14 DAY TRIAL // Sting needs no presentation from me, nor does he need any introduction from others. Sting IS. And he is not alone as on the face of the Earth there are some more guys and girls who simply ARE and need no one introducing them. People like Steve Vai or Joe Satriani (in guitar), Mike Portnoy or Phil Collins (in drumming), Reggie Hamilton, Sting or Stuart Ham (in bass) and so on, they just work their magic with their instruments and make us wonder.
Hardware and instrument manufacturers are always looking for their opinion about various gear, new or in the process of being upgraded. Moreover, manufacturers are looking for big names to endorse: having a world-class player playing, presenting and even more - representing the work and efforts of a manufacturer is one of the best ads one could get.
This is why world-renowned Martin Guitars has teamed up with Sting to create a special acoustic guitar, Sting-dedicated and Sting-specced as well. What's more interesting about the Mini Terz Sting Signature Model is that it follows entirely Martin Guitars' newly-adopted policy regarding ecological issues, especially when it comes to wood.
Briefly, Martin Guitars have become quite interested in preserving the forests and the planet's wood resources and stated that for the future, all Martin guitars will be more and more built from wood coming from forests managed in a sustainable and ecologically responsible manner. It simply couldn't go better as Sting is a co-founder of The Rainforest Foundation, so the two go hand in hand.
The Mini Terz Sting Signature is based on a size-5 and it has 12 frets (to body), running on a "terz" tuning and tone, which is a minor third above standard pitch. Sting has been playing all sorts of Martin guitars during the last 6 years so this is not a premiere - the new thing is that 77 percent of the new guitar is ecologically-friendly. Only 100 of the Martin Stings will be produced and each has two labels: a Signature Edition label personally signed by Sting and Martin Chairman C. F. Martin IV, numbered in sequence with the edition total, plus a Sustainable Wood Series label that explains the wood content percentage.
Finally, allow me to quote Martin Guitars' website with the detailed description of the wood composition used for the Sting Edition and you'll probably get a bit more used to the $4,000 price:
"-The top is western red cedar, highly regarded among guitar builders for warm tone and superb responsiveness. Scalloped 1/4 top bracing assures impressive volume. -The back and sides are Soloman padauk, a beautiful red-orange tonewood similar in sound to mahogany.
-The neck of genuine mahogany is harvested from sustainable sources. -The fingerboard and straight line (non-belly) bridge are crafted from katalox, a beautiful wood with a density and color similar to rosewood. -A generous 1-3/4 at the nut, the neck features a very comfortable semi-V profile, diamond volute and solid squared, tapered headstock. -The headplate, also of Soloman padauk, provides a handsome backdrop to the old style C. F. Martin & Co. gold logo and Gotoh nickel vintage-style tuners. -Long pattern abalone pearl diamonds and squares position markers on the fingerboard lead to Sting?s signature in pearl between the 17th and 18th frets."
