Occasionally, I’m asked about left-handed violins. Yes, you can get them—but no, I don’t recommend it unless you absolutely have to.
A left-handed violin is much more than simply tucking the instrument under the other chin and swapping the chinrest. The entire geometry of the violin is set up for right-handed playing. At a surface level, the string order needs to be reversed, the bridge reshaped with the lower side on the opposite end, and the slight fingerboard tilt adjusted as well. This also means the pegs in the pegbox must be rearranged. Strings are manufactured with lengths designed for the peg order G, D, A, E (from closest to furthest away from the fingerboard). For example, a D string usually won’t reach the A peg, so they must be swapped around. Since pegs are tapered, there’s a good chance some peg holes will need to be bushed and re-drilled to fit properly.
Left handed violin :A violin top showing bass bar which would have to be reversed
Inside the violin, under the G-string side of the bridge foot, is the bass bar—a fitted, carved piece of spruce about 15 cm long that supports the top. To convert to a left-handed setup, this would need to be removed and a new one fitted on the opposite side. In other words, converting a standard violin to left-handed requires a lot of work, which is why so few are made.
There are also practical reasons against it. The violin is an orchestral instrument, and in an orchestra, your violin faces the audience with bows moving in the same direction. A left-handed player moving their bow the opposite way simply doesn’t work—it’s a bit like asking a ballerina to perform the reverse choreography in Swan Lake just because they’re left-handed.
Then there’s the health and safety challenge (and where “One-Eyed Bob” got his nickname): seating left- and right-handed violinists side by side could mean someone loses an eye midway through a Brandenburg Concerto if you’re not careful.
image source unknown – everywhere on the interweb
Being somewhat ambidextrous myself, I actually think playing the violin the conventional way puts your best hand in charge of intonation—which can’t be a bad thing, even if bowing feels a bit awkward at first.
My advice: stick with it for six months. If you still want to switch (and you’re not aiming to play in a big symphony orchestra), then maybe a left-handed violin is an option. Just bear in mind it’s likely to be a special order wherever you go(yes I can source them), and your selection will be quite limited.
Good friend — and guitar luthier to the stars — Dwight of DRW Guitars, once said, “Come by my workshop, I’ve got something interesting to show you.” And boy, he wasn’t kidding. Sitting there was a guitar bowed like a cello, unfortunately with a cracked top. It turned out to be an early prototype of a GuitarViol made by TogaMan, who has since become a legendary maker of this instrument.
Argeggione instrument in my workshop for a neck repair
The instrument is strung like a low guitar but had a neck projection reminiscent of a cello, clearly influenced by arpeggione and other classical bowed instruments, which carried lower tension strings, and a reduced neck projection.
Togaman GuitarViol Series prototype
Inside , and inside the body were Baroque-style images and a dedication from the maker: “To God be the Glory.” Beautifully made, it was both striking to look at and modern in some design aspects — strung with Helicore cello strings.
Inside the GuitarViol
This early version had been gifted to Brian from a film director. Brian is a film score composer and performer extraordinaire (check out his filmography). Despite its beauty, the instrument bore the structural DNA of a guitar. It had a mostly flat top, though with a bass bar and soundpost beneath. Over time, the tension of six strings across a raised bridge caused the bass bar to crack and the top to deform badly.
The first repair — beefing up the bass bar and reinforcing the soundpost area with a patch — lasted about a year. It worked reasonably well, but the stresses were immense. Though the reinforcements held, the top plate began to splinter and separate. Conversations with TogaMan himself confirmed that this was a known challenge with the early models. After much trial and error, he had moved on to hybrid laminated tops made of balsa, spruce, and hemp.
Unfortunately, with his workshop located across the Pacific and his schedule packed, sending the instrument back for a replacement top wasn’t realistic. That’s when it landed back in my workshop. My task: to build a new top that honored the spirit of the original while standing the test of time — and, crucially, sounding good.
