Scan 73
The violin & its story : or the history & construction of the violin, 1905
10 lines. Read by computer on 3 September 2026. Printed page 57. See the scan on archive.org.
1great experience as a violin maker had come to the ears of the King."
3Whatever Stainer thought of this honour, it is certain that from that time forward he never prospered or kept his head above water. Huebmer, the Kirchdorf Jew, continued to sue for his debt, and at last he was thrown into goal, where he lay for six months. On his release the artist sank deeper and deeper into misery, until at last he lost his reason, and in this sad condition he died in 1683.
5There was abundance of the finest pinewood in the neighbourhood of Stainer's birth-place; and he, like all the other great masters, used the greatest care in his selection. He knew, and studied for years, the trees suitable for his purpose, and would only have the oldest, which had not been cut down till their highest branches were already dead.
7Although Stainer copied Nicholas Amati, he yet built his instruments on principles he had himself evolved. In particular he was distinguished by an unsurpassable elegance. His bodies were broader and somewhat shorter than those of the Italian masters, who as a whole favoured a longer, narrower, and more slender pattern. His arching was very high. The soundholes are shorter than those of the Amati, and finish with circular holes; and the corners, as was the case with Nicholas Amati, stand boldly out. The colour of his varnish is mostly red-gold, and his necks, instead of the usual scroll, often ended with a beautifully carved lion's head. While the tone of the Italian violins was clear, and at the same time full and penetrating, calling to mind the middle tones of the clarinet, Stainer's instruments, because of their pronounced arching, are somewhat weaker in tone, resembling more the flute, and therefore on this account not so fit for concert use as the Italians.
9Instrument makers have greatly misused the famous name of Stainer, by putting his labels into their own mediocre productions. It is by these means that most of the pretended Stainer violins have came into the market.
The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.