Thanks, Osso, for bringing this thread to my attention. I'll read the links later, but I just want to comment on the "tuning" observation. Tuning the violin is just a matter of adjusting the pull (by means of the pegs) on the strings to correct pitches (G, D, A, and E) on the violin. What Osso was observing, I believe, was a "toning" of the violins. I have no idea why it is so, but when my violin lays dormant too long, it simply does not produce the sound it does when played often. My violin has the label inside that says "Laurentius Storioni fecet Cremona 1781. Lorenzo (sic) Storioni was one of the last of the great Cremona violin makers. I have recently recived news that my fiddle may be a German (not Italian) make of the 18th century. Good but not what I thought it was. A Storioni could sell from 400,000 to 800,000 dollars, according to one source. Easy come easy go. I inherited the fiddle from my violinist father. But in all the 59 years I have studied (off and on) and played the violin I have never discovered the mechanical reason it must be played regularly.
Thanks, C.I. That''s useful.
Moving off the musical theme slightly, I got my collection of "The Sopranos" DVDs at the sales today. I got three boxed sets.
<I've never seen The Sopranos; I don't have cable and rarely watch tv. But I'd like to see it, once anyway, for the writing.>
I think my wife has an umbilical cord attached to the tv. LOL
And people like us have our cords attached to our computers...
That's about the "size" of it. LOL
Okay, people, don't forget to make your donations for disaster relief from the earthquake in Indonesia.
If we can step back a bit, I asked my housemate who is a violinist about the playing of violins.
She said that the sound of a violin is dependent upon the vibrations between the wood and the strings and that literally the vibrations from the molecules in the wood keep the sound warm. Hence the reason that JL's violin sounds better when it's constantly played than when it's sitting about. Apparently, without constant playing, the wood requires longer and longer playing to get it back to the state of even weekly playing. It is apparently all about everything vibrating in harmony.
There's a great Northern Exposure episode about Maurice buying a Strad. and having this violinist play it to keep it warm. Predictably, the violinist is horrified that Maurice plans to lock it away, and steals it. In the end, he is allowed to play it in jail!
And back to harmony--
And I'll use that to suggest that aid donations will help the people in Indonesia and India attempt to get through this devastating disaster. I can't even comprehend 24,000 people dead.
The American Red Cross will also accept donations and transfer your money into relief packages. And Doctors without Borders are also sending people in as soon as it's possible.
loislane, I've often heard in the past about the need for musicians to play on their violins regularly to keep it's tone, but there's nothing I can find on the search engines on the web that says so. That's the only reason why I question the need to play on the violin regularly.
Yes, it would follow that all wooden stringed instruments then, violas, cellos and basses, must also have their molecules stimulated. Lord knows I enjoy that myself.
Perhaps it's a little secret shared by the Secret Society of Violin Players! It'll be a new DaVinci Code if we break the news.
;-)
The Secret Society of Violin Players and The Museo Stradivariano... with a branch office in the western US.
Hmmm, wonder what Clary is up to by now...
Yes, her silence is defening.
I missed where her hotel adventures would be taking place... maybe still in Milano.. or maybe not.
