This article is part of the Fiddle & Violin series.

Violin construction

Playing the violin

Making and maintenance

History of the violin

Musical styles

Violinists

Fiddlers

This article covers the "anatomy" of a violin and some of its accessories. For information related to violin building or making, see Violin making and maintenance. Image File history File links Scroll_and_ear. ... The fiddle is a violin played as a folk instrument. ... A violin The violin is a bowed stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart. ... // Playing the violin See also: How to play the violin The violin is usually held under the chin and supported by the left shoulder. ... Making violins Just a few tools There is a three-dimensional geometric underlying construction that explains the main properties and placement of the different parts and proportions. ... // History Beginnings, and Golden Age An intricately carved 17th century (believed 1660) British Royal Family violin, on display in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. ... // Jazz The earliest references to jazz performance using the violin as a solo instrument are documented during the first decades of the 20th century. ... This is a list of notable violinists. ... This list of fiddlers shows some crossover with the List of violinists since the instruments used are quite similar, if not identical (given that each violin or fiddle has its own individual character. ... Making violins Just a few tools There is a three-dimensional geometric underlying construction that explains the main properties and placement of the different parts and proportions. ...

A violin consists of a body or corpus, a neck, a bridge, a soundpost, four strings, and various fittings. The fittings are the tuning pegs, tailpiece and tailgut, endpin, possibly one or more fine tuners on the tailpiece, and perhaps a chinrest, either attached directly over the tailpiece or to the left of it. A violin The violin is a bowed stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart. ... A bridge is the part of a guitar, bass or other stringed instrument where the strings join the body of the instrument. ... A string is a vibrating element used on many musical instruments, such as the violin, guitar, harp, and piano. ... Tuning Peg is a small peg that is used to hold a string for a stringed instrument. ... The tailpiece is an element found in all musical instruments of the violin family. ... A Guarneri-type chinrest. ...

Construction

Body

Violin by Albin Paul Knorr, Markneukirchen

The body is two arched plates fastened to a garland of ribs with animal hide glue. The rib garland includes a top block, four corner blocks (sometimes omitted in cheap mass-produced instruments,) a bottom block, and narrow strips called linings, which help solidify the curves of the ribs, and provide extra gluing surface for the plates. The ribs are what is commonly seen as the "sides" of the box. From the top or back, the body shows an "hourglass" shape formed by an upper bout and a lower bout. Two concave C-bouts between each side's corners form the waist of this figure, providing clearance for the bow. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (862x550, 99 KB) photo with details and various sides of a violin, from german WP. photo taken by Foto-FFF () File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Violin... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (862x550, 99 KB) photo with details and various sides of a violin, from german WP. photo taken by Foto-FFF () File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Violin... The sounding board is the largest part of a string musical instruments body. ... An animal glue is an adhesive that is created by prolonged boiling of animal connective tissue. ... In music, a bow is a device pulled across the strings of a string instrument in order to make them vibrate and emit sound. ...

The best woods, especially for the plates, have been seasoned for many years in large wedges, and the seasoning process continues indefinitely after the violin has been made. Glue joints of the instrument are held with hide glue with very few exceptions, since other adhesives can be difficult or impossible to reverse when future repairs are in order. Parts attached with hide glue can be separated when needed by using heat and moisture, or by careful prying with a thin knife blade. A well-tended violin can outlive many generations of players, so it is wise to take a curatorial view when caring for a violin. An animal glue is an adhesive that is created by prolonged boiling of animal connective tissue. ... Conservation is the profession devoted to the preservation of cultural property for the future. ...