Creation of the archtop from spruce for a cello
The challenges were many. A high neck projection exerts tremendous static force through the bridge, but the top still needs to vibrate freely to produce tone. On top of that, the original bridge had dug deeply into the top. My first stop was research: arpeggiones and six-string cellos. I studied their top plate construction and thicknesses, then developed arching and plate templates strong enough to handle six steel-core strings. To spread the load, I widened the bridge feet for more surface contact and less chance of indenting.
Work began with a carving table. I quickly made an MDF prototype top to check proportions, visual aesthetics, and bridge placement. Should the edges echo the roll-off of an arpeggione? A guitar edge? Or perhaps the S-shaped curves of bowed strings? The design had to balance tone, structure, and Brian’s preferences. From there, I refined the arching templates and plate thickness profiles before carving, tuning, and finishing the new top.
The instrument eventually came together — admittedly taking a little longer than Brian had hoped. But I wanted to get it right. After finishing it, he took it away for a few months to let the new top settle, play it in and to get acquainted with its voice. At first, it didn’t speak loudly, but after some fine-tuning back in the workshop (and a colour change), it began to open up beautifully. Along the way we also explored bow choice, rosin, and pickup placement, all part of shaping its character – and a colour change.
I’m deeply grateful to Brian for trusting me with this project. It was equal parts challenge and joy. The sound samples are promising, and I’m looking forward to hearing this instrument in some upcoming A-list films.
Feedback from Brian
At first I was super apprehensive to go down the road of replacing the top, Dan was always transparent with me, giving me no guarantees of the final result.
The instrument holds incredible sentimental value and I was worried I’d end up with a trophy hanging on my studio wall rather than a powerful composition tool.
When I first took it home I was gutted, it was such a change and not for the better, I became obsessed in making sure it was still useful through my guitar FX board with a pickup.
After a couple of months of constantly playing it to help it settle in, something happened, It came to life acoustically. I think it just needed time for Dan’s craftsmanship to settle in.
It’s now back in full action and has made its way onto my current film score, The Beast In Me starring Russle Crow, couldn’t be happier!
Brian Cachia
A big thank you also to my teacher, David Brown and other luthier friends, for his guidance, and to the Sydney Strings Centre for consulting on/supplying the timber that made this build possible.
It’s been about five years since I hung out my workshop’s shingle—at the insistence of my teacher and after a few years of informality. Since then, I’ve really enjoyed connecting and reconnecting outside of my players circle with Brisbane’s string community of players and getting to know other luthiers. Despite the size of Brisbane and South East Queensland, we’re still a fairly close‑knit bunch with not much more than a single degree of connection—everyone knows someone who knows someone.
Luthiery has traditionally been a bit of a closed shop, though my entry was made much easier thanks to my teacher’s encouragement and the openness of the Queensland music scene, with a growing need. Along the way I’ve had the pleasure of meeting music store owners, suppliers, repairers, makers, teachers, performers and hundreds of students/parents. (See Becoming a violin luthier)
Coming from a previous career involved in the start‑up world (LinkedIn profile here) with cross disciplinary R&D commercialisation, one of my first big lessons was just how important ecosystems are for the success of any enterprise that exists within it – especially new entrants.
An Ecosystems View
A ecosystem being a self sustaining system of multual interdependance. Stringed instruments are no exception to the ecosystem model. Queensland’s decades‑long investment in school instrumental programs has built one of the largest string ecosystems in Australia and is something to be proud of. Decades long it has, and is, producing players who now perform across the country and world, supported by a thriving network of teachers, repairers, retailers, and makers. It’s no accident that many of the pedagogical resources in Australia come from Qld composers as well!
Whether you’re an orchestral player, a gigging musician inspiring others, a teacher (employed or freelance), retailer, a repairer, or a maker—your livelihood exists because this wider ecosystem exists. Each of us, from newcomers to veterans, plays a role in keeping it alive. A term from the start-up world that fits perfectly here is co‑opetition: the idea that open, dynamic collaboration between kind of competitors benefits everyone.
