Technical – Page 13
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Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Flattening planes
A sadly necessary task for all luthiers, which should have been taken care of by the manufacturer in the first place
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FeatureStradivari and the sharkskin sandpaper
This microscope image of what looks like a shark’s tooth embedded in a 1711 cell is evidence of dogfish skin, writes Joseph Campanella Cleary
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FocusI shy away from copying models that are too individual, says violin maker Sam Zygmuntowicz
The luthier's favourite instruments provide ideal models for his own making
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NewsInfluential Italian luthier Renato Scrollavezza has died
Born in poverty and initially self taught, he went on to mentor generations of violin makers at his lutherie school in Parma
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Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Arching, channelling and edgework
A method that unites all three parts of the making process, for a more coherent and efficient way of working
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Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: The simplest machine
The humble wedge is a stalwart of the luthier’s workshop. Joseph Campanella Cleary examines some of the myriad ways they improve the quality of life for craftspeople
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Premium ❘ FeatureAsk the Experts: choosing a new violin tailpiece
A violinist asks what he should consider when choosing a new tailpiece – from the material used to the weight and shape
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FeatureAre dendrochronology reports useful in valuing an instrument?
Dealers and auction houses increasingly include dendrochronology reports along with high-value instruments, but how meaningful are they in verifying an attribution?
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Premium ❘ FeatureViews on the Bridge
In the second of two articles on set-up, Joseph Curtin investigates the acoustical role of the violin bridge and the interconnected relationships between mass, frequency and resonance
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Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Recreating original purfling
Precision and care are prerequisites for this detailed restoration method
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Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: Ten out of ten
The great 19th-century French bow makers had to produce a large amount of stock to make a living. Christophe Landon explores how their working methods differed from ours, as he makes ten simultaneous copies of one Peccatte bow
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BlogsPostcard from the inaugural Australian Luthier & Archetier Congress
Peter Reid writes a first-hand account of the first international violin making workshop in Australia in decades
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VideoBBC Radio 4: The Instrument Makers
In this radio programme, cellist and presenter Verity Sharp hears the stories of four very different instrument makers
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Premium ❘ Feature7 things to remember when buying a bow
Bows, for so long seen as mere accessories, are increasingly attracting serious investors, writes Femke Colborne
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VideoBass conversion from 4-string to 5-string
This is the first in a series from the workshop of Thomas & George Martin on re-converting a German bass from 4-string (with extension) back to its original state as a 5-string. View the whole series on the Thomas & George Martin YouTube channel
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Premium ❘ FeatureAsk the Experts: how to fix a wobbling bow frog
A reader asks what should be done when a bow frog wobbles after a rehair – and what does it say about the rehairer? Two makers give their views
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Premium ❘ FeatureAll Set up and Ready to Go
In the first of two articles looking at instrument set-up, Joseph Curtin examines the acoustic roles played by the tailpiece and fingerboard in affecting vibration, frequency and resonance
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GalleryGallery: asymmetric instruments
These instruments are featured in The Strad’s September 2019 issue focus on experiments with asymmetry in instrument design