Bow & Bridge Violin and bow makers, as the old books printed them

Books › the history of the violin, 1864 › scan 397

Scan 397

the history of the violin, 1864

8 lines. Read by computer on 28 September 2026. Printed page 375. See the scan on archive.org.

1duced in November, 1844, by Mr. Thomas William Hancock, one of the violoncello performers at the Royal Italian Opera, under the name of the "basso di camera," at a special meeting convened for that and other purposes, of the Queen Square Select Society, in the presence of many amateurs and professors of music, who gave a unanimous vote of approval. These instruments were made at W. Davis's, in Coventry Street, Haymarket.
3It was tuned two octaves below the violin, which method gave the G one note lower than the present mode of tuning the double-basses of three strings; but this also had its difficulties to the amateur by causing transposition, and still requiring additional physical energies, although not so great as the one first invented.
5Mr. Hancock has recently adopted another mode of stringing which renders the instrument less difficult to the amateur, the description of which he has kindly supplied for our guidance:—
7"The mode of tuning was originally two octaves below the violin, and the same number of strings were used, the two lowest, however, being covered ones; but Mr. Hancock, finding the highest string gave a compass unnecessary for the performance of music written for the contra basso (for which the basso di camera was introduced as a substitute for chamber music), has reduced the number of strings to three, consequently the higher string is now A, the second D, and the third G, one note lower than the double-bass; this alteration leaves a compass sufficiently extensive, as the octave to the first string is reached with the same facility as on the violoncello, and with the same smoothness. By the removal also of the first string E, amateurs on the violoncello are at once enabled to apply their knowledge of that instrument to the basso di camera, which was not quite so easy in the arrangement first adopted.

The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.