For today’s reluctant Enrico‑playing, snot‑nosed kid at the back of a group lesson might be tomorrow’s virtuoso, composer, or luthier with the right encouragement and opportunities. Back in the ’80s (yes, that’s a while ago now), Brisbane had one youth orchestra, today, we have several—run by councils, non‑profits, and universities and plenty of school orchestras pushing that standard as well. For myself thirty years later, many of the same names are still around: Holt’s instruments still cross my bench, and I occasionally see a Frank Williams bridge that needs replacing. Our town’s repairers and makers are also undergoing a generational shift.
Supporting and growing your ecosystem isn’t just good for the community—it’s good for you. In Qld’s retail land yesterday’s Holt’s is today’s Animato, and tomorrow’s First Strings.
Of course there is a lifecycle element to ahem “players” in the ecosystem. New entrants will be hungrier and thus likely have a greater chance of openness, well established members will be in consolidation stage and for the elder-states people in the community there is an opportunity to play greeter or gatekeeper. Think of specialty string stores, where many of tomorrow’s teachers and professional players have spent time working in sales showrooms, workshops before going on to fabulous careers !
A Few Ways to Help Your Ecosystem (and Yourself) Grow
1. Openness It’s easy to stay in an ivory tower—being the sole “expert” to your students or customers. However recommending others when they’re a better fit ( guiding a student to AMusA, complex restoration or location for lessons) builds goodwill and opens the door to reciprocal referrals. It also boosts your credibility.
2. Communicate and participate An ecosystem thrives on communication. Going beyond day‑to‑day interactions through professional development, taking an interest in other parts of the scene, or showing up to events outside your usual niche. Awareness works both ways: the more people know you exist, the more opportunities will come your way.
3. Refer up, down, and sideways Speak well of others—even your competitors. It’s tempting to build your own reputation by diminishing someone else’s, but that can backfire. Praising others shows openness and often increases your own credibility. It’s something that works really well between teachers on social media and is lovely to see.
4. Be a Welcomer rather than Gatekeeper
Anyone can sell a violin, teach violin or fix violins. Whilst there are qualifications there is little in the way of regulation in this regard, though expertise over time speaks for itself. It is here that our ecosystem has a role to play, your WOM (word of mouth) along with things like google reviews from customers/students have a really vital role to play. Your welcome, as a trusted or first point of contact into the Strings eco-system really matters. Your encouragement of others and who you recommend (or don’t), can carry a lot of weight and often has reciprocal benefits, use responsibly.
5. You are important
The first thing most visitors do when they pick up a violin in my workshop is apologise for their playing. I suspect its a holdover from the world of classical music where every seat in the orchestra is a competitive, ranked pecking order to first chair of a section, that drives insecurity and hyper-competativeness. Eco systems aren’t like that. Think of yourself as the first chair of your own section, your place in the ecosystem is special and doesn’t need to be compared to anyone else, we are all important and add value. Someone has to sell that secondhand Stentor, someone replaces the bridge on it and someone has to teach (and listen) to it being played through those first few years of learning! Of course we might all aspire to Strads and working with virtuosos though 😉
Anyways back to working on a violin gifted to me by my teacher. Its a ‘flat pack’ so the assembly might take some time.
I repair a lot of cello cracks amongst other cello repairs , esp on student instruments. My approx to student instruments varies, as they need to be cost effective because of the instruments value. For this reason I get a lot of repairs from schools and parents alike, for which a classical repair might not be possible.
If the crack is clean, that is, not too much fracturing of the wood it is possible to do a near invisible repair, though often this is not the case, due to the nature of the finish applied to student instuments (a sprsay nitro or acrylic that often flakes).
