just no plugin or emulator that compares to an authentic tube Wurlitzers. This gives it an exceptionally warm and lush tone. Like the 120 and 145, the 112 has a tube amplifier. Between its size, speckled paint, and midcentury lines, this is definitely a statement piece. A vintage keyboard is never going to fade into the wallpaper, but the 112 has a clear presence in a room. ![]() ![]() The 112 also has a unique silhouette: slightly deeper and taller than later Wurlitzers.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |