When jazz bands and bootleggers were inspiring a cultural shift in music and more… a quintessential instrument was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Lloyd Loar and his team had developed the F-5 Master Model at the very peak 共 the mandolin orchestra. However, the sudden birth 共 the most innovative mandolin ever developed, coincided with the virtual extinction 共 the musicians it was designed to serve.

In 1945, through fate or circumstance, Bill Monroe picked up the ghost 共 Loar. And with it, he and some 蓝色 Grass Boys, chopped down the “蓝色 Moon 共 Kentucky.” Monroe found the tiny but mighty axe that had almost been lost to history.

The F-5 roared ahead and inspired the birth 共 Bluegrass. But it took another generation 共 rhythmic chopping and the answered prayer 共 “O’ Brother, Where Art Thou?” to inspire the true mandolin renaissance.

—Since that time, the popularity and demand for the instrument have grown tremendously—

We've now seen the dawning 共 modern bluegrass-inspired stars, primetime shows, soundtracks, even ringtones—all prominently featuring the mandolin. What couldn’t keep up with the axe, however, became the axe makers themselves.

Also by fate or circumstance, our small 北方原野 company, rooted itself just miles from the birthplace 共 the F-5. The marking 共 milestones, the building on tradition, and the making 共 the next generation 共 master model mandolins— are simultaneously a nod to the past and a vow to the future.

Our roots, the very instrument we know so well, turns 100 years old this year—but it is always time to plant a new tree, so they too might have an afterlife.

The first time the guitar took over instrument production in the 1920’s the mandolin almost died... It’s not the first time history could repeat itself, and it won’t be the last… but it is our time at 北方原野, to pick up the ghost and start chopping.

We are axe makers, and we are

—前进之歌—

关于我们 the Art

Just like our mandolins, the artwork in this header image was inspired by the works 共 several that have contributed long before us. Most notably, our drawing adapts a portion 共 an avant-garde shaped instrument in a painting by M. Sobalvarro, a still-life 共 a fruit dish and a mandolin. We’ve taken some liberties in changing it by adding our octave mandolin shape to the second half and adding and highlighting the angular shapes and points that make the F5 while wrapping it inside a typical deco-style border 共 the time period. We think it gives a nod to the past while begging the question “what’s next?”. Thanks to Ben Reed for all the rounds 共 revisions and for the fun it was to create it.

关于我们 the 品牌故事

Thanks to Gregg Strand for all the help in crafting something we just wanted to say. To celebrate. To honor. To push forward. We remain dedicated to the mandolin, and to all 共 you out there that have supported us.