Julian Bream’s 1880 Martin 0-28 💫

 

JULIAN BREAM’S EARLY MARTIN GUITAR

It’s rare for a day to go by without something special turning up. But every now and then, something truly exceptional does.

Coming up for auction on 11th December 2026 is this C.F. Martin 0-28, circa 1880, purchased by Julian Bream’s father for his 15-year-old son in 1948.

Bream used the guitar during the formative years of his career, including recitals between 1948 and 1952, most notably his debut recital at Wigmore Hall in 1951.

Julian Bream (1933–2020) was one of the most influential classical guitarists of the 20th century, playing a pivotal role in bringing the guitar to a wider concert audience and inspiring generations of players through his performances and recordings.

Bream sold the guitar to a private collector in 1992, where it has remained until the present day.

We are delighted to offer this rare Martin with such remarkable provenance in our forthcoming December 2026 Specialist Guitar Auction.

Judith Berkson - Oylam (ECM 2009) 💫

 

This artist someway reminded me Annette Peacock and Sidsel Endresen, not for her voice but for her brave heart approach and crepuscular, Turner-like atmospheres.

Judith Berkson is a mezzo-soprano, pianist and composer living in Los Angeles, California.

She studied voice with Lucy Shelton and composition with Joe Maneri at the New England Conservatory. She received her MA in composition from Wesleyan University and a Doctorate in performance and composition from California Institute of the Arts.

Judith has collaborated with Kronos Quartet, Wet Ink, Yarn/Wire and City Opera and has presented work at Picasso Museum Malaga, Roulette, Le Poisson Rouge, Joe’s Pub, The Stone, Barbès, Bang On A Can, and the 92 Street Y. She has received a Six Points Fellowship, a Jerome Foundation grant, Meet The Composer grant, New Music USA funding and support from the New York Foundation for the Arts. Her solo album “Oylam” (issued on ECM and masterfully engineered by Stefano Amerio at ArteSuono in Cavalicco, Udine, Italy) was called “Standards and Schubert and liturgical music, swing and chilly silences, a beautiful Satie-like piece to open and close the record” by Ben Ratliff of the New York Times.

She composed music for the film Christopher at Sea (2022), a queer retelling of Schubert’s song cycle Winterreise which premiered at Sundance and the Venice Biennale, and won awards at SXSW and at Outfest LA. Her latest chamber opera Partial Memories premiered at the NODO Festival in Ostrava, Czechia. It was dedicated to forgotten female artists Janet Sobel and Mary Gartside and featured the Ostravská Banda.

Judith is also a cantor and has collaborated on Yiddish and cantorial music with Frank London and Theodore Bikel. As a vocalist she has premiered works by Enno Poppe, Alvin Lucier, Rick Burckhardt and Chaya Czernowin. She has served as DMA Lecturer at California Institute of the Arts and as a guest lecturer at Columbia University and at The New School.

Please read Tyran Grillo’s review here for more insights.

Thanks, Tyran 🖖🙏💫🖖

Fripperstrings 💫

 

Robert Fripp’s distinctive guitar techniques, including soundscapes and frippertronics, with classical and experimental string playing.

The Robert Fripp string quintet - Kan-non power ( 1CD / unofficial )

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Garrardzilla, Fall 2026 💫

 

I suddenly realized I’ve been a Garrard 301 satisfied user for the last 46 years!

Today I swapped - after some months of constant use after putting on-hold the beloved TdP’s The Head TX-4 - the WE 618B SUT for the Peerless 4685, inactive since the Studietto dismissal…

All these gems were sourced thanking late, great Walt Bender 🥇

I’m greatly enjoying Tommy Schneider’s Plan B disc on Kolibri label, the sought-after original first pressing and I’m in awe!

Sound is so beefy and organic!

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Oregon on Chesky 💫

 

Chesky has re-released a new SACD and Chesky’s debut LP edition of “Beyond Words”. I understand it’s 1,000 copies only of each. They will disappear in the blink of an eye. Get ‘em while you can.

