The Secret Of The Violin ( Stradivarius - Guarnerius )
-
There's so much that can be said about a production of this kind, it's difficult to know where to begin. I think it would be fair to say that the subject of old Italian violins, their sound quality, their provenance, history, past ownership above all what price they might fetch at auction, have become of overriding importance. Little or no attention is given to violas, there is passing acknowledgement to cellos, and almost nothing said about the contra bass.Nothing much is ever said about those people who hate the sound of a violin. In a similar way nothing is said about the imperfections inherent in the human ear. Being as I am now in my late 80's I am reminded daily that I have hearing impairment in the higher frequencies with a concomitant failure to hear sibilances in spoken speech. One wonders how prevalent this very common form of hearing impairment is a factor in the appreciation of the sound quality of an instrument old, or new.Many commentators have pointed out that there have been great changes in how music is played. In general I think it would be safe to say that the sound of the XXI century is louder, higher in pitch, and played at faster tempos than the values considered optimum in the XVIII century. So surreptitiously, one might assume, the old instruments have been beefed up to meet modern fashions. Without doubt the component having the greatest single effect would be the strings used, where modern strings are much higher - tech than traditional catgut.It's also sad that money, collectors, dealers, auction houses, charlatans, wannabes, con artists ..... are all factors circumscribing this instrument. An instrument which is small, portable, made from inexpensive materials and at its best and in the hands of the right player has a truly ineffable quality which some might feel comes to us as a divine gift.
-
-
