The SoupASonic

What in the horror world is this? -- Why, it's a picture of my brand new baby.
But what should we call it? That, my friends, is up to you - see below, and thank you!

This new baby is a 6-stringed acoustic instrument, made by the excellent Eric Aceto of Ithaca, NY. On its belly, it carries the strings of a viola (C-G-D-A), the violin (G-D-A-E) and a super-low string (F), one pitch higher than the bottom note of the guitar. Size-wise, it's taller than a violin but shorter than a viola, clocking in at 14 inches.

So what should we call it? I'd like to propose a baby-naming contest.
I'll be taking names in the comments below, until midnight Eastern Time (GMT -5) on February 29 May 31, 2008, at which point I'll put all of the entries up for a vote.
Winner will receive a signed copy of my debut CD, Vjola: World on Four Strings, and a signed copy of the upcoming CD release by Ljova & the Vjola Contraband, which will be ready in the late summer. You'll also have my eternal gratitude, which you can not (as yet) pawn on Ebay..

Possible suggestions already include:
-- mezzo violin
-- hexañola (or hexagnola)
-- viola da samba
-- six-e beast
-- the beast

To inspire and a-muse you, I'm including the first two recordings I made on the new instrument:
FRESH WOOD (download the mp3 here)

and JAM JEROME, an excerpt from a longer jam with the guitarist and composer Jerome Covington (download the mp3 here)


Want to see more pictures of the new instrument? Sure you do - head right this way.

Enjoy the music, and thank you for any input!

--Ljova (& Eric Aceto), pictured below

[FOREWORD: Out of respect for fellow artists and professional critics, I try to avoid opining on concerts and compositions. Most often it's not that I disliked the art, but that it's not for me to judge anyone's artistic choices. I try to let the artistic experience work on me internally, giving it time to digest and react in my own creations instead... Here are some thoughts about matters which (I hope!) are not as artistic as they are a reflection on the contemporary concert life. ]

As a young violist growing up between Moscow and New York, I idolized one man - Yuri Bashmet. Since the beginning, I loved his incredible tone, his unmatched vibrato (and that he plays *without* vibrato at least half-the-time), his impeccable intonation, and of course his powerful and highly individual interpretive approach and musicality. I was fortunate enough to hear the premiere of the Schnittke Viola Concerto, and the first concert of the Moscow Soloists. Elsewhere, I remember Yuri visiting us and giving me a short violin lesson... ( read on! )