Sound Testing #5 Edward
With #5, Edward, playable in the white, I did a set of recordings for comparison to when Edward will have his varnish on. The recordings consist of a set of open string bowings; G, D, A, E and then a D major scale, and a three octave A major scale. The final recording is a tapping on the bridge, this measurement will provide a frequency ‘ring’ of the instrument independant of the bow and/or player skill required in the first set of recordings
Prior to making the recordings I tuned the sound post, moving it a bit forward and to the treble side. The slightest movements of the sound post had an impact on the sound of the instrument. The changes ranged from shrill to mellow, to nasal or hollow. The adjustments strive for a pleasant blend of these two scales; a tiche to the left, a tiche to the right, oh too far and a tiche back to the left. Once satisfied, then the sound test were done and recorded. I keep a set of recordings on every instrument first the tap tones taken when graduating the plates, then the instrument in the white, then when the varnish is first complete, then after a couple of months of playing. The scientific process of improvement; measure, compare, adjust, measure, compare, adjust then repeat.
The Start to Making Violin #6
These paragraphs were musings about the process with finishing Edward, now on to the real purpose of this post: Starting to make the next violin!!!
The following photo shows the spruce and maple that will be planed, cut, glued, carved and scraped into a fine violin.
The first step is to plane the plate glue edge perfectly square and straight. The striking plane jig holds the plate flat and cuts square, then the movement across the blade will determine the straightness of hte edge. The goal is to hold the two pieces of each plate together in front of a bright light. If any light shows through the seam, then it is not a good fit. Holding the plates together square or straight should show no light, then hold the edges a skew with the the top aligned with the bottom on one end and the bottom with the top on the other end. This will show a straight line, and no curve or angle in the cut. The finished edge will match perfectly creating a clean thin glue line in the finished plates. An axiom in violin making; a little extra care early saves work later. Same as “Haste makes Waste.”