Top

Typically the top is made of quarter-sawn spruce, bookmatched at a strongly glued joint down the center, with two sound-holes (or "f-holes", from their resemblance to a stylized letter "f") precisely placed between the C-bouts and lower corners. The sound-holes affect the flex patterns of the top, or table, and less importantly, allow the box to breathe as it vibrates. A decorative inlaid set of three narrow wooden strips, usually a light-colored strip surrounded by two dark strips, called purfling, runs around the edge of the top, and is said to give some resistance to cracks originating at the edge. It is also claimed to allow the top to flex more independently of the rib structure. Some instruments have two lines of purfling, or have knot-work type ornaments inlaid in the back. Painted-on faux purfling on the top is usually a sign of an inferior instrument. A quarter-sawn bass bar fitted inside the top, running lengthwise under the bass foot of the bridge, gives added mass and rigidity to the top plate. Some cheaper mass-produced violins have an integral bass bar, carved from the same piece as the top, but this has the growth rings running at right angles to the optimal orientation. Ideally the top is glued on with slightly diluted hide glue, to allow future removal with minimal damage. As a contemporary artistic medium, wood is used in traditional and modern styles, and is an excellent medium for green new art. ... Species About 35; see text. ... A cello with f-holes A guitar with a round hole A sound hole is a hole in the upper sounding board of a string musical instrument. ... Purfling is a narrow decorative wooden strip inlaid into the top and (often) bottom plates of stringed instruments. ... A classic Celtic knot pattern A modern take on Celtic knotwork Celtic knots are a variety of (endless) knots and stylized graphical representations of knots used for decoration, first known to have been used by the Celts. ... Look up faux in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Growth rings of Pinus taeda Growth rings can be seen in a horizontal cross section cut through the trunk of a tree. ...

Back and ribs

The back and ribs are typically made of maple, most often with a matching striped figure, called "flame." Backs may be one-piece slab-cut or quarter-sawn, or bookmatched two-piece quarter-sawn. Backs are also purfled, but in their case the purfling is less structurally important than for the top. Some fine old violins have scribed or painted rather than inlaid purfling on the back. The small semicircular extension of the back known as the "button" provides extra gluing surface for the crucial neck joint, and is neglected when measuring the length of the back. Occasionally a half-circle of ebony surrounds the button, either to restore material lost in resetting the neck of an old instrument, or to imitate that effect. The MAPLE (Multipurpose Applied Physics Lattice Experiment) dedicated isotope-production facility is a current project jointly undertaken by AECL and MDS Nordion. ... In wood, figure refers to the appearance, on a longitudinal surface (side-grain): a figured wood is not plain. ... As a contemporary artistic medium, wood is used in traditional and modern styles, and is an excellent medium for green new art. ... As a contemporary artistic medium, wood is used in traditional and modern styles, and is an excellent medium for green new art. ... Binomial name Diospyros ebenum Koenig ex Retz. ...

Neck

The neck is usually maple with a flamed figure compatible with that of the ribs and back. It carries the fingerboard, typically made of ebony, but often some other wood stained or painted black. Ebony is considered the preferred material because of its hardness, beauty, and superior resistance to wear. Some very old violins were made with maple fingerboards, carrying a veneer of ebony. At the peg end of the fingerboard sits a small ebony or ivory nut, infrequently called the upper saddle, with grooves to position the strings as they lead into the pegbox. The scroll at the end of the pegbox provides essential mass to tune the fundamental body resonance of the instrument, and provides a convenient grip for spare fingers to brace against when tuning one-handed, with the violin on the shoulder. Some "scrolls" are carved representations of animal or human heads, instead of the classical spiral volute most normally seen. The fingerboard, also known as a fretboard, is a part of most stringed instruments. ... Binomial name Diospyros ebenum Koenig ex Retz. ... Veneer, in woodworking, refers to thin slices of wood, usually thinner than 3 millimetres (1/8 inch). ... A small strip of hard material used to stop string vibrations on some stringed instruments. ... In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which turns around some central point or axis, getting progressively closer to or farther from it, depending on which way you follow the curve. ... A volute is a spiral scroll-like ornament such as that used on an Ionic capital. ...

