Paiste Gongs

PAISTE GONGS

Paiste has taken pride in that historical tradition since first developing and producing gongs in the 1930's.
Creating gongs requires a dedication to the instrument's deeper meanings, both in the structured vibrations which reveal themselves in the gong's sound and in the response of the human playing the instrument. Paiste gongs have found applications beyond music, including such diverse areas as therapy, recreation, performance art, religion and meditation.
Paiste creates each gong with precise and specific sound intentions Paiste's Artisan Gong Masters and Makers begin the process with a round disk of specially formulated Nickel-Silver alloy, a material with wide-ranging sound potency. Working with fire, steel, wood, hammer and anvil, those gifted gong artisans have an intuitive conception of the sounds they seek to achieve in creating an instrument. Entirely by hand.
Some of the great Like Rudi Bonness and Walter Meyer were unique craftsman, more like artist with tool creating something special and truly unique.

Gong production tour of the German factory

Symphonic Gongs

Introduction: 1992*
Background: Paiste's oldest version of the instrument.
Innovation: Symphonic Gongs have a slightly raised surface (without boss) with a harmonic and universal sound structure. The fundamental note of the gong is balanced with the instrument's complex overtones.
Alloy: Nickel Silver (NS12)
Quality: Professional
Production: Symphonic Gongs are heated and hand hammered in their German facility.
Applications: The characterizing word Symphonic thereby should not be misinterpreted as describing the literal sense of classical symphonic orchestra application but its original sense to unite harmonic sounds. The describing word universal shall be understood as “sound in its entirety”.
Users:
Sound: The sound of these gongs can be influenced and varied through the nature of the stroke, as well as the size, weight, and composition of the mallets. By varying the striking points, highs, lows, and various sound mixtures contained in the entirety of the gong’s sound sphere may be extracted and played up.

• Symphonic Gong - 20" 22" 24" 26" 28" 30" 32" 34" 36" 38" 40" 50" 60" 60" Mikrophonie 80" 90"
  
• Symphonic Brilliant Gong - 20" 22" 24" 26" 28" 30" 32" 34" 36" 38"
  
  

Paiste's oldest version of the instrument, Paiste Symphonic Gongs have a slightly raised surface with a harmonic and universal sound structure. The fundamental note of the gong is balanced with the instrument's complex overtones. A good starting point for a gong collection, the Symphonic contains even proportions of various gong characteristics, which can be brought forth using different mallets and striking points. Symphonic Gongs feature some of our largest examples of the instrument, like the 60" SGM and the extraordinary 80", and 90" - the world's largest gong.

Accent Gongs

Introduction:
Background: Accent Gongs are special gongs with an aggressive, foaming, and lively sound character. A multitude of sounds may be achieved with various playing techniques.
Innovation: Unlike the Symphonics, these gongs are not scraped, keeping the tone lower, with a slower response
Alloy: Nickel Silver (NS12)
Quality: Professional
Production: Accent Gongs are heated and hand hammered in their German facility.
Applications:
Users:
Sound: The sound of these gongs can be influenced and varied through the nature of the stroke, as well as the size, weight, and composition of the mallets. By varying the striking points, highs, lows, and various sound mixtures contained in the entirety of the gong’s sound sphere may be extracted and played up.

• Accent Gong - 7" 10" 13" 22" 26" 28" 32"
  
  

Tuned Gongs

(C2/C - F6/f" or 6" - 36") Tuned Gongs feature a boss to produce a specific note cushioned softly by complimentary gong harmonics. Paiste is the only percussion instrument manufacturer to offer a full 4 1/2 octave range of gongs tuned electronically to a Middle A of 442 Hz (other Middle A Hz tunings can be custom produced). These instruments are perfect for classical and modern scores which call for tuned gongs. They can also be used as excellent substitutes when other, small or large, tuned idiophones are called for.

Sound Creation Gongs

(various sizes 20" - 60') Each Sound Creation Gong has its own extraordinary and particular sound character. Their impressive, charismatic sound embodies a wealth of archetypal emotional sensations and truths. Due to their varied sound colors and voices, these instruments also offer a wide range of harmonics and frequencies, from diffused crash-like timbres to defined and steady bell-like tones.

No. 1 - SUN / Morning-Beginning (22") Sound: Warm, radiating bell-like tone. Character: Opening, warming, hopeful, rising.

No.2 - FIRE /Rest-Aggression (20") Sound: Warm, with dark to piercing highs. Character: Warm, soothing to aggressive, destructive.

No. 3 - EARTH / Continuity (26", 32", 38", 60") Sound: Unfathomable and dark, with swelling highs. Character: Mysterious, knowing, kind, unfathomable.

No. 4 - WATER / Energy (24") Sound: Soft-dark to streaming-dark with frothy highs. Character: Soothing, infinite to sweeping, cleansing.

No. 5 - PEACE / Tolerance (22") Sound: Soft lows, layered highs. Character: Balancing, harmonizing, supportive.

No. 6 - MOON / Evening-ending (24") Sound: Deep, dark bell-like tone with bright nucleus. Character: Gathering, shielding, forgiving, declining.

No. 7 - FIGHT / Confrontation (22") Sound: Threateningly dark, bright and towering. Character: Challenging, threatening discomforting.

No. 8 - CHAKRA / Head-Chest-Abdomen (11", 14", 16") Sound: Bundled, sustained bell-like tone. Character: Influencing, penetrating, harmonic, lasting.

Planet Gongs

(24" - 38") Paiste Planet Gongs resemble Symphonic Gongs in character, but feature a strong fundamental note tuned to represent a natural harmonic series based on the orbital properties of the Sun, the Earth, the Moon and the other planets as calculated by Hans Cousto. Planet Gongs resonate harmonically with the cycles of the cosmos, communicating to us what has been known since antiquity as the "music of the spheres". Mysterious in sound color, Planet Gongs convey an unusual atmosphere.

The Planet Gongs are:

• 38" Earth
  
• 38" Sun
  
• 36" Pluto
  
• 32" Nibiru
  
• 32" Mercury
  
• 32" Mars
  
• 32" Chiron
  
• 32" Saturn
  
• 30" Platonic Year
  
• 28" Jupiter
  
• 28" Sidereal Day
  
• 24" Venus
  
• 24" Uranus
  
• 24" Neptune
  
• 24" Synodic Moon
  
• 24" Sidereal Moon
  
• To mention many more prototypes of gongs have been made over the years. Not as such available for public sale. Also, The 1970's / 80s SCG No. 5 & 7 were 20", only enlarged to 22" in early 1990's.
  
  

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Embossed Gongs

Embossed E Gong
(More will be added when found - these are discontinued)

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Information from the Paiste.com site.
(*) "New and Notable" (Modern Drummer, October 1992, p.52)
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