French Violins and Bows. German violins, English Violins


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About Violins

The word violin comes from the Medieval Latin word vitula, meaning stringed instrument; this word is also believed to be the source of the Germanic "fiddle". The violin, while it has ancient origins, acquired most of its modern characteristics in 16th-century Italy, with some further modifications occurring in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Spanish Violinist Pablo Sarasate

Pablo Sarasate was born in Pamplona, Navarre, the son of an artillery bandmaster. He began studying the violin with his father at the age of five and later took lessons from a local teacher. His musical talent became evident early on and he appeared in his first public concert in A Coruña at the age of eight.

His artistic pre-eminence was due principally to the purity of his tone, which was free from any tendency towards the sentimental or rhapsodic, and to that impressive facility of execution that made him a virtuoso.

Click here for Sarasate's piece Zigeunerweisen played by Gil Shaham and for some more information about Sarasate.

The Modern Violin

A violin generally consists of a spruce top (the soundboard, also known as the top plate, table, or belly), maple ribs and back, two endblocks, a neck, a bridge, a soundpost and four strings. It mainly differs from Italian instruments of the 17/18th Century in having a longer neck. See here for more information.

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You may search either by Name, Year or Country of Origin. For instance, searching for *bert* in the Name field will return results from: Laberte-Humbert Frères *Bert* Smith Robert Humbert Searching for *189* in the year field would return years from *1890 - 1899, as well as the year 189* (violins weren't invented then !) and *2189* (will we all be here then?).