The maple neck alone is not strong enough to support the tension of the strings without distorting, relying for that strength on its lamination with the fingerboard. For this reason, if a fingerboard comes loose (it happens) it is vital to slacken the strings immediately. The shape of the neck and fingerboard affect how easily the violin may be played. Fingerboards are dressed to a particular transverse curve, and have a small lengthwise "scoop," or concavity, slightly more pronounced on the lower strings, especially when meant for gut or synthetic strings. The neck itself is not varnished, but is polished and perhaps lightly sealed, to allow ease and rapidity of shifting between positions. The term transverse means side-to-side, as opposed to longitudinal, which means front-to-back. In automotive engineering, the term transverse refers to an engine in which the crankshaft is oriented side-to-side relative to the wheels of the vehicle. ...

Some old violins (and some made to appear old) have a grafted scroll, or a seam between the pegbox and neck itself. Many authentic old instruments have had their necks reset to a slightly increased angle, and lengthened by about a centimeter. The neck graft allows the original scroll to be kept with a Baroque violin when bringing its neck to conformance with modern standard. Adoration, by Peter Paul Rubens. ...

Bridge

Bridge blank and finished bridge

The bridge is a precisely cut piece of maple, preferably with prominent medullary rays, showing a flecked figure. The bridge forms the lower anchor point of the vibrating length of the strings, and transmits the vibration of the strings to the body of the instrument. Its top curve holds the strings at the proper height from the fingerboard, permitting each to be played separately by the bow. The mass distribution and flex of the bridge, acting as a mechanical acoustic filter, have a prominent effect on the sound. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1446x584, 76 KB) Summary The finished bridge is a bit extreme, with more air (and less wood) in it than most. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1446x584, 76 KB) Summary The finished bridge is a bit extreme, with more air (and less wood) in it than most. ... A bridge is the part of a guitar, bass or other stringed instrument where the strings join the body of the instrument. ... Medulla in general means the inner part, and derives from the Latin word for marrow. In medicine it is contrasted to the cortex. ...

Tuning the violin can cause the bridge to lean, usually toward the fingerboard as the tightening of the strings pulls it. If left that way, it may warp. Experienced violinists know how to straighten and center a bridge.

Sound post

Sound post & bridge foot

The sound post, or "soul post", fits precisely between the back and top, just to the tailward side of the treble bridge foot. Part of adjusting the tone of the instrument is moving the soundpost by small amounts, both laterally and transversely inside the instrument, using a tool called a sound post setter. Since the sound post is not glued and is held in place by string tension and by being gently wedged between the top and back, it may fall over if all the strings are slackened at once. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1400x1200, 67 KB) Summary Close-up view of a working violin, warts and all. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1400x1200, 67 KB) Summary Close-up view of a working violin, warts and all. ... Treble is a term applied in music to the high or acute part of the musical system, as opposed to the bass, the lower or grave part. ...

Tailpiece

The tailpiece may be wood, metal, or plastic, and anchors the strings to the lower bout of the violin by means of the tailgut, nowadays most often a loop of stout nylon monofilament which rides over the lower saddle, a block of ebony set into the edge of the top, and goes around the endpin. The endpin fits into a tapered hole in the bottom block. Most often the material of the endpin is chosen to match the other fittings, for example, ebony, rosewood or boxwood. Very often the E string will have a fine tuning lever worked by a small screw turned by the fingers. Fine tuners may also be applied to the other strings, and are sometimes built in to the tailpiece. The tailpiece is an element found in all musical instruments of the violin family. ...

Pegs

At the scroll end, the strings ride over the nut into the pegbox, where they wind around the tuning pegs. Strings usually have a colored "silk" wrapping at both ends, for identification and to provide friction against the pegs. The peg shafts are shaved to a standard taper, their pegbox holes being reamed to the same taper, allowing the friction to be increased or decreased by the player applying appropriate pressure along the axis of the peg while turning it. Various brands of peg compound or peg dope help keep the pegs from sticking or slipping. Peg drops are marketed for slipping pegs. Pegs may be made of ebony, rosewood, boxwood, or other woods, either for reasons of economy or to minimize wear on the peg holes by using a softer wood for the pegs. Tuning Peg is a small peg that is used to hold a string for a stringed instrument. ... Tuning Peg is a small peg that is used to hold a string for a stringed instrument. ... Peg dope is a waxy substance which is used to coat the bearing surfaces of the tuning pegs of string instruments (e. ...

