The construction of the Stradivarius violin is very unique compared to the build of other violins, whether they were made centuries ago or serve as modern day instruments. While there are a number of other rare violins and instruments of different kinds, not even one has ever came remarkably close to achieving what Antonio Stradivari has with the making of his stringed instruments, in particular, his violins. Over the years there have been many attempts to reproduce the authentic sound quality of his instruments, but no one has ever been able to achieve this goal. What exactly makes the Stradivarius violin so unique? The materials used to make the instrument along with his method of construction and the time period in which it was constructed …show more content…
Stradivari was actually well in touch with the results of other impressive instruments that had been constructed before his. He was able to gain experience by comparing the many instruments built by the early Brescian and Cremonese makers by deducing from them the aspects that made them unfavorable and applying these aspects to his own creative works. Every generation has contributed something to the construction of musical instruments, and Stradivari combined these centuries of contributions to create something astounding that opened up a new chapter in history. While it is a known fact that Stradivari got a lot of inspiration from previous violinmakers (Visconti, who is a well-known violinist, is said to have given advice to this “master” of violin construction), people insist that he was a natural born genius, so much so that he has been claimed to be a “superhuman”. Based on scientific principles, many different works have been written based on the unsurpassed tonal qualities found in his instruments. However, there has also been a daily study of Stradivari’s works that were compared to those of the craftsmen who came before him. When put to the test it was found that the density of the bellies and backs of Stradivari’s instruments were made based on the principles of Gasparo, in addition to the result of a gradual progression, which Maggini and Amatis had in common with him. Those who have examined his work have noted that Stradivari adjusted the thickness of his instruments, but there is no indication that he used any principles as a guide other than what has been derived from the practices of his forerunners. Stradivari left the backs and bellies of his instruments a little thinner (or stouter), with their backs displaying a larger variation than their
Even though the size of the violin made it seem less intimidating, learning how to play the violin
Many violinists and cellists use Stradivari instruments in their work. Yo-Yo Ma currently uses the Davidov Stradivarius,Julian Lloyd Webber employs the Barjansky Stradivarius.
The violin is the smallest and highest pitched string instrument. It is played by a violinist or fiddler. When playing, the violinist holds the violin between the top of his left shoulder and the left side of his chin as he draws the bow across the string or plucks the strings with one or both hands. The sound can be stopped by placing a hand on the strings. The bow is made of wood and horse hair. The violin is tuned in perfect fifths. Music for the violin is written in the treble clef. In the orchestra, the violins play in two groups. These are the first violins and the second violins. In the orchestra, the violins sit to the left of the conductor in rows. The first violins are to the far left and the second violins are to the right of them. The Concert Master is usually a first violin player, and he or she sits in the front row of the first violins.
Although Igor Stravinsky was a Christian and Claude Debussy was a hedonistic atheist, they were both modern classical composers. However, this was not their only similarity. They also studied music at a college, quickly rose to fame, and composed in several different styles.
Fritz Kreisler could easily be called the best violinist of his time. When he was three he constructed a working instrument from a cigar box and shoestrings, and played it in perfect pitch (“Fritz Kreisler”). He showed a natural aptitude for the violin. Fritz Kreisler is a hero because he is intelligent, brave, and noble.
My journey as a violinist has been a long haul, to put it lightly. I started from the bottom, and grew my skill set incrementally. I have been through finger calluses, an incalculable number of strings, and countless nights of frustrated tears. Despite these difficulties, that wooden box has imbued me with numerous attributes
During the classical era, civilizations around the world, including China, India, and Rome, underwent a period of immense political and cultural change; these changes paved the way for the past and future cultures to influence the world today. However, in India, a notable amount of change was seen in a relatively short time; the amount of transformation can almost be compared to civilizations that have lasted twice as long, such as China. Indian civilization, between 300 – 600 CE, continued as a Hinduism-based society with large amounts of trade, a patriarchal familial structure, and a caste-based social structure.
