The NS Blog

NS Artist Bakithi Kumalo sat down with For Bass Players Only at the NS Design Booth during the NAMM Show 2020 for another fun and insightful interview. Kumalo shares his simple, sage advice about what it takes to be a good bass player, his passion for mentorship, and working with students in The Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University Mentorship Program and the various logistics involved in teaching remotely.

Read More »

On behalf of our worldwide community of NS Artists, Ned and the NS Design team take this moment to recognize all musicians for their power to sustain, transport and heal in tumultuous times. Your music is vital to our well-being, and we are profoundly grateful.

Please enjoy, share, and find inspiration in these videos. We’ll endeavor to share more with you in the weeks to come.

Read More »

The latest For Bass Players Only interview is with jazz bassist and NS Artist Marcos Varela, who sat down with Jon Leibman at the NS Design booth during the Winter NAMM Show 2020. Among the topics, they talk bass technique, Mingus Big Band in NYC, a new debut record release planned with the Illumination Quartet on Spanish label Fresh Sound New Talent, and Varela’s rock jazz projects in the works with the NS CR Radius bass guitar.

Read More »

NS Artist Laurie Anderson visited San Francisco last week as Resident Artistic Director at SF JAZZ Center for a four-night performance series. Anderson, who plays the NS CR electric violin, shared the stage on night one with her NYC Improvisations Series collaborators – virtuoso bassist Christian McBride and cellist (NS Artist) Rubin Kodheli; night two included the strings duet of Kodheli again, with Anderson; the third evening also included Kodheli with the addition of avant-garde vocalist Mike Patton, of Mr. Bungle and Faith No More; night four featured Anderson’s solo performance with her NS violin, keyboards, and filters. Read More »

The Solo Bass Competition was held on Thursday in Anaheim during the NAMM Show 2020 — NS Design are proud to be co-sponsors of this special event, along with Phil Jones Bass, Warwick, LaBella, Marleux, and others; as well as Bass Magazine and Gizmotron. Read More »

The NAMM Show 2020 Ultimate Jam Night is a concert that brings all the legendary and top musicians of the world to play music together on one stage. This year’s stellar performances included NS Artists Quartet405 with violinists Eliza James and Rebecca Schlappich Charles, violist Jayna Chou, and cellist Danica Pinner rockin’ their NXTa’s! Check out the amazing photographs of the show taken by NS Artist Noor Che’ree of Cookie Monstah Media.

Read More »

Winter NAMM 2020 at the NS Design Booth has been lively with NS Artists and friends. Stop in to say hello if you’re in the neighborhood. Hall D #4729.

We have a number of great players at the Winter NAMM 2020 booth performing and demonstrating NS, including: legendary bassist Bakithi Kumalo (Paul Simon), violinist Daneille Turano, Marcos Varela – Grammy nominated Jazz artist and composer, Los Angeles’s favorite electric ensemble Quartet 405 with a special demonstration including Symphonic Planet, solo bassists Noor Che’ree, Chance Wilder Onody, Donald Waugh and much more!

Read More »

NS Artist Noah Sierota, bassist/singer/songwriter for Echosmith, started out with 2013’s Top-40 charting debut Talking Dreams with the single “Cool Kids” followed by 2017’s Inside a Dream and their latest 2020’s Lonely Generation.  Echosmith exemplifies the generational voice of contemporary youth through catchy songs of isolation and coming of age, in the midst of the ever-evolving world of technology and social media. Read More »

Here’s For Bass Players Only Interview with NS Artist Donald Waugh at the NS Design booth during Winter NAMM 2020.

Donald chats with FBPO’s Jon Liebman about a new album in the works for 2020, and advice about learning to play bass, among other topics. Read More »

NS Design Artist Carolyn Routh with her CR4 RADIUS Bass Guitar.

Check out the new interview with Bass Musician Magazine with NS Design Artist Carolyn Routh of Nu-Blu. She talks about her role in Nu-Blu, her recent podcast and VJing with The Bluegrass Ridge TV, among many other projects. Read More »

Ned Steinberger (center) meeting with Tommy Maloney (left) and V.J. Manzo (right) in the Electric Guitar Innovation Lab at WPI.

NS Design Founder and award-winning instrument designer, Ned Steinberger recently spent some time in collaboration on confidential research regarding electric guitar technology, with Tommy Maloney and V.J. Manzo of the Electric Guitar Innovation Lab at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Worchester, MA. Read More »

NS Artist Lionel Dean Jarvis sat down with Bass Musician Magazine for an intimate interview about his start in music, to his current tour as bassist and Music Director with 2018 Grammy Award winner Alessia Cara. Read More »

NS Design Educator Julie Lyonn Lieberman releases her new tutorial A FESTIVAL of VIOLIN & FIDDLE STYLES available for Violin, Viola and Cello. Julie is Artistic Director of the exciting Strings Without Boundaries seminars and is a storied author and teacher with of 12 Books and 6 DVDs distributed by Hal Leonard Corporation and 24+ String orchestra scores published by Alfred, Kendor, and Carl Fischer. Read More »

NS Design is proud to be a sponsor of Nothing But Bass eBook from Premier Guitar.  This new 32 page eBook Vol. 5 – has 11 sub-rattling reviews of gear from Fender, Aguilar, Darkglass, MESA/Boogie, and more! Read More »

NS Design has launched an NS Instrument Registration Form on our website. Registering your NS instrument helps us serve you better if you need to request technical support from us in the future. When you complete your registration, we will issue you an NS ID number for your instrument that you can refer to in future communications with us. Read More »

NS Design Artist Anna Blanton has spent years playing a wide range of musical styles from bluegrass and classic country to Celtic, folk and orchestral pieces. Read More »

Here is your IBMA 2019 World of Bluegrass Conference and Awards Recap!

NS Design attended and exhibited at the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) World of Bluegrass Expo, Booth #315. Many NS Artists, friends and fans stopped in to say hello to NS National Sales Manager Tommy Wilson and NS Artist Relations Manager Corey Redonnett, who showcased a variety of NS instruments for attendees to plug in and pick, pluck, bow and strum! The Expo ran from Wednesday, September 24 through Saturday, September 28, 2019. Read More »

NS Artist and esteemed bassist Tony Levin and his long-time band mates in King Crimson are embarking on their 2019 50th Anniversary Celebration American Tour.   With his CR5M Upright Bass, Tony and the rest of the KC camp will be ploughing through their extensive history of fan favorites. Read More »

Benny Rietveld bassist for Santana, playing the NS CRM Upright. Photo by Alan Poulin

NS Design Artist Benny Rietveld, longtime bassist and music director for Santana, sat down for an exclusive interview with Jon Liebman of For Bass Players Only. Benny shares his history and the power of the bass. Read More »

NS Design Artist Jamaaladeen Tacuma speaks with Premier Guitar in the August, 2019 issue about producing The Last Poets 2019 release Transcending Toxic Times, and his Steinberger and NS Design Basses. Read More »

Classical crossover trio Simply Three plays music that is anything but simple. Read More »

 

Scott Laird, nationally recognized string pedagogue and conductor (and NS Design Artist and Educator), has received The University of North Carolina Board of Governors 2019 Excellence in Teaching Award. Read More »

Donald on the WAV Radius Bass from NS Design!

From the NS Design Booth at Winter NAMM 2019, here is NS Artist Donald Waugh’s Review of the NS RADIUS Bass Guitar with NS Design’s founder and award winning designer, Ned Steinberger: Read More »

NS Design is pleased to welcome the artist known as bad snacks to its roster of electric violin endorsing artists. Read More »