Below is one repair that turned out quite well. Here you can see a sound post crack under the bridge, The origin if this is that is was an imported instrument never setup in, or for, Australia and the sound post was too long, the other was due to the instrument being dropped
Cello crack repair before and after
A classical repair of this instrument involves taking the top off and fitting a sound postpatch…quite expensive. The other option is to go through the top and fit cleats either side of the sound post.
Reenforcing cleats are applied to the inside of the cello to strengthen the crack area
To manage expectation here is a crack repair that was less clean, when the instrument broke it was cross grain and some small splinters were lost. Re alignment of the crack wasn’t perfect.
I’m continually amazed that almost every other week I find out about another string group in Brisbane. Ranging from professional, semi-professional, keen amateur there truly is something for everyone if they are looking to play the classics (or something more modern) in a group. The groups listed here have concerts you can go to and are often looking for players . (See also fiddle groups and worship bands for other playing opportunities)
Brisbane Orchestras : The famed QYO at work
Here is a curated list of orchestras in the Brisbane area, Logan Redlands and West I could uncover doing some searches and knew of. Each offers unique musical experiences and opportunities for both audiences and musicians and differing ranges of abiility and commitment.
If you are looking for someone to play at your event many of these groups are performance orientated and looking for performance opportunities.
NOTE: If you group is not listed here or information needs correcting contact me
Brisbanes Professional & Youth Orchestras
Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO)
Overview: Queensland’s state orchestra, renowned for its diverse programming, including classical masterpieces, film scores, and educational outreach.
Overview: A prominent string ensemble based in Brisbane, established in 1987 by string educator Elizabeth Morgan AM. Became professional in 2005. Performs without a conductor, emphasizing collaboration.
Breathing New Life Into an Old Soul: Regraduating the Violin Top and Replacing the Carved Bass Bar
Old European violins — especially those from Germany, Czechoslovakia, or France — can be full of promise. Many were mass-produced in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, crafted with decent tonewood but often built too thick and fitted with a carved-in bass bar.
The result? Instruments that are structurally sound, visually appealing, and full of untapped tonal potential — but often muffled, unresponsive, or overly nasal in tone. That’s where two advanced lutherie techniques can make a dramatic difference: regraduating the top plate and replacing the bass bar.
This is something I undertake sometimes do to a treasured family violin for a customer who wants to get something more from it, or I come a violin that i think would benefit from it as a viable proposition. as the process requires many hours of detailed work. A good candidate is an instrument whose top needs to come off for other work anyway.
Usually where the timber selection is of a high quality, it has proper corner block and the maple back has been well made.
What Is Regraduation?
Regraduation involves removing the violin’s top plate and carefully thinning or reshaping the internal arching and plate thickness to achieve more ideal acoustic properties.
Many older factory violins were built thick to save on time during the making process. They often tops exceeding 4mm in places which unfortunately, this dampens the natural vibrations and leads to a dull, stiff sound.
By regraduating the top to modern thickness standards (typically ~2.5mm in the bouts and ~3mm at the centre), you can unlock resonance, projection, and sensitivity that the violin has never fully expressed.
The Bass Bar: Carved vs. Fitted
In these same violins, the bass bar (which runs under the lower strings to support the top plate and guide its resonance) is often relief carved from the plate itself rather than being made as a separate fitted piece.
Carved-in bass bars:
Save time in factory production
Are often too short, too thick, or poorly shaped
Restrict top plate flexibility and tonal response
don’t have the correct cross grain angle to support sound vibration
A properly fitted bass bar, is a new piece of spruce shaped, chalk fitted and then tap-tuned by hand,. It supports the structure and also helps control and propagate the low-end frequencies of the instrument. When combined with a regraduated top, this upgrade can completely transform the tonal palette of the violin — adding projection coupled with warmth, depth, and clarity.
What’s Involved in the Process?
Regraduation and bass bar replacement is a significant procedure that should only be done by an experienced luthier. Here’s a simplified breakdown:
Top Removal The violin’s top plate is carefully unglued from the ribs, avoiding damage to purfling or corners.
