Posted on November 19, 2019May 23, 2025 by Dale Phillips What You Should Know About The Hardanger Fiddle What You Should Know About The Hardanger Fiddle by David Golber Previously published in American Lutherie #36, 1993 and The Big Red Book of American Lutherie, Volume Three, 2004 Someone has walked into your shop with yet another weird instrument. This time, it’s sort of like a violin, but it has a whole lot of pegs, the top is carved funny, it has pearl and bone inlay, and it’s decorated with flowery drawings. He says his grandfather brought it from Norway in 1890, and he wants you to put it in playing condition. Well, it’s a Hardanger fiddle (hardingfele in Norwegian). The instrument originated in the area around the Hardanger fjord, whence its name. It is distinctly Norwegian; in fact, it is played in only about a quarter of Norway, the western and south-central areas. The oldest instrument found has a date of 1651. The musical tradition is still very much alive, and continues unbroken up to the present. Beginning in about 1850, there was an absolutely enormous emigration from Norway to America — something like a third of the population. Those who played fiddle of course brought their fiddles with them. In addition there were tours by professional players who performed for their emigrated countrymen and then returned to Norway. But the instrument and the music died out in America. The children of the immigrants rarely learned to play, and father’s fiddle lay in its case in the attic, or was hung on the wall like an icon of a lost era. Now there is something like a revival here in America, not only among the descendants of the immigrants, but also among those not of Norwegian ancestry who have discovered the music. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on October 31, 2019May 14, 2025 by Dale Phillips Meet the Maker: Douglas Martin Meet the Maker: Douglas Martin by Barbara Goldowsky previously published in American Lutherie #90, 2007 The violin is about the only man-made device that is made today exactly as it has been for the past 300 years. Now, finally, a revolution may be under way, according to Joseph Curtin of Ann Arbor, Michigan, the craftsman who just recently was awarded the first MacArthur Fellowship ever granted to a violin maker. The cause of his startling statement is a balsa-wood violin that produces the powerful sound and excellent response everyone in the profession strives for. The unusual instrument’s creator is Douglas Martin, an amateur maker from Maine, who first introduced it to colleagues in July 2004. Since then, Mr. Martin’s work has sparked such enthusiasm that a special “Festival of Innovation” has been added to the Violin Society of America’s upcoming convention, from November 10–13, in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. The new program’s goal is “to explore the future evolution of the violin — to inspire makers to follow their creative dreams wherever they may lead,” according to Fan Tao, a research scientist and a director of the VSA. In the society’s most recent newsletter, Mr. Curtin, also a director, claims that the traditional violin is “obsolete,” and urges members to “judge for yourself — join in the arguments, hoot or applaud — but don’t let the revolution start without you!” Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on October 31, 2019May 14, 2025 by Dale Phillips Bow Rehairing Bow Rehairing by Paul Hill previously published in American Lutherie #91, 2007 Bows need rehairing on a regular basis. As bow hair ages it gets brittle and breaks more easily, and with use it wears itself smooth, won’t hold rosin as well, and produces a thin sound. Sometimes hairs break more on one side than the other, pulling the bow sideways. Bow bugs may chew the hair into a frizzy pile. Some fine violinists can hear the change in tone and have their bows rehaired every few months, and some fiddlers wait till there are only a few dozen hairs left. Beginning violinists may not notice the degradation in tone since it happens slowly, but most will notice immediately when they get new hair! I rehair about fifty bows a year, and have been doing it for thirty years. My one-man repair shop is in my basement and space is at a premium, and since this is not my favorite job, I’ve evolved a compact system that works for me, minimizing the time and tedium, and making it enjoyable in a Zen kind of way. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 26, 2019May 14, 2025 by Dale Phillips The Catgut Acoustical Society and the New Violin Family Association The Catgut Acoustical Society and the New Violin Family Association by Robert J. Spear previously published in American Lutherie #86, 2006 See also, Meet the Maker: Carleen Hutchins by Alan Carruth The New Violin Family by Alan Carruth The Catgut Acoustical Society (CAS) had been known for nearly fifty years for the creation of the violin octet, mainly through the research and development of Carleen Hutchins (with the assistance of over a hundred society members), but the society also undertook a number of acoustically related projects during this same period. As the 20th century ended, some members wanted to focus more on these areas. There was also a growing feeling among the octet developers that this magnificent set of instruments needed to leave the world of science and enter the world’s concert stages. At the end of 1999, the society split into two groups, with one retaining the original CAS name and research focus. The other, the New Violin Family Association (NVFA), was formed to take on the challenge of promoting the Violin Octet. The division produced advantages and disadvantages for all concerned. The CAS and NVFA were now free to focus more directly on their respective areas of interest. But both were considerably smaller and financially weaker after the membership divided, and each soon had to redefine itself. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 20, 2019May 27, 2025 by Dale Phillips The New Violin Family The New Violin Family by Alan Carruth previously published in American Lutherie #86, 2006 See also, Meet the Maker: Carleen Hutchins by Alan Carruth The Catgut Acoustical Society and the New Violin Family Association by Robert J. Spear These diagrams are intended to show the relative sizes of the octet instruments; dimensions shown are not definitive. Detailed full-scale plans are available from the New Violin Family Association. The neck of the small bass as shown here is longer than might be expected. This is to ease the transition between a standard bass viol and the octet small bass. Small basses have also been built successfully with necks that are more in scale with the instrument body. The largest five instruments are played on endpins. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