Bow

The bow consists of a stick with a ribbon of horsehair strung between the tip and frog (or nut, or heel) at opposite ends. At the frog end, a screw adjuster tightens or loosens the hair. The frog may be decorated with two eyes made of shell, with or without surrounding metal rings. A flat slide usually made of ebony and shell covers the mortise where the hair is held by its wedge. A metal ferrule holds the hair-spreading wedge and the shell slide in place. Just forward of the frog, a leather grip or thumb cushion protects the stick and provides grip for the player's hand. Forward of the leather, a winding serves a similar purpose, as well as affecting the balance of the bow. The winding may be wire, silk, or whalebone (now imitated by alternating strips of yellow and black plastic.) Some student bows (particularly the ones made of solid fiberglass) substitute a plastic sleeve for grip and winding. In music, a bow is a device pulled across the strings of a string instrument in order to make them vibrate and emit sound. ... In music, a bow is a device pulled across the strings of a string instrument in order to make them vibrate and emit sound. ... A piece of nacre Nacre, also known as mother of pearl, is an organic mixture of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in the form of platy crystals of aragonite and conchiolin (a scleroprotein). ... Simple and strong, the mortise and tenon joint (also called the mortice and tenon) has been used for centuries by woodworkers around the world to join two pieces of wood, most often at an angle close to 90°. Although there are many variations on the theme, the basic idea is... A ferrule (possibly the Latin diminutive of ferrum iron) is a name for types of metal objects. ...

The hair of the bow traditionally comes from the tail of a white male horse, although some cheaper bows use synthetic fiber. The hair must be rubbed with rosin occasionally so that it will grip the strings and cause them to vibrate. The stick is traditionally made of pernambuco or the less expensive brazilwood, although some student bows are made of fiberglass. Recent innovations have allowed carbon-fiber to be used as a material for the stick at all levels of craftsmanship. A 20 g cake of amber violin bow rosin. ... Flag of Pernambuco See other Brazilian States Capital Recife Largest City Recife Area 98,281 km² Population   - Total   - Density 7,918,344 80. ... Brazilwood is a common name for several trees of the family Leguminosae (Pulse family) whose wood yields a red dye called brazilein. ... Carbon fiber can refer to carbon filament thread, or to felt or woven cloth made from those carbon filaments. ...

Strings

Detail of bridge and strings; image courtesy www.sxc.hu

Strings were first made of sheep's intestines (called "catgut"), stretched, dried and twisted. Contrary to popular belief, violin strings were never made of actual cat's intestines. Plain gut strings are still often used in historically accurate performances of music from the 18th century and earlier. (One source for such strings is surgical gut, which comes in a variety of gauges.) They are also sometimes used in older instruments in fragile condition, where a modern, higher-tension string would potentially harm the instrument. Tonally, they can be compared to the speaking voice. Image of violin, with focus on the bridge. ... Image of violin, with focus on the bridge. ... A string is a vibrating element used on many musical instruments, such as the violin, guitar, harp, and piano. ... Catgut is the name applied to cord of great toughness and tenacity prepared from the intestines of sheep/goat, or occasionally from those of the hog, horse, mule and ass. ... The authentic performance movement is an effort on the part of musicians and scholars to perform works of classical music in ways similar to how they were performed when they were originally written. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ...

Later it was found that plain gut strings could be improved by winding them with metal. The resulting strings were stronger and more even, and being more massive, they were tuned to a higher tension, allowing more volume to be produced. Although plain or wound gut strings have a tendency to go out of tune and snap more easily than modern synthetic strings, nevertheless some players prefer the warm, singing tone of metal-wound gut strings. Some players use olive oil on gut strings to extend their playing life, and improve tuning stability by reducing the strings' sensitivity to humidity.

