My Turn To Take Care Of a Family Heirloom

Well, it’s official. I'm now the 4th generation  “Ivers” to own the 1914 Gibson F4 Master Model Serial # 24532 pictured and documented all over this web-log.  All I can say is that it's truly an honor and a privilege to take my turn as the caretaker of this beautiful instrument.

My wife and I spent last weekend celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary in Chautauqua, NY (I'd marry you all over again my love!) On our second day there, we drove to Big Flats, NY for the day to have lunch with my parents.

After a delicious home cooked meal, my wife spent some time helping my Mother with a computer issue, and my Dad, said to me "Come on let’s go look at that F4, I want you to take it back to Florida with you."   Wow!  I guess I knew I would end up with it eventually, but it's really a thrill to be able to enjoy it sooner than I thought. When my dad handed it to me, I didn’t really know what to say or do, so I tuned it, and gave it back to him to take one last ride on it. He sight read a few tunes from an American Song Book collection, and then it was my turn.

First Impressions Of The F4

It plays easily, really sounds big and deep, and the sustain is amazing. The frets closer to the head stock are a little worn, but the action is really nice and low (adjustable bridge added in 1921). The colors in the “Flowerpot” head stock inlay are beautiful and change with every angle.  For some reason it felt really light weight to me, like I thought it was bigger and heavier when I had last held it as child.  And this might sound weird, but one of the first things I noticed, and am still amazed by, is how great it smells!   I had one of those crystal clear flashbacks to when I was a child and smelled the old wood of that mandolin.  It was old then and even older now, and still has a very distinct woody aroma. Very cool smell! 

Four Generations Of Beautiful Tone

I've played it every day since we returned home to South Florida, and man, it is truly amazing to gaze at the 1921 photo with my Great Grandmother Ivers playing the same mandolin I now hold in my hands.  My Great Grandfather, Joseph Ivers, the mandolin orchestra leader and Gibson Mandolin Company “agent” purchased it new in 1916, and he and my Great Grandmother Mary Bassett Ivers played it.  For sure my Grandfather George Ivers played it, then my Father, Robert Ivers played it, and now I'm playing it. Since I don't have children, I guess it’s never too early to try to get one or more of my sister’s  three daughters interested in the mandolin, so one day I can pass it along to a fifth generation.

It's My Obligation To Carry On The Tradition

I feel a little unworthy, as I am not as proficient or as good as I should be for my age, actually playing the mandolin.  I'm not sure why it took me so long to start playing mandolin, given my family history but I'm 49, and only started playing 6 years ago. I had been thinking for years I should learn, and finally in 2004, while vacationing in the Asheville, NC area, I bought a Weber Sweet Pea, at a cool store in Brevard, NC.   Since that day I've been preparing to own and play the F4. 

The Sweet Pea is great, I’ve taken it with me all over the world, but my wife thought I should have something better.  So, for a Christmas present a few years ago, she got me a Morgan Monroe MMS 5; an F Style, that really sounds and plays great. That's when I really started to enjoy playing mandolin.  Since then, it’s been a slow but very rewarding process teaching myself to play by ear.

Today I'm really grateful, even as a novice, to have enough playing time under my belt to be able to enjoy the sound and feel of this awesome 1916 Gibson F4 Master Model.  It's beyond my wildest dreams, and I'm humbled and excited about learning and playing it in the future. 

Put Down That Gibson F4 Mandolin And Hold Your Great Grandson, or Yes Little Baby, Some Day You Will Play the Mandolin

Thanks to my Great Grandparents, my Grandparents, my Great Aunt Doris Ivers- Houston, for taking such good care of the mandolin for all these years.  And of course, thanks to my father for his care of the instrument, and providing the inspiration for me to want learn to play the mandolin.  And last but not least, special thanks to my wife for her encouragement, and putting up with what may not always sound like music.  

Early Gibson Mandolin Company Trade Advertisement

Gibson Mandolin Company trade publication advertisement targeting the Mandolin Orchestra Leader or Teacher. The Mandolin Orchestra "Everyone a Gibsonite" campaign was the primary retail channel for selling Gibson mandolins and mandolin family instruments during the teens and early twenties.  More evidence here that women were a big part of the marketing campaign. Check out the outfits.

Proper Musical Balance

This is an interesting point of view on the instrumentation for Fretted Instrument Groups. I found this document folded into the middle of an old piece of Mandolin Orchestra sheet music from the teens. Not sure who published this, or who's recommendations for "Proper Musical Balance" these are. Could be from Gibson, but I'm not sure of the source. I do know that it probably dates from the teen's, based on the age of the sheet music it was stored with.