Books › Dictionary of Violin makers, 1928 › scan 20
Scan 20
Dictionary of Violin makers, 1928
16 lines. Read by computer on 1 October 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1by the fixed idea « I only want to buy an old violin. » We cannot too strongly contradict this common error and must point out its fallacy.
3All old violins are not good. Some dealers too often sell for the sake of the name. According to them, it would seem that a nice instrument, properly made in accordance with the rules of the art and in public favour at the time should be endowed with all qualities, whereas an anonymous instrument often surpasses it in technical value.
5One also finds, signed by great master makers, very fine instruments which are not a credit to them. The cause of this is often to be found in clumsily executed repairs. When buying an instrument it therefore behoves one to ascertain not only its state of preservation exteriorly, but also the nature of the repairs to which the inside may have been subjected.
7It is also to be found that some very fine violins lack the quality which ought to be their chief appanage, that is, tone. We cannot too strongly recommend to those who wish for a good instrument not to sacrifice too much to the aesthetic idea. Too often indeed does the question of workmanship, outline, « good looks », come into play to the detriment of the tone. Nine times out of ten the preference of the buyer goes to the attractive specimen rather than to the instrument, the sole recommendation of which is a superior tone. This appears paradoxical, but the following example will give a vivid illustration of our meaning. The case is that of a Testore, looked upon by a dealer as unsaleable, the workmanship of the instrument being so ordinary. Nevertheless, when the Paris Conservatoire competitions were at hand, this very violin became the cause of unending disputes among the students as to who should possess it, its tone qualities being considered such as to make it a precious asset.
9Dealing with the same subject, that of choosing an instrument without sacrificing its tone qualities to its good looks, let us mention two arguments which militate in favour of an old instrument.
11Firstly, it will be readily granted that instruments made by masters who have ascertained the laws ruling their sonority and using raw material for which they are reputed, have, generally speaking, more chances to offer special tone qualities than are to be found in instruments by anonymous makers.
13Secondly, old instruments have proved themselves and many of them have preserved their acoustic properties. Who can tell how some of the moderns will behave, not in several centuries, but in only a few years, the time necessary for an instrument of recent manufacture to settle?
15We ourselves have had experience of certain violins with a sparkling tone, which they lost after a few years, the brilliance having been more apparent than real. It is also necessary to note that their carrying propensities are for the most part more illusory than far reaching. We also have the case of other violins which have never improved in the slightest degree. In doubt or in ignorance of the indispensable qualities a new instrument must already possess in order to promise much for the future, it seems wiser and more logical for the amateur to keep to the instrument which has already developed these qualities.
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