By Joanne O'Sullivan
Photos By Rimas Zailskas
Geographically speaking, Doug Wyatt is fortunate in his choice of obsessions. While many think of the Blue Ridge as a bastion of traditional craft, culture and music, his infatuation is a pure product of the digital age. Wyatt is enchanted with synthesizers and electronic keyboards, and that fervor was greatly enriched because Bob Moog — the man credited with inventing the synthesizer — chose to live in Asheville.
"I know I would have loved and collected synthesizers even if I didn’t have the chance to know Bob Moog," says Wyatt, a lifelong resident of Western North Carolina. "But when Bob came to live in Asheville, it was a really lucky stroke for me because I got to work on and talk about synthesizers with the world’s leading expert."
Wyatt was practically weaned on the technology. He was 12 years old when he saw his first synthesizer at a local Radio Shack and he recalls wanting it desperately, but since he was just a kid with no money, he could only dream. "I don’t know what I would’ve done with it, I only know that I wanted it," Wyatt says. "I really can’t remember a time in my life when I haven’t loved keyboards."
As he grew older — and more financially solvent — Wyatt made up for lost time. By his count, he now owns 62 synthesizers — many of which are rare models, and some of them prototypes developed by Moog. He owns a half dozen of the world-famous Moog Synthesizers — a few of them signed by the maestro himself. Wyatt also has a framed photo and article about Moog, which the inventor signed and personally inscribed, calling Wyatt "a synthesizer guru."
"Bob Moog wouldn’t ever B.S. about something like that," Wyatt says. "So it is really special to me."
A seasoned musician, Wyatt plays both the keyboard and guitar and has toured professionally with several bands. His ultimate dream is to record an original composition that would utilize each of his synthesizers in some way. "I have no idea how it might sound or how I could work all the synthesizers into the same song, but I’ll give it a try some day soon," Wyatt says with a grin.
Wyatt’s preoccupation with synthesizers led him to understand not only what effects are possible, but also how the instruments function. Some of his happiest hours, he says, have been spent rebuilding what he calls "vintage" synthesizers. One of his pride-and-joys is a Sequential Circuits Pro-One, which he found in a music store in Upstate South Carolina.
The synthesizer was in a bad state of repair and was "basically falling apart," Wyatt recalls. He bought it for $60 and tinkered with it off and on for several years. The instrument is now completely reconditioned and probably worth around $1,000, according to Wyatt. "Of the ones that I now own, that rebuilt Pro-One has to be one of my favorites," he says.
His passion for and knowledge of synthesizers definitely earned Moog’s respect, and he encouraged Wyatt to call him or drop by his house or studio anytime he wanted. Wyatt recalls trying to work on one of his synthesizers called a Memorymoog Plus and being stumped by a problem. He called Bob Moog for help.
Moog told Wyatt that he had the original blueprints for the synthesizer at his warehouse in Leicester, right outside of Asheville, and promised Wyatt that he would bring the schematics and help him work on the synthesizer. Six years after receiving that promise, Wyatt got a call from Moog who said that he had found the plans and was ready to work on repairing the synthesizer.
"He came over and we worked on that synthesizer for seven hours straight. It was great to see how his mind worked and to really understand how he designed and built his synthesizers," Wyatt says.
Having learned from the master, Wyatt’s reputation as a connoisseur has flourished among musicians in Western North Carolina and has spread to some of the recording industry’s most famous synthesizer artists, including Rick Wakeman. Wakeman — who gained worldwide fame in the 1970s as the keyboardist for the British rock group Yes —is widely acknowledged as one of the best synthesizer players in the world. The two musicians have developed what Wyatt calls an "email friendship."
Wakeman may well be a bit envious of Wyatt’s collection, arguably one of the most complete and extensive in the world (although there are currently no statistics available for synthesizer collections). Clearly, Wakeman’s interest shows that Wyatt’s collection has substance.
In fact, he has offered to buy one of Wyatt’s rare synthesizers: a Crumar Spirit prototype that Bob Moog built himself. According to Wyatt, only two of these synthesizers exist. Even sweeter, the restored instrument that Wyatt owns has been signed by Moog. "I’ll never sell it, but Rick is really interested in it. He keeps emailing me asking if I’m ready for him to take it off my hands," Wyatt says with a laugh.
