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Sick of lugging folders of music around between rehearsals, gigs? A music tablet might be for you! Heres my experience with a tablet for sheet music

Having lots of sheet music is a challenge further compounded  if you play in a few bands, it’s a lot of paper to keep organised to find, and then for a gig to reorder for your music for a set and then put it all back afterwards. This was my dilemma until I made the decision to go electronic with a tablet for all my sheet music. Now all I have to carry around is a single music tablet and a music page turner pedal for my foot. 

Tablets these days can be had for a few hundred dollars and with screen sizes from 12” or so  approaching that of a standard piece of paper it works pretty well for most music sheets needs, be it music scores or chords charts etc…. 

For myself, as someone addicted to the black dots (sheet music) its been a convenient way to carry all my music and the various software apps allow you to annotate it as well on the fly! It did take a bit of an adjustment period to get used to reading music from a “music tablet”, as there is something about the kinesthetics of flicking through physical pages (and having double pages open) that needs to be relearned to looking at a single screen. Page turning is now done with my foot and can be whole page or scoll slowly to the next page. Its a bit weird on the eyes and co-ordinating your foot to turn a page is a new skill to be put into the subconscious. Over whelmingly though I find it to be beneficial. Also a tablet on a music stand is a bit more discrete/professional than open music folder in terms of visual appeal.

There are plenty of music score Apps about, I use ‘Mobile Sheets’ but there are other like ForScore that are also quite popular.

Best Music Tablet choices, choices

These days you can use an Android, iPad or Windows Tablet (Mobile Sheets runs on them all) depending on what you like. I suspect Android is the most popluar because of price, I am using a Windows tablet as I like the greater flexability of a full OS (USB thumb drives make sharing at rehearsal easier too). An other apps I can run on it is Musescore which takes XML files like Wikifonias collection of 600o od older songs and can transpose keys on the fly and then import into my music sheet reader

Getting the music loaded

Getting your music library and scores onto a tablet is as simple as pointing the app at a folder and asking it to load the files. For thoise you have paper copies only of you will need to scan them in with something first.. Most people I know use a cloud drive as the repositry (such as One drive, google drive, dropbox), this also makes it easy to share with other musos as well.  Some attention to the naming of the files is useful to help you find them after you library grows to over a thousand songs (it happens quicker than you think). I like to put the song name followed by the type of file score or chords and then the key its in   eg “Ashokan farewell score [D]”

Music formats the App can read usually include image files, PDF’s and text files – I tend to just use PDFs, though I have been known take a photo of someones sheetmusic at a rehearsal and add it as an image file to get me out of a pickle!

When loading you music you can add biographical information about the composer / publisher etc.., I tend not to do this. Another useful feature is to load the music into collections, this is quite handy if you work in several groups or genres and only want to show all you classical piece, jazz, or the pieces for your “Elmer Fudd tribute band” when your gigging with them. Its up to you!

Annotating the music

How many verses, when do I come in, who does the intro, do we cut out the bridge? are all things that are important to note on a piece of music. Apps allow annotating of highlighter (useful for find a DS al Coda in a hurry), scribbling and typing in notes. Sometimes i cut a paste in a riff/lead from one version of a song to another  You can also crop the music , i find getting rid of page headers/footers and white spaces useful to make my scroll of a song much shorter with less page turns in it too.

Performing with a tablet

Most Apps allow you to create a setlist, that is from your library assemble the songs you are playing in a set into a seperate list, this way they flow seamlessly from one song to the next, there is no embarrassing droping of the folder, wind turning your pages or turning 2 pages at once !

