Scan 310
The American History and Encyclopedia of Music, 1924
10 lines. Read by computer on 15 September 2026. Printed page 242. See the scan on archive.org.
1from position to position without the least hesitancy. The thumb is held under the neck and the fingers can assume eleven positions. Only seven are used by most players.
3The nut is a small piece of ebony an inch in height and is cut with small grooves for the strings. It is situated between the peg-box and the finger-board, and its office is to raise the strings a trifle above the finger-board.
5At the lower end of the violin is the tail-piece to which the strings are fastened. It is a concave piece of ebony pierced along the upper edge by holes, through which the strings pass before they are carried over the bridge. The tail-piece is not screwed or glued to the violin, but is furnished with a loop of gut string which is held in place by the tail-pin, a peg of ebony firmly embedded in the bottom block. The tension of the strings supports the tail-piece in a position just clear of the edge of the body. The tail-pin requires very careful fitting as this tension is entirely brought to bear upon it.
7Softened tones on the violin are produced by the use of the mute, a piece of wood or metal furnished with three prongs that clamp the bridge in such a manner as to prevent its vibration. Consequently the vibrations of the strings are not transmitted to the body and the tone is muffled. In violin music rests are found to allow the performer time to attach and remove the mute.
9Notwithstanding the fact that so much skill and patience are required in the making of violins and other members of the stringed quartet, most marvelous things have been done in the way of repairing. The wood may be splintered into a hundred bits, but a skilful maker can glue them into place again. Here and there a new piece must be added but care must be taken or the association of too much new wood will ruin the old. The disembodiment which has been caused by the need of replacing the sound bars, has brought to light many impositions. Stradivarius and the others of Cremona varnished as carefully within as without and the interior finish is one of the best proofs of true worth.
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