Taken yesterday after sound check before the first concert of the tour. This is a 5 string violin that I made last fall at the request of Emily Yarascavitch, violinist for the Tartan Terrors. Making a 5-string violin allows one to make their own decisions about measurements. One of the main criteria is that it should be more robust to handle the extra pressure of the C string, and yet it must still fit into a normal violin case. I made the chinrest from European boxwood and it's taller than normal to suit the unique requirements of the owner.
My 50th instrument was glued together and strung up "in the white" yesterday. I'm not convinced that we learn much by playing an instrument before it's varnished and adjusted, but I have to say, when I play this violin, I'm really enjoying it!
It's encouraging to think I might be able to start varnishing next month, weather permitting. It's also satisfying to be building up my inventory again as I feel most people want to be able to compare several instruments when shopping for something special. The top of this violin is made of haselfichte spruce. This is the first European spruce that I've used in a violin. Haselfichte spruce has a random figure in the grain that reflects light differently. This characteristic is known in the guitar world as "bearclaw". The figure variations in this piece are subtle. Perhaps they will become more pronounced when varnished. I hope so. I like unusual visual changes that quietly draw the attention of the perceptive eye. Haselfichte is considered by some to have superior tonal characteristics. I don't have enough experience with the material to have an opinion but this violin does sound quite nice in its current unvarnished state. I just ordered more violin wood and the theme was "Interesting". I was in the mood for something outside of the standard or normal flame and grain patterns. As a maker, I have the freedom to stretch the boundaries and I enjoy taking advantage of that. In the process, I sent my supplier examples of previous violins made from interesting wood to help guide him in his search. I thought you might like to see the photos I sent him.
The wood shipped yesterday and will likely show up on my doorstep in the next two months and I'm already wondering which back piece to select first. In the meantime, I'm making a 5 string violin for a full time musician, and using 30 - 40 year old wood I acquired from a famous player earlier this summer. It looks like I might get that one finished while the weather this fall is still suitable for varnishing. It bears mentioning that on a number of occasions over two years, I've had the pleasure to receive feedback from a retired concertmaster. His support continues to be most appreciated and it's wonderful to have a second set of ears judging the results before I share my instruments with prospective clients. Violin setup can be tricky sometimes and it's nice to make it a collaborative effort. We're getting together tomorrow after a few months hiatus and I'm really looking forward to finding out if he's hearing what I'm hearing. I guess I've been busy since my last post. The pandemic has been a strange journey for most of us. Happily, so far, all is well here on that front. I see people infrequently and cautiously. My work is suited to that sort of thing. My inventory has been low for the past year but I'm putting the finishing coats on what is my fourth and possibly last violin until next spring. There's a waiting list so we will see if anything remains after the fall. I simply take names and when a violin is available, I go down the list. The first person on the list has been playing my violins before and after they are varnished, so after this last one is finished, decisions will start to be made. I spent a lot of time doing research on Youtube this spring. Some makers I highly respect have been posting their methods and I saw a few ideas or methods that I have been incorporating into my work. I think it's paying off. Time will tell. Some day I will have to highlight some of the people who have been influential and helped me on my path. I've been very fortunate. In other news, if you're a fan of celtic music, hand crafted violins (one of mine) and wonderful music ability, check out Jarred Albright on his 5-string: Two nights ago, one of my clients came and played through some of my latest violins. My current favourite violin did not grab him like I felt it should. This caused me to turn my thoughts to what could be modified. I had an old mismatched set of middle of the road strings on it. We decided to replace them with Jargar Superior strings. After about 3 notes the violin had our attention. It was a reminder how the best violins can muddle along below their full potential due to something unique lacking in the setup. In this case, the violin needed a certain brand of string to bring out the best in it. That night Bach, combined with the voice of the violin made for a somewhat emotional evening. I'm at a loss how to explain it any better. Perhaps this winter I will keep this blog up to date. For now I plan to make one or two violins and probably a cello. The cello design is my own which is very comfortable, seemingly not wolfy, very responsive and full of good tone. I've been advised not to change anything. Stay tuned....... You might enjoy this mini documentary which fills in some background on my life as a luthier. Thanks to journalist Taylor Morton for helping me tell the story. Pictured above is a quarter sawn willow board which will one day be destined to form the back of a cello. I encountered a cello with a willow back this fall and the unique sound intrigued me. I started thinking about willow backs and in the course of things I discovered that my usual supplier had a wonderful selection of willow wood. I was hooked. This slab showed up around the end of December. I won't be using this piece immediately as it was expensive and I need to practice with more modest willow first.