ONe caveat like any battery related devices its sure to run flat at the most inconvenient time , so have a think about how you will remember to charge it when not in use (or bring a emergency power brick). To make the most of battery life you can adjust the brightness down (except when playing outdoors probably) and on my Windows PC I have turned the performance settings down to maximise efficiency (the App doesn’t use much resources aside from the screen) 

Foot page turners can be had for around $50 (don’t buy the ones cheaper than this) and you can spend more as well. I find page forward and page back is enough for me. (My first page turner was a $10 bluetooth numeric keypad with lego brick glued onto 2 keys …but thats another story). Make sure the page turner you choose works with your OS be it Android, MacOS or WinX. You can configure the App to turn a whole page, scoll at a set rate to the next page (useful if you have a goldfish memory) or just scroll 1/2 a page at a time. Find what works for you. You can also use your finger to swipe but not so useful for violin players 😉

Copyright

Copyright laws vary from country to country and for personal and institutional use. Some places allow you if you own the sheet music to make an archival copy electronicallt and use that, for others that more of a grey area. If you have a music royalties licence for performing check with them. You also need to me mindful when sharing you drop box full of music with mates that once its out in the wild it could end up anywhere

If you are in the market for buying a violin, you are likely to encounter  a wall of violin brands and  models. While many of them, at a student level level come from the same kind of factory in China there can be significant differences in quality that is important to unpick (See my violin buying guide here for specifics ). At higher levels you may see violins made by individual makers (rather than brands sold under maker names)

Violin Branding and rebranding has been going on ever since Stradivari became a household name, and it seemed like every other German farmer back a century ago starting making Strad copies (with Strad labels) as a winter side hustle (no judgement .. many are great violins!)

Brand, pricing and quality

The purpose of a brand, in a marketing sense is to position a product in a market such that it becomes visible, recognisable and synonomous with a certain price point and quality. Over time it a product grows in recognition, popularity and associated value. The value of the brand can thus grow (or diminish) over time. A violin may carry a factory brand, distributor brand, shop brand or just a makers name (a personal brand). Pricing of any product includes its intrinsic value, add ons and its brand value.

Today, with most student and intermediate level violins being made in China the market is replete with hundreds of violin brands to choose from. The choice can be overwhelming which is the focus of this blog to untangle. Handcrafted maker instruments are something to explore later. 

 Value

Many other factors play into the perception of value beyond the brand of the violin:

– Influencers, like music teachers, prominent players can strongly affect purchasing decisions, along with reputation of a store. Thus there is sometimes controversially the practice of kickbacks from stores to teachers in formal of formal (see Two Set Violins expose here) . 

– The customer experience in a shop (are you getting value in the store – grumpy sales person versus welcoming and friendly)  , knowledgable vs a work experience kid and the overall atmosphere of the store helps with sales and also develop a stores brand over time as well. The development over time of recognisable violin brands is also a  draw card to get someone to the stor. More than 1/2 of my enquiries are people looking for a particular brand! A good surrogate for a violin brand is the brand value of the store /maker as well.

– Add ons: Strings, rosin, a school pack all help with the purchase. Does the case have a hydrometer in  it? oohh….that looks techo…it must be a really good violin 😉

– At the entry level of the market though, where the customer is often less sophisticated price is usually the strongest determinate of a purchasing decision. It is here that some unscrupulous online stores can trade on perception that one violin is the same as another and pass off something that looks like a violin (ie made of plywood with plastic pegs to gain a sale) but does sound very good . These are colloquially referred to as a VSOs (Violin Shaped Objects) and should be avoided.

– The traditional experience. Almost all violin shops have European elements to them such as french doors,  lots of timber panelling etc.. My own humble workshop, through the necessity of repairing and restoration of instruments, rather than artiface has many of these, and if I’m wearing an apron some people thing I should charge more  😉 Violin themselves often have brand names associated with Europe, famous players or classical music terms for this reason as well. Consumer behaviour says emotional engagement is a really important part of the buying process.

Who gets to make a violin brand?

So within the vast market place of violin brands, who gets naming rights? Actually anyone in the supply chain with a glue pot and a laserprinter – it’s a completely unregulated activity.

