YAMAHA AND NEIL DIAMOND STRING SECTION MAKE "BEAUTIFUL NOISE" ON THREE CHORD OPERA TOUR

—On a Grand Rapids tour stop, wind players visit Yamaha custom shop—

GRAND RAPIDS, MI (December 19, 2001)—When Neil Diamond's string section needed to amplify their sound for the upcoming "Three Chord Opera" Tour, they looked no further than Yamaha for violins, violas, and cellos.

Neil Diamond and his Yamaha string section

"We needed something other than our traditional instruments for the road," says violinist Dana Freeman. "Yamaha provided us with their new intermediate instrument, the AV series, giving the sound we needed at a cost less than that of conventional instruments—an added benefit in the event our traditional [and very expensive] violins were damaged or lost in shipment." Production manager/front of house sound mixer Stan Miller placed a microphone inside the violins, which provided more even and controllable sound.

When not on tour, Freeman performs locally with the Pacific Symphony Orchestra and the Opera Pacific in Los Angeles as needed. She also teaches at Concordia College and California State University, Fullerton. As irony would have it, Freeman provides violin lessons to an employee of Yamaha in Buena Park, CA. Prior to the current Neil Diamond tour, Freeman toured with Yanni.

Diamond’s wind players visit Yamaha in Grand Rapids

The intermediate AV 10 violins are the outcome of a unique design process that began with original instruments by Guarneri del Gesu and used 3-D computer imaging and collaborations with modern master violinmakers to create an original design for the 21st century. The instruments provide performers with the same technology and craftsmanship used in professional AV30 and AV60 models. Recently, the V7 violas and V7 Strausberg cello were added to the string ensemble's line up.

The four wind players from Diamond's band also use Yamaha instruments and had a chance to visit the custom shop and try out a variety of instruments—including trombones, euphoniums, saxophones, flutes, and clarinets— during their tour stop in Grand Rapids. The players were impressed with the quality of the instruments auditioned, as well as Yamaha's commitment to top-level musicians.

For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Band & Orchestral Division, 3445 East Paris Ave. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49518; call (616) 940-4900; send e-mail to infostation@yamaha.com; or visit www.yamaha.com/band.