Graduation Mapping The existing thickness is mapped using callipers and compared to ideal dimensions based on the arching, wood density, and desired tone.
Thinning & Reshaping The top is gradually thinned and smoothed by hand, often using a combination of planes, scrapers, and light tap-toning to monitor flexibility and response.
Carved Bass Bar Removal The old carved bass bar is removed and the area is planed flat.
New Bass Bar Fitting A new spruce bass bar is shaped to match the top’s curvature, chalk-fit for precision, and glued in place. It is then carved to a specific profile based on acoustical modelling and traditional proportions.
Final Adjustments Once the top is reinstalled, the soundpost and bridge are adjusted to suit the new plate dynamics. The violin will often “open up” more in the weeks following the work.
New bass bar and graduated top…almost finished, some cleats on a crack too
What Can This Do for Your Violin?
If you own a stiff or lifeless older violin that just never quite sings, regraduation and bass bar replacement can:
Increase volume and projection
Balance tonal colour across strings
Improve bow response and dynamic range
Enhance sustain, warmth, and articulation
Make the instrument more expressive and enjoyable to play
This is particularly worth considering for older German, French, and Bohemian violins made between 1880–1930, many of which were overbuilt but used excellent tonewoods.
When Not to Regraduate
This procedure isn’t for every violin and is regarded as a no-no on an instrument that has been properly graduated by a named maker. Regraduating is irreversible and should never be done on valuable antique instruments or finely graduated hand-made violins. It’s only reserved for:
Instruments with overly thick tops and poor tonal output
Cases where structural reinforcement is not needed
In Summary
If you’ve inherited or purchased an old European violin that looks beautiful but sounds underwhelming – reach out would love to hear from you!
With regraduation and the installation of a custom bass bar, your violin can go from stiff and quiet to rich, responsive, and full of character — ready to sing in a way it never has before.The transformation may surprise you — and your violin may finally reveal the voice it’s had hidden for decades.
ChatGPT is here so I thought I would put it through its paces and ask it to help choose rosin, without naming brands. Kinda interesting and better written than my clunky text (See Violin Rosin ) …AI is here but I am not sure of its utility for specialist information…though its sure to be all over webpages and marketing media before long. Our instruments might be stuck in the classical era..but everything else moves on.
“write a guide to choosing rosin without mentioning brands”
🎻 How to Choose Violin Rosin (Without Getting Lost in Brands)
Rosin might be small, but it makes a big difference. It’s the magic dust that helps your bow grab the strings and make sound. But with so many types out there, how do you choose the right one?
Let’s break it down.
☀️🌧 Light or Dark? Think Grip and Climate.
Light rosin is harder and less sticky. It gives you a smooth, clean tone and works best in warmer or humid climates where stickier rosins might melt or feel gummy.
Dark rosin is softer and more grippy. It gives a warmer, grittier tone, which can be great in cooler or drier climates where you need that extra grab.
If you’re unsure, think about how much grip your bow currently has. Too slippery? Go stickier. Too harsh? Try something lighter.
🎻 What Strings Are on Your Instrument?
Your string type can guide your rosin choice:
Steel-core strings work best with harder, less sticky rosin – it keeps things focused and clear.
Synthetic or gut-core strings like a softer rosin that grabs more, helping you pull a warmer tone.
Matching the bow-to-string feel is key. If it sounds glassy or thin, try a rosin with more grip. If it’s scratchy or harsh, something smoother might help.
🎼 What’s Your Playing Style?
Your sound goals and playing technique matter too:
If you want…
Try rosin that’s…
Smooth, refined sound
Harder, low-dust, less sticky
Powerful projection
Softer and grippier
Fast, agile bow strokes
Lighter with quick response
Rich, warm tone
Slightly sticky with strong grip
Whether you’re playing in a symphony, a quartet, or at home for fun – your rosin should support how you want to sound.
