At some stage in a violinists journey there is the thought of going electric, wether it is the dream of being the next Jimi Hendrix on violin, or wanting to be able to practice quietly, or something in between like Lindsay Sterling (my sons favourite violinist). There are plenty available to buy from the really cheap to the really expensive. I’ve certainly had a dabble with them over the years (see my violins) where mostly its been a suck it and see approach. In the early years I’ve been disappointed by pickups (until I learnt about impedance matching and preamps much later that is).
Image Lindsay Sterling: Round Table Rival Image: IMDB
These days I prefer a mic attached to my violin and a multi effects pedal for most things. Of course thats not always a good fit, if you diving into the more enthusiastic genres where it gets loud, the wonderful resonant cavity that is a violin is a breeding ground for un controllable feedback. in such a case a solid body electric is the way to go.
I thought about making a video about it all, and then discovered Karin from just down the road (well the Gold Coast isn’t all that far from Brisbane) has been there and done that. As a gigging musician diving into several genres through Casablanca Sounds she has an acoustic, semi acoustic and electric ready to select for any occasion. She recorded this video which talks us through them all…enjoy…and thanks for sharing Karin 🙂
This is her in action recently too…music not gymnastics…love it!