Musical interests.

I have been intested in music of various forms my whole life. As a child, I learned piano and violin, and later double bass. I played in several youth orchestras (at a beginner-intermediate level). During my teen years, I became interested in jazz and rock. Later on, I got involved with traditional English music and "Contemporary folk". These days, I only recognise two types of music - stuff I like, and stuff I don't like. Currently, I have a small collection of musical instruments.

	My main instrument is a 1999 Martin OM18-V steel string guitar. I searched for months for a Martin that had the same sound and feel as the 60's Martin 0018 I had on loan for a couple of years in the late '80s. I knew this was the guitar for me as soon as I picked it up. It's a fraction larger than the 0018, but it really is very similar. I also have a Martin travel guitar, which I take with me if I have to travel for work reasons. The rest of the time I have it in some alternative tuning. A cheap (but quite playable) Washburn electric completes the guitar lineup.
	I have a Yamaha 5-string bass which I play through a Trace-Elliot 715-SMC combo, and I recently purchased a fretless bass. I was looking for a Music Man Stingray, but I happened to see a used G&L SB-2 for an attractive price, so I bought that instead. It is a decent instrument, with a reasonable range of sounds, and it'll let me get my intonation back without breaking the bank.
	My collection is rounded out by a Mid-Missouri M4 mandolin (bought used at Gryphon Strings in Palo Alto. It looks plain, but sounds superb. (Actually, I prefer instruments that aren't highly ornamented anyway. Hence my choice of a style 18 Martin.)

Finally I have a no-name brand Alto Saxophone, which I utterly fail to be able to play.