⚡ What’s the Feel of Your Bow Right Now?
Use your bow as a guide. Ask yourself:
Is the bow slipping or struggling to catch the string? → You may need more grip.
Is it catching too much or sounding rough? → Try something smoother.
Are you getting rosin dust everywhere? → Try a cleaner, low-dust option.
Trust your ears and your hands. They’ll let you know when the balance is off.
🤧 Got Allergies or Sensitive Skin?
Some rosins produce more dust than others. If you’re sensitive to dust or have skin reactions, look for hypoallergenic or low-dust formulas. These are often made with more refined natural ingredients and are gentler on both you and your violin.
🧪 Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment
Honestly, there’s no single perfect rosin – it’s about what works for you, your instrument, and your environment.
If you’ve only ever used one kind, try something different and listen to the change in your sound. Many players find their favorite through a bit of trial and error.
🎯 Final Tips:
Don’t overdo it – too much rosin can make your sound scratchy and uneven.
Wipe your strings after playing to keep them clean and responsive.
Less is more – a few strokes on the bow is usually enough.
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.
BestMusic 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!
NOTE: If you are using chord charts and they are imported as a text file, MobileSheets can transpose the key for you as well..really cool
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
Its seems like I get an enquiry about a Stradivarius brand violin every other week and indeed I generally have a few for sale in my workshop at anyone time.
Its seems like I get an enquiry about a Stradivarius brand violin every other week and indeed I generally have a few for sale in my workshop at anyone time. I am fortunate to have played a genuine Strad once when I was younger!
Stradivarius is probably the worlds most celebrated violin maker , with his violins commanding millions every time you see them at an auction. Thats a huge incentive for any would be art forger to have a go and label and instrument reproductions – where even a modest percentage of that is likely to yield a huge payday from an unsuspecting buyer!
However as almost every Stradivarius he made is accounted for, so whatever the label inside the violin says it is almost certainly not a Stradivarius made by Stradivarius. A genuine ’Strad’ will have a long history of provenance (buying and selling) and a certificate of authenticity from a recognised expert. It is suspected that ther are more authenticated Strads than he made, owing to the skills of reproduction makers and artists.
So what about Stradivarius Brand Violins that you see in the wild? The Stradivarius shaped violin is probably the most popular shape/style in the world today (others being Amati, Guarneri, Maggini and others), arguably if you are making a stradavarius shaped violin you can denote that on the label with ‘hand on heart’ integrity. Its recognisable and if you are a maker its a way to convince some that its a good violin too. This indeed was the common practice in the late 1800s early 1900 when violin making exploded across Europe in small workshops particularly in the German and Czech regions. So violins made in this period are today old and the labels in them look old, and if you are retrieving this from grandma’s cupboard it might be easy to confuse it with an actual Strad.
On many labels you might see something like Copie De Stradivarius, or made in Germany or made in Czech Republic etc… from amongst the more scrupulous makers. Others made have made an old style label to go in their violins and antique the instrument further, even going as far as to add fake repairs, neck grafts etc.. which can make it very difficult to reliably tell when it was made. Some have even gone so far as to buy an old book, wash the ink out of the paper and make a label that can fool carbon dating….
New Stradivarius brand Violins
Many of todays makers do reproductions of the different models of Stradivarius violns and brand them according to the particular violin copied. This extends to the shape, but also the timber selection and varnishing which varied a lot between. Here are a few of the them that I like to have a few of from a local distributor under the brand Raggetti Master Series (from the workshop of Peter Guan)
1714 Strad Soil 1714 , Lady Stretton, Lord Wilton 1742, Cremonese 1713 Stradivarius Raggetti Master Violin copies with distinctive timbers, varnishing and antiquing
Inspection of a violin by a skilled luthier can often determine more about the violin through investigating how it was made, varnishes used etc (see how much is my violin worth), some of the Stradivarius branded violins can be quite good…just be sure not to confuse them with the real thing.