Modern strings are most commonly either monofilament steel, or are a stranded core wound with various metals, to add mass or provide bulk. Adding mass requires the string to play at a higher tension, allowing the violin to produce more volume. Adding bulk makes the string more comfortable to play than a thinner string. Strings may be wound with several layers, in part to control the damping of vibrations, and influence the "warmth" or "brightness" of the string by manipulating the strength of its overtones. This article is about yarn fiber. ...

The core may be synthetic filaments, solid metal, or braided or twisted steel filaments. The uppermost E string is usually solid steel, either plain or wound with aluminium in an effort to prevent "whistling." Gold plating delays corrosion of the steel and may also reduce whistling. Stainless steel gives a slightly different tone. Synthetic-core strings, the most popular of which is Perlon™ (a trade name for stranded nylon) combine some of the tonal qualities of gut strings with greater longevity and tuning stability. They are also much less sensitive to changes in humidity than gut strings, and less sensitive to changes in temperature than all-metal strings. Solid-core metal strings are stiff when newly replaced, and tend to go out of tune quickly.

While some gut strings still use a knot to secure the tail end in the slot of the tailpiece, most modern strings use a "ball," a small bead often made of bronze, for that purpose. A frequent exception is the E string, which may be had with either a ball or loop end, since the smallest E-string fine tuners hold the tail of the string on a single small hook.

The price of different string types varies dramatically; gut and gut-core strings are typically the most expensive, followed by leading synthetic core brands, and student steel strings at the lowest price range.

Acoustics

It has been known for a long time that the shape, or arching, as well as the thickness of the wood and its physical qualities govern the sound of a violin. The sound and tone of the violin is determined by how the belly and back plates of the violin behave acoustically, according to modes or schemes of movement determined by German physicist Ernst Chladni. Patterns of the nodes (places of no movement) made by sand or glitter sprinkled on the plates with the plate vibrated at certain frequencies are called "Chladni patterns", and are occasionally used by luthiers to verify their work before assembling the instrument. A scientific explanation includes a discussion of how the properties of the wood determines where the nodes occur, whether the plates move with end or diagonally opposite points rising together or in various mixed modes. Acoustics is a branch of physics and is the study of sound, mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids. ... Ernst Florenz Friedrich Chladni (November 30, 1756 - April 3, 1827) was a German physicist. ... An engravers impression of Antonio Stradivari examining an instrument. ...

Sizes

Children learning the violin often use fractional sized violins, 3/4, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/10, and 1/16. Occasionally, even a 1/32 sized instrument is used.

The body length (not including the neck) of a 'full-size' or 4/4 violin is about 14 inches (or smaller in some models of the 17th century). A 3/4 violin is 13 inches, and a 1/2 size is 12 inches. Rarely, one finds a size referred to as 7/8 which is approximately 13.5 inches, sometimes called a "ladies' fiddle." Viola size is specified as body length in inches rather than fractional sizes. A 'full-size' viola averages 16 inches, but may range as long as 18 or 20 inches. Such extremely long instruments may be humorously referred to as "chin cellos." A viola The viola (in French, alto; in German bratsche) is a stringed musical instrument played with a bow which serves as the middle voice of the violin family, between the upper lines played by the higher violin (soprano register) and the lower lines played by the deeper cello (bass...

When determining the violin size appropriate for a child, a general rule is to have the child hold the instrument against the neck, and reach out past the end of the scroll. Some teachers feel that students can handle a size if they are able to reach around the end of the scroll and see the tips of the fingers, while others recommend smaller sizes as safer, preferring to have the scroll fall short of the student's wrist.

Beginners often rely on tapes on the finger board in several places for proper left hand finger placement, but quickly abandon the tapes as they advance. Commercial decals made for this purpose are more convenient to install, and typically more accurate than individual tapes. Another commonly-used marking technique uses dots of 'white-out' on the fingerboard, which wear off in a few weeks with regular practice. Removable fretboards are also occasionally used as a tool to learn the placements of notes. Two rolls of adhesive tape. ...

External links

• Anatomy of a violin
• Violin Making - virtual tour of a violin shop