do it right first time!

...Now to the real subject of this article: Instrument making; doing it right the first time.

...When making a new violin, decisions are made continually along the process, the shaping of each part, eventually ending with the completed instrument. Before the bow is put to string for the first time, the success or failure of the instrument has already been determined.

..What is lacking in the current instrument making process is enough information on what tap tone goals, and material selection techniques, exist for each part and how to adjust the individual part during the making proces to meet those necessary ideals.

..Little extra effort is necessary when the techniques are understood and skills developed. There should be some satisfaction knowing the general level of instrument that is being produced, instead of hoping against hope that this insturment will turn out special (again, or for the first time).

...The current level of instrument making may be revealed by the VSA (Violin Society of America) instrument making competetion which is held every two years. Briefly there are two areas of judging; the beauty and correctness of the appearance, and secondly how well each instrument sounds when played by a professional. Each maker may only enter one instrument and it must have been make during the past two years. So you have the best makers from all over the world entering their best instrument from the past two years; the results: Only 5% of the instruments are judged to have a 'good' tone; another 5% have and 'honorable' tone. Put a different way, 90% of the violins made today do not sound good!

...Lets face it, that is not anything to be very proud of. I believe that can be reversed by the techniques and guides you can learn about in these pages.
...If anyone would like to put these Tap Tone and Wood Tone and Rub Tone techniques to the test, I would be willing to accomodate, provided the test is scientific and the results freely and widely reported.
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(c) 2020 David Langsather