Hammered into form
Ask an average person “What would a program on CBC called Land And Sea be about?”, and the response is predictable. Farming and fishing. Don’t underestimate the producers at CBC, though, because that response is too easy. This afternoon, I learned that the cymbal industry is alive and well in New Brunswick, and that your average cymbal is never average. With thousands of models to choose from, and a market that is extremely competitive, it’s a world that requires sizzle and crash.
Zildjian and Sabian are competitors. Founded by brothers after a dispute, the two companies vie for market share in a world that the non-drummer barely thinks about. And, in a world where manufacturing seems to be increasingly found in Asia, the Sabian factory (one of them) is in Meductic, NB just off the Trans Canada highway. My first question would be “Do they give factory tours with samples”, but since this is an industrial process my guess would be no. After all, the difference between a 75 cent hamburger and a 300 dollar brass disk is wide (and MacDo doesn’t give freebies either).
There’s great video footage of someone hammering a rolled brass wafer into the traditional cymbal form, if such a thing exists. I can’t imagine working with a hammer in one hand all day long. It’s so medieval. In a world where everything is extruded from the back of a plastic press, to see that true handcrafted work is available is amazing.
The point that CBC wants to make is that the Maritimes are slowly changing, away from potatoes and canned lobster, to take their place in world markets. If you want that place, you’d better produce what the world wants. Like cymbals.
In the better late than never seats:
Here’s a couple of pictures from late this afternoon (with a comparison from just over one year ago) to applaud the way our snow cover is disappearing. I’ve melted the ice in the “pond”, so that I can declare spring as arrived…
