Scan 114
The violin & its story : or the history & construction of the violin, 1905
10 lines. Read by computer on 29 September 2026. Printed page 98. See the scan on archive.org.
1disturb the air-waves caused by the vibrations of the belly. We are therefore bound to conclude that the office of the back is to offer a certain resistance to the force of the air-waves caused in the body of contained air by the vibrations of the belly, which resistance, however, must not go beyond a certain point, lest the vibrating power of the back should be destroyed altogether.
3The working of the wood for the belly and back must be carried out according to certain fixed rules, which have been evolved from long experience in the art; for however excellent may be the materials used, there is no instrument in which the various parts must be so mathematically proportioned one to the other as that apparently simple instrument the violin. The thicknesses of back and belly are of the utmost possible importance; and a very small variation therein will completely change the character of the instrument. If the wood is too thick, the tone will be poor and without any "ringing" quality; if the wood is too thin, the tone will be hollow and "tubby," as the instrument makers say.
5The elasticity of the resonance body is increased by the arching. The higher that arching is, the greater will be its power of resistance, and so much less strength of wood will be wanted; and of course, on the other hand, a lower arching wants more thickness of wood. It is on account of their flatter arching that the violins of Stradivarius are stronger in wood than those of the Amati.
7The apportioning of the thicknesses amongst the several parts of the belly is also a matter of the very highest importance. In this respect the greatest masters worked on various principles, just as they did in the matter of the arching; and the right distribution of the thicknesses is also a weighty factor in determining the quality of tone.
9The position and form of the so-called "sound-holes" are of very great importance. The sound-holes show how even the most famous acousticians have, in their experiments and attempts, neglected entirely the very
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