Emmett Chapman
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Emmett Chapman is the inventor of the Chapman Stick, maker of Chapman Stick instruments, and a jazz musician, recording and performing beginning in the late 1960s.
Chapman played with several different popular artists, including Jazz guitarist Barney Kessell and popular singer/songwriter Tim Buckley, before taking his own band on the road.
In the late 1960s Chapman modified guitars to accommodate a new tap method of playing he developed. This culminated in the creation of the Chapman Stick, with the first Stick manufactured in 1974. During the 1970s Chapman toured extensively to promote his music and the instrument.
In 1983, the patent Chapman received on the tapping method he had independently invented was invalidated when evidence of prior art was discovered, most notably in the form of a prototype instrument developed by luthier Dave Bunker in 1960. Chapman continues to dispute the United States Patent and Trademark Office's findings.
In 1985 Chapman released a solo album titled Parallel Galaxy. This included Chapman playing with a drummer and without, and with harmonica and vocal accompaniment. According to Chapman, his musical style is influenced by jazz guitarist John McLaughlin. One track from the album, Back Yard, was used in the director's cut of the film Dune. A Stick that was painted gold played the part of the "baliset" musical instrument, described in the novel.
In 1987 Chapman released a performance video titled Hands Across The Board. These days Chapman still performs, though not as much, and primarily in the Los Angeles area, where he lives. He also continues to head up Stick Enterprises, the company that makes Chapman Sticks.
In 1996, Chapman filed a patent infringement and product defamation lawsuit against the makers and promoters of several other touchstyle guitars, including the Warr Guitar. After a portion of the suit was dismissed as frivolous by a federal judge (due, in large part, to Chapman's use of Usenet postings as evidence of defamation, a tactic dismissed as hearsay), Chapman dropped the remaining portions of the suit.
External links
- Quicktime video of Chapman playing Lotus on Irish Streams on Chapman Stick (http://www.stick.com/instruments/alto/lotus.mov)
- Stick Enterprises website (http://www.stick.com)
- A defendant's perspective on the 1996 Chapman lawsuit (http://www.traktortopaz.com/lawsuit/)