The supply chain

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Distributor brands

When factories sell to distributors in a local country, the distributor often attaches a brand to the instrument, and may distribute a range of different instruments of varying qualities under different brand names. It’s not uncommon to see competing distributor brands all coming from the same factory, with just with a slightly different colour or style variations. How do I know this? – sometimes a different branded violin is sent to another distributor by accident, also careful examination on the inside and of the accessories shows it to be the same.

From here distributors may choose to on-sell the instruments as is, to only trusted retailers. Or they may sell to any retailer – depending on how tightly they want to control that brand. This is a critical step for distributor brand value as an unsetup factory instrument with lumpy fingerboard, high nut, poorly set pegs and unfitted bridge etc..  can be quite unplayable if sold as is.  Many distributors wanting to control brand value thus also offer setup up services (at extra cost and the setup level varies) or may only sell unsetup instruments to competent retailers. Releasing an unsetup instrument onto the open market  means it gets into the hands of a player over time the value of that brand is diminished and can make it way onto the do not buy list of a music teacher in no time. 

The supply chain thus can start to become a little more complex when stores them selves enter directly into the supply chain with more advance levels of customisation/ setup / branding or going direct to the factory. Here the “value” of a brand can be powerfuly augmented or reduced. Some of the supply chain paths are below and I’ve label from Green, Orange, Red show the variation in quality that can result.

Figure: Supply Chain showing Factory, Distributor, Shops with brand options and different path together with likely quality

Shop brands / re-brands

A store may source instruments from one of more distributors (or even factories direct) and may keep that distributer brand or develop their own entirely. The advantages to developing their own brand is they can use multiple suppliers :

 –  to improve reliability of supply

 –  reduce single supplier dependancy or  market power over their shop

 –  develop there own consumer recognisable product brand over years. 

 – limit price comparison with other stores.

For specialty retailers its a real conundrum wether to rebrand distributor instruments or not. If you are buying unsetup or poorly setup instruments from a supplier/distributor that everyone else has access to;  you can put in all the work to market it, set it up, put better strings and bridge on it and get it playing really nice. However this is essentially increasing the brand value for the distributor, and anyone else selling that instrument. Then along comes a generalist or online retailer who appears to be selling the identical instrument for less, which in the eyes of a consumer looks a bargain based on price comparison. Further over time  the overall violin brand is perceived as a mix of  all the retailers in the marketplace. It’s here that a retailer may make the decision to  rebrand it as their own instrument, or if there is appetite for extra work import the instruments directly (by-passing the distributor) and sell completely as their own brand. 

Personally relabelling factory instruments I think is a reasonable business decision, though its not everyones cup of tea. Why expend resources to develop someone else’s brand and help your competitors thrive, when you can develop your own brand for what is a superior instrument in every way…others find relabelling inappropriate though. Personally I don’t rebrand

Shop/workshop import brands

A third option,  much favoured by smaller businesses/makers is to develop a relationship directly with like minded workshops in China. Here they can control not only the brand, but the development of the instrument / product itself to something that suits their market and their own position in the marketplace. They can have input into the timbers used, the shapes and styles. The idea here is to make use of the lower production costs in China for the labour intensive components, and use personal expertise to add value and target individual market niches. 

Supplier intimacy

At high levels of shop-supplier intimacy, personally sourced timbers, custom shape, doing the finishing and plate tuning locally can really maximise the quality – cost tradeoff. In fact today many of todays European violins are adopting this method – sending European timbers to China, getting the instrument roughed out or made in the white, and then do the finishing steps in Europe. Usually this is reflected in the pricing how much is done in China and reputable suppliers are open about this selling different levels of the instrument depending on how much is sourced or done in Europe. They can also sell it as a European violin – which as the birthplace of the violin has a greater perceived brand value.

Summary

So the brand you see hanging on the wall in a shop,  you now know that where it comes from is often a twisty-turney path. Apart from the VSO scavengers, the price generally reflects the playable value of what you are getting. Value being a combination of sound quality (hopefully a major component), together with the look, design,  timber selection, tuning, finishing and accessories. You are also paying for the brand value on top as well. This is both the brand of the violin and the shop. 