Ludwig van Beethoven is a name that is common to most people and is synonymies with great classical music. He is known, quite loosely, as the German composer who created beautiful pieces with an incredible disability. Despite an unhappy family setting and the deafness that struck soon after, the man appeared to rise from his misfortunes and follow his passion. Mr. Beethoven created some of the most wonderful music and is considered one of the greatest musicians of all time. Ludwig, at a very young age, began his career as a marvelous piano player and composer of piano music. Beethoven continued his work expanding to string quartets and other kinds of chamber music, songs, two masses, an opera, and nine symphonies. The
In the early Middle Ages, the human voice, God's creation within us, had been regarded in the sacred realm as being the only instruments we needed. The church considered the use of instruments as profane. There was no musical notation as songs were passed along from person to person by rote memorization. In the secular world, instruments were used at times by jongleurs, trouveres, and minnesingers. Some of those early instruments include the "vielle, harp, psaltery, flute, shawm, bagpipe, and drums (Thomas et al.). " Those instruments were most likely used in an accompaniment capacity, but since musical notation in the secular world was not really happening during this period, not a lot of concrete information is really known about instrumental
Nikolai Tambovsky , is one of the most excellent makers of violins. His violins and string instruments, undeniably,
Born on December 17, 1770, Beethoven was a child Maria Magdalena Keverich and Johann Van Beethoven, where he was born and raised in Bonn, Germany. At quite a young age, Beethoven began exhibiting impressive musical talents. Following, Beethoven’s father became his initial musical instructor, however his methods of teaching were certainly questionable. Johann was brute, it was accounted for by neighbors that they witnessed a small child weeping playing the clavier while standing atop a footstool to reach the keys. His father shadowed him and punished him for every mistake; he also overworked and deprived him of sleep. With his father, Beethoven studied the clavier as well as the violin. He also received additional lessons from organists in the city he resided in, adding to his workload. Hoping for his son to be recognized as a musical prodigy, Beethoven’s first recital was held on March 26, 1778 when he was seven years old. Unfortunately, the performance was not a success, not in the way his father had hoped, Beethoven’s talents where indeed portrayed, however it did not receive the type of recognition that Johann had hoped for as there was no press or publicity. Meanwhile, average was a fitting word to describe Beethoven’s studies, music came more naturally to him than anything else. Therefore, he withdrew from school at the age of ten and committed his life to music. Following, he began to study music with the newly appointed court organist who went by the name of Christian
Antonio Stradivari, a man known by many as on of the greatest luthiers of all time. The question at hand is why? From as early as the early 1700’s Stradivari was well known in the music world and still is. His instruments are reproduced in order to fool consumers into buying an instrument that has the same design as a Strad. There are also luthiers that try to replicate Stradivari’s beautiful design for their own satisfaction. Antonio Stradivari’s instruments have become socially and technically popular over time due to his superior craftsmanship, and for others, its large price tag. Stradivari’s life, affecting how his instruments were made, changed the perception of his instruments
Something that you may not know about Antonio is that at age 15 he studied to be a priest. After 10 years of studying the lord he was officially ordained. A fun fact about Vivaldi is that they actually called him “il Prete Rosso” which means “The Red Priest”. The other priests called him this due to his red hair. Sadly, his ten years of studying didn’t pay off because he had to end his priesthood because of unknown medical issues. After he ended his priesthood Vivaldi got bored often so so decided to take the violin more serious. In fact he took it so seriously that he actually taught it at Ospedale Della Pieta which was an orphanage. Much like his priesthood this job was short-lived. In less than a year Antonio was voted out of his job six to seven. After this he decided to attend a Festival with his father where they played the famous 4-Seasons concerto. This event inspired him to write
Antonio Stradivari is quite often referred to as the greatest violin and stringed instrument maker to ever live. Much of this credit is given to Stradivari because people simply know his name. Countless violinists have expressed over the years the great frequency that people always ask them if they own a Stradivari instrument or not. The reality is, although Antonio Stradivari was certainly a master at his work, he was not the only one to create stringed instruments and certainly was not the first to do so. People remember Stradivari because of the quality of the instruments that he made. Much of our basis for stringed instruments to date has been, however, influenced by Antonio Stradivari. The basis for Stradivari’s influence on future generations of musicians and instrument makers was shaped by events that happened before Stradivari was born, the perfectionist way he established his workshop, his death, and the physics and name of his instruments.
As stated in this paper earlier at first the fabrication of violin’s strings were with goat gut. Now they are created out of synthetic materials or steel and twisted with various metals. The strings are also strung tighter, about fifty percent. Back then people did not use a chin rest like they do now; in fact, chin rests weren’t even brought until the 19th century (Powers). The fingerboard and the neck are now longer than they use to be. Some other changes include that of the bass bar and the sound post; both are thicker than they were back