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Re: I just visited a violinmaker

"We, with our advanced technology, can't figure out how to reproduce the sound that is produced by a 300 year old wood instrument that, from what you are saying, is "at the end of their lives"."

That seems to be the general consensus. Exactly how they were made and why they are the way they, sound the way they sound, feel in use to violinists the way the feel seems to be the result of secrets which died with the the makers and ones which science hasn't figured out yet. From what I gather, the time to examine these relics during which they can reveal thier secrets is also running out. Don't be so surprised, there are much simpler problems science hasn't figured out yet either...such as how the universe came into existance or how the sound of speaker wires and vaccum tubes are affected by fluoridated water in nearby house plants if you belive some people.

"Has the sound from the instruments remained exactly the same over the 300 years"

We have no way to know because nobody who heard them when they were young is still around to remember and tell us but the betting is no, they do change over time. In fact they can change quite drastically in a short time when conditions of storage, lack of use, or damage occurs. And one of the comment's this violinmaker made was that we haven't given newer instruments 300 years worth of playing they just might need to reach their peak. Sounds like violin making at the highest level is somewhat akin to winemaking, part science, part art, and part voodoo.

"How do we know that what we make now is not as good as the stuff 300 years ago?"

Well, there is the sound they make for one thing. Ever heard a (non electronic unamplified) violin which is as loud as a trumpet? I have....4 feet in front of me...startling.) Will modern insturments sound like these ancient masterpieces in 300 years? I'll try to stick around and report back to you when the time comes.

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