Scan 106
The violin & its story : or the history & construction of the violin, 1905
10 lines. Read by computer on 29 September 2026. Printed page 90. See the scan on archive.org.
1oil, cut into pieces from six to eight feet long, and rolled on a wooden cylinder in the form in which they are sent to market.
3It is open to doubt whether this oiling process is worth the trouble it takes; and it is certain that a string does not yield its proper tone till all the oil is removed. The sulphur drying is also of questionable value; true it makes the strings clear and white, but in the course of time the string is damaged by it. Priali, of Padua, does not use sulphur at all, and yet his strings, when strung up for playing, are found to be clear and pure.
5A good violin string must be of a perfectly cylindrical and homogenous form, without swellings or knots. It must be transparent, must not lose its colour or transparency when tuned up to pitch; and must, when screwed up and stretched nearly to the breaking point, return to its normal length when set free from pressure. A good string, stretched to its breaking point, will break suddenly and without any warning, just as is the case with steel wire.
7The manufacture of strings, first established by the Italians, has on several occasions received the notice of governments. In the year 1822 a prize of 1,500 francs was offered in Paris to him who should perfect the art of preparing the entrails of animals, not only with a view to their serving as food, but also as regards their use as strings for musical instruments. But the problem was only half solved,* and when a later prize of 2,000 francs was offered, it was not won. The fact is, that England, France, and Germany cannot make E violin strings equal to the best Italian strings. We say the best; for even of the dearest and most carefully made Italian "firsts" it may be said that only about half of them deserve this description. Baillot has placed it on record that of a bundle of firsts made by Guida, of Naples, only half were fit for concert use.
9* Presumably the food half was solved, but the string half not solved; Abele does not say this, but clearly implies it.—Translator.
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