Thanks to Anil Prasad 🖖

You must always have a… PLAN B 💫

 

A David Sylvian’s moment 💫

 

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RAI is back to 16” discs 😳

 

A new RAI Radio3 Suite segment takes us into the Via Asiago archives to unearth some of the oldest musical recordings. 

Every Friday, we discover one of the so-called *padelloni*—jargon for the large lacquer discs used in radio broadcasting during the 1950s. 

The first episode, dedicated to Carmen Bulgarelli Campori—a pioneer of conducting in Italy—is available as a podcast here: tinyurl.com/3xsfyzts

As a vintage gears lover and scholar, cannot but moan about the el Cheapo looking turntable on the above picture, while RAI used in the hey days the mighty EMT927 with its imposing 16”/44 cm Ø platter, purposely made for the old lacquers.

With such a treasure in their archives would have been wise to keep at least one of these behemoths in use, just in case… as it’s happening nowadays!

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Gary Burton’s signed autobiography 💫

 

I recently learned of and ordered this book.  As I usually do, I bought a used copy online from a thrift store.  It just arrived and lo’ and behold when I cracked it open, there was a written dedication and autograph from Gary Burton himself!  

Can’t wait to get started on it.  Anyone else read it?  Thoughts?

EDIT:  Great read - can’t put it down!

Thanks to Arthur Di Dio and congratulations for the cool find 🍀🙌🍀

Perena cables, Made in France

 

When also cheap, everyday objects were made well, with care… these vintage DIN cables for my Quad 33/303 combo are just fine.

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Gotorama - effortlessly taxing it around…

 

 ...for the long-awaited visit from the air-conditioning technician; I took the opportunity to make some minor, almost subtle adjustments to the height and tilt of the mid-bass and midrange horns on both loudspeakers.

They are 250 kg each and I’m able to move them with a finger (or so).

☺️

John Renbourn’s Faro Annie

 

Here is the mastertape on BASF of the iconic, classic album on Transatlantic.

Recorded at Bill Leader’s studio.

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Details 💫

 

Cables-wise: I don’t let brands, machism and huge-per-se to rule my choices, BUT material, concept and performance, only… so don’t be fooled by hair-like diameters and cheap-looking banana-plugs.

The thinner wire between Goto drivers and crossover is a Siemens 1930 solid core copper with cotton sleeve, the fatter wire between power amp and crossover is Audio Consulting’s cryogenic-solid silver wire with cotton sleeve… all cables ends are carefully deoxidized before inserting in banana plugs for optimized contact.

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Paparazzi 😳

 

Yesterday I got emailed a pix of myself from back, paparazzi-ed by someone who recognized me but didn’t stop to say hello.

I had my green-grocery bag on my right-hand and last Mojo magazine on my left-hand.

What a strange, weird feeling and evenience.

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Evening listening 💫

 

Some organic, acoustic music masterfully played by two wonderful musicians, an HDCD issued by a tiny, obscure label, played on a vintage audio system, listened by a vintage, well: aging music lover… what else?

There is a definite feeling of quietness which is refreshing, tuning the life-flowing to a natural pace.

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DeArmond 💫

 

From the early days of flat top amplification, meet the DeArmond RHC-B. 

Used famously by Chicago Blues legends Lightning' Hopkins and Elmore James, the RHC-B is sought after for its bright, punchy single-coil sound.

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News from Brian Eno 💫

 

Cats and musicians 💫

 

A cat asleep on your lap has little interest in whether you have just changed the history of music.

These photographs bring together Igor Stravinsky, Maurice Ravel, Bernard Herrmann, John Cage, Dmitri Shostakovich, Alfred Brendel, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Michel Legrand, Thelonious Monk and Vladimir Horowitz in moments of feline company.

What makes them so touching is the smallness of each gesture: a hand resting on fur, a kitten perched on a shoulder, a smile far from the concert platform. Familiar figures become wonderfully human.

Different musical worlds, one shared pleasure: the company of a creature perfectly happy to interrupt a masterpiece for a little attention.

And whatever the score says, the cat chooses the tempo.