Le Fay Artists
Le Fay bass players from all sorts of different styles of music. We asked them for a statement on the following question: "What makes your Le Fay bass so special?"
Reimer Bolls, HERR SCHWARZ 4 TAED
“Just for fun and for my neighbours to hear I’m still alive. At the end of my professional life, I bought myself an Audi A6. A dream car. I thought that’d be it. What else could someone my age possibly still want? Until I happened to walk past Le Fay’s workshop on Kiebitzreihe one day and decided to have a quick look round. To cut a long story short: I instantly fell in love with Herr Schwarz 4 TAED. And that’s when I started playing the electric bass. So: You should never stop having dreams and living them to the full. Thank you Reiner, thank you Meik. You’re truly a dream team."
Ingo Hey, WARAN 5
"My life with Le Fay started more than 15 years ago with a stunning Pangton 5. In small music clubs or in front of 20.000 people on an open air stage, Le Fay has always been by my side! Today I am playing a Waran 5 and the fearful faces of other bassplayers make me smile everytime I unpack Godzilla! :-) OK, jazz is different but that's because I play ROCK 'N ROLL, BABY!"
Le Fay Club, New Hampshire
a picture is worth a 1000 words right?
Dimitar "The Funk" Kovachev, HERR SCHWARZ HL 5
If you want to hold in your hands "The Beauty and The Beast" – Le Fay Bass is exactly what you need!!! It's a killing funk machine, man!!"
Thomas Meinlschmidt, HERR SCHWARZ 5, SINGER 5, PULSE 4
... Why play a different bass, if I can have a Le Fay.
Henning Prey, PANGTON 5
"Pro & Contra
Pro: Sound, HandwerksKUNST, Ästhetik, Innovation, unendlicher Einfallsreichtum, Humor, Freude, Freunde, Inspiration, Dankbarkeit, Zufriedenheit,
Vollendung, Hochachtung, Neugier...LeFay
Contra: Das ständig wachsende Mitleid für andere Bassisten, die keinen LeFay besitzen und immer über den besten Bass der Welt diskutieren wollen, frisst mich auf!!! :-)
Doppel-Pro: wenn meine Freundin mal nicht da ist, nehme ich meinen Pangton 5 mit ins Bett!"
VARTRAS, WARAN 5
Bassist and singer of Berlin's Black Metal band "Botritis Cinerea" and Death Metal group "Decision"
"I spent ages looking for an extreme shape that is nevertheless just as playable. Also as regards the sound, this black monitor lizard definitely makes no compromises. Absolutely massive!!!"
Riley Hagan, PANGTON 5 Fretless, D-TUNER
Bassist and Instructor at Bass Lessons Unlimited. Has preformed with Michael Manring, Jim Stinnett, Steve Bailey, Grant Stinnett.
"These instruments are amazing. They respond so quickly and evenly and have richer fuller sound then any bass I've ever played. I love how they feel and the control they offer."
Heiko Zapp, WARAN 5
Bassist bei der Crossover-Metal-Band SAINTCATEE, Basslehrer und Bandcoach bei Workshop Musik.
"Beim Soundcheck...
Tontechniker: "Ich hoffe, von dir krieg ich ein ordentliches Signal. Bei der vorigen Band war das ja etwas lasch."
Waran: "FUMBA PENGA BOOOOOOOOMMM!!!"
Tontechniker: "Oookay! Das ist ein Signal."
Thomas Große, CAPONE 6
"Whenever I open the case, it puts a smile on my face, because this instrument is simply a work of art. And when I've plugged it in, it always gives me the according killer sound, no matter what mood I'm in!"
Andreas Nau, MIDAS 5 "Limited Edition"
"This fretless has a really wicked sound. It sings, it pushes, it goes from really low to mega high. Not to mention the magnificent way it looks. Congratulations, Le Fay team - a masterpiece!"
Ulrich Schmauder, SINGER 5
"This bass is the dream of my sleepless nights. My search has come to an end: anyone who has the honour of owning such a bass no longer needs any other. My Singer is extremely versatile, it covers virtually every sound for any genre, from hard to mellow."
Uli Geiler, CAPONE 5 Limited Edition, HERR SCHWARZ 5, MIDAS 5 Fan Fret
"Although my Le Fays are vastly different, they've got one thing in common: they're simply divine! That's why I play them - out of conviction!"
Anton Soetrisno, CAPONE 5, PANGTON 5
Bassist of Hamburg's reggae band I-FIRE
"I play a Le Fay, because Le Fay produces the sound I need! Especially in reggae/dub/dancehall, a bass really has to push and my other basses in the past just couldn't keep up... and then there's the unique design and first-class workmanship. Plenty of reasons for me to choose a Le Fay!"
Uli Salm, REMINGTON STEELE "Limited Edition"
Rudolf Rock & die Schocker, Leinemann, Guitar Army, Dirty Dogs, Hugo Egon Balder
"I have been collecting bass guitars for over 40 years and meanwhile have more than 300. Wonderful old Fender Precision and Jazz basses, Gibsons, Rickenbackers, everything that is classed as vintage these days, lots of Alembics, Ritters, etc. But when I want to really get my heart for bass guitars racing, I pick up my Remington Steele "Limited Edition" with its white birch top. The sound, the workmanship and the versatility are absolutely mind-blowing!!!!!! I have played and owned pretty much everything this amazing world of luxury basses has to offer, but this bass tops them all!!!!!"
