Lutherie – Page 28
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Premium ❘ FocusThe geometry of violin outlines: Proportional representation
In this article from March 1990, Leslie Wyatt offers a rational and coherent geometrical method for the construction of an inner form outline and for sizing and positioning the f-holes, to break free from the traditional slavish reproduction of classical instruments
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Premium ❘ FeatureClimate conundrum: Does wood from the ‘Little Ice Age’ account for the brilliance of Stradivari’s violins?
Did Stradivari have superior wood because of exceptionally low temperatures during his lifetime? In this article from April 2014, John Waddle, Steve Rossow and Steve Sirr investigate the idea using CT scans of Cremonese instruments
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Premium ❘ FeatureThe ‘Betts’ Stradivari: The progress of progress
A century after The Strad published its first article on the Stradivari ‘Betts’ violin, maker John Waddle asks what the magazine’s descriptions of the instrument reveal about lutherie expertise, and explains his latest high-tech analyses of the instrument. Taken from the May 2010 issue
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FocusFreehand carving: identifying historical violins from Markneukirchen
In this extract, Enrico Weller and William Wisehart analyse trademark features of violins from the southern Saxony instrument-making town
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FocusCutting corner blocks: inside the Markneukirchen violin factory
Our August 2021 issue features the bow making legacy of the Herrmann family in Markneukirchen. In this extract from April 2011, Arian Sheets describes the rise and fall of factory violin making in the 20th century in the same city
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Premium ❘ FeatureMarkneukirchen: The rise and fall of Germany’s first violin factory
A small German town was the setting for an early experiment in violin mass-production. But outside economic forces threatened it from the very start. Arian Sheets traces its history, in this article from the April 2011 issue of The Strad
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FocusMarkneukirchen merging: linking the Herrmann and Knopf bow making families
In this extract from the August 2021 issue, Gennady Filimonov introduces the Herrmann family of bow makers and their close connections with their contemporaries the Knopfs
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Premium ❘ FeatureMaking its mark: How violin making began in Markneukirchen, Germany
From a formative guild of emigrés to world-conquering mass production, few places have as colourful a lutherie story to tell as Markneukirchen. Enrico Weller and William Wisehart assess the history and distinctive character of violin making in this corner of southern Saxony
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FocusThe ‘Amici Bernardi’ Stradivari sitting at the heart of West Sussex’s cultural life
With a price seemingly out of reach at £1.2 million, Andrew Bernardi shares how he convinced a group of investors to help acquire the violin to bring cultural enrichment to audiences in West Sussex, the UK and abroad
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FocusGood vibrations: How violin modes influence tone quality
In the August 2021 issue, Joseph Curtin examines the evolution of neck setting. In part two of his article about violin modal analysis from 2009, he discusses low-frequency resonances that influence a violin’s acoustic behaviour
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FocusStick your neck out: the pros and cons of adjustable necks
In this extract from the August 2021 issue, Joseph Curtin discusses how he experimented with adjustable necks, progressing from the various changes made in connecting an instrument’s neck to its body since the Baroque era
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Focus‘Makers should pay attention to these three modes’ - Joseph Curtin on violin acoustics
In the August 2021 issue, Joseph Curtin examines the evolution of neck setting. Twelve years ago he looked into a violin’s acoustic behaviours, and how its signature ‘modes’ indicate its sound and response
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Premium ❘ FeatureViolin modal analysis – part one: Scent of a violin
In the first of a two-part article from June 2009, Joseph Curtin investigates one of the low-frequency resonances that help define a violin’s acoustic ‘perfume’, and explains how studying it can benefit makers
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Premium ❘ FeatureViolin modal analysis – part two: Good vibrations
In the second of a two-part article from July 2009, Joseph Curtin continues his investigation of the low-frequency resonances that influence a violin’s acoustic behaviour
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Premium ❘ ArticleSoundpost: Letters to the Editor August 2021
A selection of letters The Strad receives each month from its readers around the world: August 2021 issue
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Premium ❘ NewsAnalysis August 2021: Adaptive learning
During the pandemic, some luthiers have begun making online courses to record their techniques and share their knowledge. Is it a viable alternative to one-to-one teaching? By Peter Somerford
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Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Making a martelé button
A simple method for adding this small detail to your bows
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Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Gertrud Reuter
The luthier’s workshop, based in Basel, Switzerland, contains furniture from the Paris firms of Caressa & Français, Maucotel & Deschamps, and Daniel Moinel
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Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: Something in the air
Steve Sirr and John R. Waddle use CT scans to examine the internal air volume of 20 Cremonese violins, and make a surprising discovery about the soundpost position
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ReviewBook review: Monograph of the Antonio Stradivari Cello c.1690 ‘Barjansky’
Florian Leonhard reviews an extensive study of the famous cello, including dendrochronology, CT scans and posters