Banjo

North American instrument “par excellence”, the banjo is – according to some experts – actually derived from an African lute. This strange instrument, the “ekonting”, would have been brought overseas by slaves at the very beginning of the nineteenth century. However, even if its origins are still a bit uncertain, its success has never made any doubt since the Civil War. Today, the banjo sound is still a major ingredient in various musical styles, ranging from New Orleans jazz to Appalachian folk and Bluegrass.

As an instrument suitable for very different styles of playing, the banjo’s everlasting success is largely due to its powerful sonorities which depend as much of its resonator as of the quality of its strings.

This is why Philippe Bosset has specially designed strings that improve volume amplitude without harming tonal clarity. Treble strings are made of high quality steel , while bass ones have an hexagonal steel core covered by a 99.99% Pure Nickel winding, a material whose exceptional purity can be heard from the very first note played.