It's been an unusual winter. I haven't made a violin since the summer. Instead I:
I attended many musical events this winter and most included musicians who regularly play on my instruments. I enjoy the unique pleasure of hearing performances where I know some of the players and also their instruments. It's very special! I've been playing the new cello since the new year as I wait for the sunny weather to arrive so I can varnish it. It's the kind of cello that keeps begging you to play more. However, there's a new design of cello that I'm excited about. It's a blend of inspiration coming from Guadagnini and Guiseppi Guarneri filius Andreae. One might wonder why I'm not planning to duplicate my most recent cello since it's incredibly comfortable to play and the tone seems to be outstanding. I'm not sure I have a good answer at the moment but it's probably several months before I get serious so I have some time to think about it. The Guadagnini inspired cello has an outline that I find contradictory and I never tire of looking at it. It appears slightly portly, yet the overall dimensions are somewhat slender. While I was waiting for the varnish season to arrive, I took the image of a Brothers Amati viola and reduced it to 15 1/2". The last coat of varnish went on it two or three days ago, so now it's curing for a week in preparation for the final setup and adjustment. I had it strung up "in the white" for a while and the feedback from a full time violist was very encouraging. In the meantime, I've been comissioned to make a 5-string violin. In this case, I've enlarged the outline of the Del Gesu Alard violin by about 10 mm. I was fortunate to have a Silokowski 5-string violin to measure before I started the project. This violin is scheduled for completion early in the summer. Next on the list is a straight forward violin project. I've selected the wood from my inventory and now I'm thinking about it a bit. I will probably use a pattern of my own design as the violins made from that pattern seem to be very successful. It's always nice to have an instrument to craft while waiting for varnish to dry. Here's the neck block on the cello I'm making. Willow from N. British Columbia. Notice the lovely flame in the wood. I'd like to think flamed willow is a rarity. It shows up in some of the linings on this cello as well. Most people will only see the outside of the cello body and this block will simply make up some if its inner beauty. I often impress my initial onto the neck blocks of my instruments. Those who take out the endpin to look inside will find it, but otherwise only the label which was hand printed on a vintage letterpress will indicate that the instrument was crafted by me.
I've been thinking of building a different cello for several months. It takes a lot of thinking because cellos come in many different shapes and sizes and I don't want to tamper with the tonal success I've enjoyed with the current model.
The drive to do something different came from my desire to keep cello building fresh and my instructor's suggestion to make something comfortable. Like a lot of people, my instructor is smaller than average and standard sized cellos can be uncomfortable for non standard sized people. I find my cellos to be comfortable while playing them, but when I stand up after an hour of play, my legs feel pretty stiff. I suspect this situation will intensify with age. My experience from making different sized violins is that great sounding instruments can come in different shapes and sizes, and since great sounding vintage cellos have mostly been reduced from their original size, perhaps a smaller cello can be comfortable, easy to play and sound great. BTW, I've come to realize that string choice is not only time consuming, but very effective in bringing out the best in a cello. So, maybe the right strings will compensate for size. I've gathered input from a variety of players, analyzed measurements from a dozen cellos and played a few cellos of different shapes and sizes. I've ended up taking inspiration from the "Simpson" Guagagnini . Compared to my current model, it's a little shorter, narrower in the upper and lower bouts, and a little bit wider in the C bout. I hope to keep the string length at what's considered to be normal for a full size violin. Already I'm eager to hear how it sounds, but I'll likely have to wait until about a year from now as I hope to have it ready for the start of the outdoor varnish season next May. I review a lot of violin related material. It's easy to find many a writer or video host waxing eloquently about the romance and almost magical genius behind the stringed instruments of the "old masters". It's impressive to think that some of these instruments sell for over $10 million. My goodness, at that price they must indeed be special and one could easily surmise that instruments by contemporary makers must pale by comparison.
I recently came across a short article where the author talks about how instruments by the old masters were modified. The former trend of reducing the size of great old Italian cellos and violas causes one to cringe at the thought of how that process must have interfered with all the care and rigourous attention to the lost art and principles that went into making those instruments. It makes one wonder how an instrument can be modified to such a degree and come out the other end still sounding better than anything a contemporary maker could produce today. It's been one of those days. After working for months on a new violin I finally managed to string it up this morning. It was a struggle to rein in my excitement and carefully and methodically finish the fingerboard, install the nut, carefully and precisely fit a soundpost and fit a bridge. I got lucky and found a bridge from an earlier violin, so I just had to fit the feet. The E string is a bit high, but things are going to change on this violin, so it's fine to start with.
Now that the violin is playable, I'm starting to relax. It's a nice feeling! It's the same feeling you get after Christmas morning. In terms of dimensions, the violin is on the more petite or delicate side, but just a little. I chose to model this violin after the Del Gesu Plowden. I haven't made one like it for a while and I wanted to see how well I could bring out the tone in a smaller body. Usually violins don't sound their best when you first string them up. However, this one has been improving as the day moves on, and I can tell there's lots of potential to bring out wonderful things in this instrument. For now, it just needs some time to settle and adjust to the tensions from the strings. Then I will figure out my next adjustment. In the meantime, I have a lovely violin to play over the festive season and I am very grateful that I have the ability to create items from wood that produce such lovely sounds. Speaking of gratitude, I appreciate all the support from family, friends and clients which allows me to continue to work my wonderful craft. You know who you are. |
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