Books › The Violin: How to Master It, 1880 › scan 17
Scan 17
The Violin: How to Master It, 1880
8 lines. Read by computer on 23 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1can get hold of one of these wonderful instruments. The Cremona violins were not all good, and many that were have been injured by being scraped, broken, patched, or "improved" by ignorant or fraudulent makers. Let the violin player get that into his head lucidly and clearly to begin with, and he may be saved from disappointment even if a genuine instrument of the kind should come in his way. But such as were good and have survived uninjured to our day, partake so much of the nature of rare antiquities that a great many of them are—more's the pity and crying shame—in the hands of persons who never use them, who will hand them down to their descendants, and keep them hugged and guarded till they crumble voiceless and mute into dust. There is something wrong there, but it is difficult to see how it could be remedied, unless some of these wealthy connoisseurs should see the error of their ways, and lend for life the instruments they possess to the different soloists of eminence, who, alas! are too often forced to discourse most eloquent music from poor copies. This would be a boon to the world, a benefit to the instruments—for a good violin is greatly improved in tone by being constantly played upon in all the positions and on all the strings by a good player—and no loss to the donors, as the violins would return to them on the decease of the player. This suggestion seems somewhat Quixotic, I admit, but it is not nearly so outrageous as that these gems of instruments should lie rotting in disuse.
3The American violin-loving public can never be too thankful for the great services rendered by Mr. Elias Howe, in placing before them such a magnificent collection of "gems" of the "Old Masters."
5The opportunity afforded them for the purchase of old Violins, Violas, Cellos and Bases has never been equalled in the annals of "Fiddledum," and his collection of old instruments is the largest ever gathered together in the possession of one man and fitly marks the successful close of an indefatigable and thorough search, through Italy, Tyrol and most of the other countries of Europe, of seven years' duration, in which he spared neither time, labor nor pains to make this, indeed, a collection "rich as human eyes ne'er looked on before."
7To a lover of the violin the privilege of inspecting and comparing the old masterpieces with the best of modern makers is invaluable. The collection is open to the public
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