As an aside I often have people come to my workshop with a more expensive violin they have bought directly from China – typically they need a lot of setup work, but can be excellent instruments for the price…but its real roll of the dice.

In general where you buy from is as strong an indication of what you are getting as the brand itself. For best sound value consider shopping

• on expertise of the retailers first,

• violin brand reputation second

• and then on price (within you budget range).

Unfortunately price is where entry level buyers sit, and despite the best efforts of influencers (teachers) telling them what not to buy, can end up with a VSO. 

If as a buyer you see something you like and how its sounds in a quality string store, or appears on a recommended list from a teacher, hunting around on the internet to buy it online can still leave you with something that needs quite a bit of work to be setup,  and likely won’t sound the same either 

As a final note, the challenge for me as a newer entrant into the market is my brand awareness is lower and market power exercised by teachers to go to particular stores is a challenge, relationships of over 20 years are important  and some teachers get kick backs…we all have to make a living I suppose.  

Fiddler Dan undertook an MBA in a former life, when he was engaged in technology R&D /  commercialisation before picking up the tuning fork again. 

Masson Music  like Music Express has been a fixture on Brisbanes Southside for many, many years. And although its been  closed now for a few years I still see quite a few Masson Music violins come into my shop for repairs. One of the nice little things I notice about them is a little  message “Unwind your bow” on a small card in the case, as a reminder to young players that bows need to be unwound when you are finished using them. A nice touch John!

John Masson was kindly to a *cough* young luthiers apprentice when he was just getting started, introducing me to a few of the wholesalers and occasional gifts of bits and pieces useful to a luthiers workshop. Thankyou John

Becoming a violin  luthier

The path to luthiery is different for everyone, whilst traditionally it was a father-son apprenticeship, or apprenticeship to a violin maker you knew, this is less likely in Australia than somewhere like Europe. Thus for some it means going overseas to study, or taking up a kind of apprenticeship in a specialty music shop.  There is something about being an apprentice in an old world  European workshop that appeals to us all I think…and some secrecy too.

In getting to know violin luthiers here in Brisbane and further afield, there is a bit of a mix of all of these and everyones path is somewhat different. For my own part, coming from an academic background I can see the advantages of a deep dive under a single master, but also the wide range of expertise from a course of study, or a more collegiate style approach.

However you get your start I am not sure it matters so much its generally driven by passion rather than anything else. Along the way there are plenty of barriers of entry to the trade to deter the casual and while luthiers are in short supply, its not something to do if you want to make a lot of money.

Most luthiers I have come across have an intrest in music, usually and ideally a string player in music. They also need to have some manner of mechanical aptitude and affinity with wood. Luthiery is thus the intersection of these two skill sets – and they don’t commonly intersect  – but here is the sweet spot for a violin luthier. Being able to play the violin and perhaps even teaching experience all helps in under standing the needs of a player – and is a really important ingredient for understanding what a violin should be able to do. A musical ear is really helpful here for fine tonal adjustments. An ability to understand the mechanics of a violin, how it works from a acoustical-mechanical perspective help guide the craft. An appreciation for fine tolerances, combined with practical skills with tools is the second major skill set. Understanding wood and tools used to work wood at fine tolerances, together with finishing and construction are something that need to also be developed along the way. 

So if you can play a Paganini caprice or two and cut a decent dovetail joint…you will likely make a fabulous luthier in time.

For the rest of us mere mortals this is something we might work up to in time, not sure about the Paganini bit…but hey this is a blog). Luthiery, just like playing a violin is where a teacher plays a pivotal role. Being shown technique  and then practicing your scales err… skills over and over is important. After you have carved and admired your first bridge, you will look back on it 50 bridges later and wonder what you were thinking…and so one as you master technique after technique.

My own journey began as a player, and then repair of my childrens instruments under the watchful eye of a violin maker friend…eventually he told me to hang a sign out…but more on that later.