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Interesting thought on instrument perfection
Basically, in this short video the question is asked:
Can you name one thing that was invented four-hundred years ago that hasn't been changed or improved? He shows the violin, whose design was "perfected" four centuries ago and has not changed since. Why? How? How is that even possible. So, in theory (my words not his) it is at a point where it can no longer be improved and therefore, by the definition of miprovement, it is perfect. Kind of an interesting "hmmmm" moment
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#2
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Violin design has actually evolved quite a bit over the last several hundred years. Early violins were baroque instruments with shorter necks attached with nails with a lower angle to the body, shorter fingerboards often made of fruitwood rather than ebony, a shorter bridge, lighter fittings (much lighter all-tied tailpieces with no micro-adjusters) and differently graduated soundboards.
Many of the instruments in current use, including Strads and Amaris and del Gesus, have had new necks with greater angle and dovetail attached - in some cases, the scrolls are grafted from old to new necks. Fruitwood fingerboards have been replaced with longer ebony boards. Bridges are taller to reflect the increased neck angle. The bass bars and sometimes the whole top may have been regraduated to different thicknesses to manage strain of steel strings, including patching and in some cases entirely doubled to increase strength. Fittings are modern and heavier. The *basic* design is similar, but a baroque violin is a very different creature than a modern violin. I just attended the early music festival in Berkeley and listened to side by side demos of baroque gut strung instrument with modernized instruments, and it’s quite a contrast. A link for anyone who might be interested: http://www.themonteverdiviolins.org/baroque-violin.html Last edited by M Hayden; 07-29-2018 at 11:15 AM. |
#3
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… and now there's the usage of carbon fiber and composites to craft a violin.
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#4
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I love Mark O'Connor. He is a brilliant musician, but his premise is flawed. Violins have changed since the Baroque period. In the simplest terms, chin rests and shoulder rests have changed the way musicians play and represent a large leap in the development of the instrument. Not to mention that very few of the great violins have remained entirely in their original condition.
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#5
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New Mandolin
As of day before yesterday, I have a new mandolin. A year ago I bought the best kit I could find from Chris Baird at Arches Mandolins. It was a bittersweet day stringing it up. Due to health and other factors, he had to take a job with health insurance, so he announced the discontinuation of the kits. Shortly thereafter a wildfire burned his shop to the ground. His house was saved.
So I was stringing this mandolin I built up for the first time thinking of what that would be like. Ten months in the making, two building it and the rest getting the nerve to start the next step. Carving, scraping, making tools, binding, fretting, glueing, it was all new to me. Well, once in a while things work out. I figure I have $1200 invested. My goal was to build something that sounded better than what I could buy for that, and I exceeded my goal. By a lot. If you know anything about the cost of a mandolin, you know to get equal quality to a guitar you need to double the cost, and add a healthy bit more for the scroll. A very plain Collings or Gibson will set you back $4500 or more and one with binding front and back, down the fretboard and around the headstock is more like $7500. I'm retired and dont have that much money. So I took the plunge and am glad I did. It's not varnished yet. I spent all day playing it, sanding the neck, playing, sanding, and am close to a final shape. It's a great sense of accomplishment for sure, with about the looks you'd expect from a first build. Things I've learned: mandolins are not overpriced. There is a ton of work there. Maybe you should not build the most difficult instrument to build first. LOL. Embrace imperfection. Be happy.
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#6
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Quote:
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