I made this fiddle as the first of a series to explore the sources of variety that we see in violins. I'm also thinking about traditional violinmaking in the Digital Age. A broader discussion of the ideas behind this series is laid out in an earlier post. Variations...
This post is about variety in violins, why it is important, where it come from, and how it has been influenced by mechanization. I will also look at the effects and possibilities of digitization on modern violinmaking. Every violin that you come across is slightly...
This was a spin off from the Freestyle Violin project. These tests took place at the Oberlin Violinmakers Workshop in 2023. Many of the violinmakers at the workshop had brought instruments with them to show their colleagues. Thinking about violin design, one of the...
In a previous post about the Freestyle Violin Project I documented how two violins, a "dark" sounding one and a "bright" sounding one , were made without the use of measuring tools. The actual dimensions of the materials used and the parts created were recorded and...
Some years ago, in reaction to the modern violinmaking trend in towards "hyper-copying", I made a violin without a predefined outline. I built the body of the Cadenza Violin without the use of templates and without using any graduated measuring tools (no numbers)....
Strad Magazine (March 2023) published an article on my Off-Beat Violins There's some online companion material , and the full online feature for subscribers
There’s a great feature on Mia Pixley and her Ripple cello in this months Strings Magazine. This project was so much fun…..and it’s still making waves! To read the full article you'll have to subscribe to Strings
Having run through the process once with the Ripple Fiddle, I was ready to tackle the cello, starting with a review of the "prototype". I met with Mia and her colleague, violinist and musical improvisor Alisa Rose, who is interested in the project. They were both...
A commission from Bay Area cellist, composer, and songwriter, Mia Pixley led to a creative partnership and the development of one of the few new sounds ever to be added to acoustic bowed instruments. Mia was interested in the Off Beat Fiddles. In her performances Mia...
The Tabolin was strung up and played with different configurations of weights on the velum panels. https://youtu.be/cMvSN32r9Pc Thanks to my friends Gabriel Wheaton and Joe Peterson, who helped me sound test the Tabolin Results With no weights The Tabolin is...