But beyond the collection, Wyatt’s enthusiasm for push-the-envelope musical instruments has led him to build his own finely crafted guitars; Doug Wyatt Guitars are rapidly gaining a name among musicians in many genres. His skills have also led to a gig with Moog Music, as the luthier for the new state-of-the-art Moog guitars, which they began marketing in June 2008. It seemed a natural fit.
"At first, when they offered me the job, the folks at Moog Music didn’t know my connection to Bob Moog," Wyatt says. "But now they know, and it makes me proud that in some way I can keep Moog’s tradition of crafting the best electronic instruments in the world alive."
Dining + Nightlife
The line out the door seen daily at 12 Bones Smokehouse (5 Riverside Dr., 828-253-4499) says it all. Flavor-packed smoked meats and sides with a twist are worth the wait at this fun, friendly barbecue joint.
Clingman Avenue Coffee and Catering (242 Clingman Ave., 828-253-2177) — open for breakfast, lunch and coffee — offers local flavor on the plate and in the atmosphere. Expect friendly service, exhibitions of local artists’ work, free wireless and a view of passing trains. Classic Greek diner and neighborhood institution for over 50 years, The Silver Dollar (175 Clingman Ave., 828-253-9573) is open for breakfast and lunch seven days a week.
On show nights at the The Grey Eagle (185 Clingman Ave., 828-232-5800), you can hear great music and enjoy tasty Cajun specialties at the venue’s Two Cousins Kitchen.
The Wedge Brewing Company (151 Roberts St., below the Wedge Gallery), the new kid on the block, offers its signature beer — Iron Rail IPA — as well as an organic carob maple porter, a Czech pilsner and the Golem Belgian Strong Ale.
Galleries + Culture
The District’s twice-yearly Studio Stroll offers a look inside the workspaces of dozens of artists. The next stroll will take place on November 8 and 9.
Flood Gallery Fine Art Center and its Pump Gallery in the Phil Mechanic Building (109 Roberts St., floodgallery.org) host not only an ongoing schedule of contemporary art exhibitions, but poetry and a "sonic experience" series as well. Visitors to the Jonas Gerard Gallery (240 Clingman Ave.) get a look at the latest paintings by the internationally recognized artist, and get to see him at work, too. The Wedge (151 Roberts St.) is home to several artists’ studios, a clay cooperative and a new brewery. The Odyssey Center for Ceramic Arts (236-238 Clingman Ave., 828-285-0210) offers classes for adults and children, and hosts gallery exhibitions of work by instructors and residents. Other studios in the area keep open studio hours, including several in Curve Studios (6-9 Lyman St.), Cotton Mill Studios (122 Riverside Dr.), Riverview Station (191 Lyman St.), Railside Studios (166 W. Haywood St.), Riverside Studios (174 W. Haywood St.), Warehouse Studios (170 Lyman St.), and Roberts Street Studios (140 Roberts St). Find out who’s open when by searching on www.riverdistrictartists.com.
A recent addition to the neighborhood is the Asheville Free Book Exchange (191 Lyman St. at Riverview Station). Take a book, leave a book, sit on the couch and stay awhile — it’s all free.
Real Estate
Real estate in the area is diverse: a two-bedroom mill house fixer on Chicken Hill recently listed for $235,000, while a brand-new, three-bedroom, three-bath green-built property down the road hit the market at $398,000. Lofts in the new Chesterfield Mill site will start at $150,000.
Recreation
For now, you’ll have to go to the other side of the river to find a park, but there are picnic tables set up under the bridge on Riverside Drive and there are several spots for fishing in the same vicinity.
Plans for the Wilma Dykeman RiverWay (view at www.riverlink.org) include hiking and biking trails along the river as well as a sculpture park. Riverlink also publishes a waterproof French Broad River Map and Guide, available at their office (170 Lyman St.) which provides information on French Broad river recreation.
Southern Waterways (521 Amboy Rd. near the French Broad River Park, 828-232-1970) offers canoe, kayak and rafting rentals. There are 25 put-in and take-out points along the river in Transylvania, Henderson, Buncombe and Madison counties.
Local historian Rob Neufeld and his son Henry have just published an area history and guidebook titled Images of America: Asheville’s River Arts District. (www.arcadiapublishing.com).
For more information about the area go to riverartsdistrict.com.