Robert Bielen, HERR SCHWARZ 4, HERR SCHWARZ 5 headless
"Le Fay makes my day. Literally. Every morning when I get up and every night before I go to bed, I stroke my two little treasures affectionately. These basses are all my dreams come true and the end of a very long search. I don't need any other bass guitars anymore, I have my Le Fays. No other bass even gets close. Killer exterior and mega sound, wow, thank you Reiner & Meik!"
Steffen Peschel, HERR SCHWARZ fretless
Bassist with Peter Schilling, Acoustic Lounge and other projects, own jazz trio (Steffen-Peschel-Trio), lecturer at workshops and various music schools
"I've never played such an inspiring instrument before - this bass really gets you hooked!"
Ralf Steltner, PANGTON 5, REMINGTON STEELE
Bass player with the Hamburg Police Orchestra
"I have a Pangton and a Remington Steele - both basses are the ultimate, I don't want to play anything else."
Jim Stinnet, SINGER 5
Professor am Berklee College of Music, Boston
"These Basses are tremendous, that are the basses I was looking for since years!"
Andrew "The Bullet" Lauer, HERR SCHWARZ XXL "THE BULLET"
Freelancer, Live and Studio Musician; Band: Oku and the Raggaerockers
"This instrument fits perfect to me. The whole sound brightness helps me to transport my musically spirit."
Michael Frontzek, PANGTON 6, REMINGTON STEELE 5, HERR SCHWARZ 5
Bassist, bass instructor, band leader
"It could only get different, not better!"
Manne Pokrandt, PANGTON 5
Bassist with Engerling and Mitch Ryder, Studio1058 (more than 100 CDs), www.hooolp.com - search engine for live music
"The Le Fay convinced me with its immense scope of exquisite sounds, it's great to play, built with a lot of love for detail, even the F in the name is there."
Marc Blum, HERR SCHWARZ 6
Bass-playing aficionado from Aachen, currently playing with deep beat (www.deepbeat.de), and Second Step (acoustic pop). Marc always plays his six-string Le Fay HERR SCHWARZ
"Ever since Reiner and Meik custom-made the six-string Schwarz for me, I've never had to go instrument hunting again. How does that American saying go? –If it were stolen...I'd shoot myself.–"
UW, HERR SCHWARZ, MIDAS 5 Fan Fret
"I was impressed by the Le Fay design the very first time I saw their basses - but when I heard and played them, it was too late: I had to have one. I've never regretted it, not even for a moment, and I'm very happy with this bass."
Samir Elflein, MIDAS 5, REMINGTON 5
"I have been a proud Le Fay bass owner for more than 20 years. No other bass is as good at interpreting your own bass sound! Le Fay - never gets on your tits and it's got plenty of balls ;-)"
David "Schreiner" Herrmann, HERR SCHWARZ 5, HERR SCHWARZ 6
Bassist of the rock/metal band Trap by Trap
"Since 2006 and 2009 respectively, the two Herr Schwarzes have been living under the same roof as me and since then there hasn't been a day when I haven't played at least one of the two basses! An experience that I can only recommend to everyone! Sound, versatility, material, craftsmanship and design; EVERYTHING is perfectly aligned! For me they are the alpha and omega in the world of bass guitars!"
Jens Ulrich Handreka, MIDAS 4, MIDAS 5, Carlsson 6
Live and recording artist, instructor (www.handreka-music.com)
"The B-string on my Midas V and Carlsson VI are quite simply unbeatable. Every Le Fay is extremely versatile and provides a wide range of workable basic sounds through to clear solo sounds that do justice to any style of music. The Remington Steele fretless is peerless."
Frowin "Superfro" Ickler, CAPONE 5/90
Bassist with Henni Nachtsheim (Badesalz), the Timo Gross Band and various others. Frowin's own projects include superfro and FroFunk
"When I hold my Le Fay, I become one with my instrument. I've never experienced this feeling so intensively with any other bass. It just does everything, from ruthless playing without any loss in the dynamics, to smooth slow blues...."
Gunnar Ullrich, PANGTON 5 fretless
Has played with Bobby Kimball, Miller Anderson, John Miles, etc. Current band: D-U-K
"Plays like butter and sounds like cream."
Jürgen Mallasch, HERR SCHWARZ 4, B-E-A-D - tuning
Band: Red Rooster (www.myspace.com/redroosteronline)
"It should be blonde, beautiful and talk to me in a sexy voice. That was the brief the Doctor Frankensteins from Le Fay got. They grabbed the poor Herr Schwarz, stripped it bare and robbed it of its high G. And this is how, one stormy night, they created my bad little blonde for B-E-A-D."
Thomas Julius Müller, MIDAS 5 fretless
Bassist in various rock-pop projects and bands
"When I got this dream fretless, I just sat there for the first two hours and couldn't believe how incredibly beautiful it is. But that was nothing compared to what was in store for me. Its sound is low, dark and heavy, it overtaxes many a PA and is a nightmare for many mixing engineers.... This instrument rocks!!!"
Frank Haas, SINGER 5
"What makes this bass so irresistible is its perfect finish, homogenous playability, linear tonal character and exceptional sound quality / tone options! The ideal five-string instrument for total escalation – it’s simply divine."