Technical – Page 6
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Premium ❘ FeatureVarnish analysis: shining examples
Identifying the varnish recipes of the early makers has been a long-held dream among researchers. Now, a team at the Arvedi Laboratory of Non-Invasive Diagnostics, headed by Marco Malagodi, has used a new form of micro-CT scanning to delve further into an instrument’s coatings than ever before
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Article
The alchemy of the madder root
Madder root has been used since ancient times to create a deep red pigment – but the making process remains enigmatic
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Trade Secrets: a peninsular bench extension
Ideas for a workplace addition that is completely accessible from all three of its sides
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Making Matters: the DNA of design
David Beard argues that the old Cremonese makers had a geometric system of design ‘recipes’ to create the vast number of different instrument patterns we see today
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Blogs
How a flight-damaged Edward Lewis viola da gamba rose from the ashes
After being seriously damaged in an Alitalia flight, a historical viola da gamba made by Edward Lewis was amazingly brought back to life by Shlomo Moyal. Here is the story of the instrument, to tie in with this month’s Making Matters
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Making Matters: a phoenix from the ashes
Luthier Shlomo Moyal explains how he restored a 1685 viola da gamba that had been almost destroyed, in a project that took a whole year of patient reconstruction
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Trade 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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Feature
Stradivari 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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Focus
I 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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News
Influential 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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Trade 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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Making 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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Ask 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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Feature
Are 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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Views 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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Trade Secrets: Recreating original purfling
Precision and care are prerequisites for this detailed restoration method
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