YAMAHA EXPANDS LINE OF 'SILENT' STRING, BRASS INSTRUMENTS

GRAND RAPIDS, MI (June 6, 2003)—Yamaha has introduced a family of new and re-designed silent instruments that offer the flexibility of silent play to string and brass musicians. With the addition of the Silent Viola, it is now possible to have a string quartet composed entirely of silent string instruments.

SV-200 Silent Violin

Now, with the inclusion of the viola, the series, which features violin, cello, bass and brass instruments, enables musicians and composers to practice and perform in complete privacy at any hour, using headphones, without compromising their desire for traditional feeling, performance, and sound. The instruments are perfect for every type of artist in any location where silence is necessary—musicians in apartments, students playing at home or in a dorm, and professionals who need to practice on the road.

The same silent mode technology common to all silent instruments makes it possible to play through an amplifier, resulting in a warm, full-bodied tone with exciting new possibilities for live performance. An auxiliary input on the body of the instruments can easily connect to an external CD player or tape machine for practice with pre-recorded material. A second input jack even allows musicians to duet with another silent instrument player. The strikingly stylish silent ensemble allows musicians to enjoy spacious reverb, as well as the sonic richness and tone of a concert quality instrument, while creating very little external sound.

Yamaha Silent Violins now feature a reshaped acoustic style neck, a quieter pre-amp that reduces white noise, and Yamaha original strings as an improvement to earlier models. New to the line, the SV-200 contains studio-quality features for recording and amplifying ease, while giving performers more control over their sound. Yamaha has achieved this technological feat by eliminating the internal amplification cavity found in traditional instruments. Instead, a studio-quality audio pick-up is connected to an internal effects processor (powered by 2 AA batteries) that places the sound in a user-selected acoustic space, such as a concert hall or practice room.

The compact and economical line of Silent Brass instruments—trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, french horn, euphonium and tuba—have been enhanced to reduce external volume to 1/1000 of the unmuted level, which permits free-blowing and instant feedback for a realistic feel and refined sound.

For more information, or to locate the store nearest you, contact Yamaha Corporation of America, Band & Orchestral Division, (616) 940-4900; send e-mail to infostation@yamaha.com; or visit www.yamaha.com.