New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-03-14
CID TTOLINS.


Tho Theatre ol tbe Eoval Institu ION was wded
Oh tie occasion Of Nil llaWcis lecture on trdiy
evening. Among other vIoiiUs he exhibited two by
Sfrad 1arlus one belonging to the Emperor OF ii's-
an the other lent by his Royal Hlg5ncss the Duke
late ldrsio's bedroom with ln5 corpse. me Zee
turcr beg ~ by saying that the collection OF Violns
and BASES now before the audience, weighing but
few ounces each. represented several Thousand
pounas worth. The variety IN shane and style OF
The viol-trbe. ancient and modern showed the IN
eX naustIbe fascination 1t possessed over me iGhd
deal tonight with the construction, the history
and the sound of tie NlOiln. 10 beBlu VITA the
wood: At Bg.scia makers used pear lemon ana ASH !;
at Cremona, maple. sycamore and OF course. pine
The wood came INTO the markets oil MAMMA DIGS
cia Cremona, Venice ana Milan from the SWISS
Southern rs .ol, unlimited IN supply often mighty
ti,rbcrs Of great acc-plrntiiui then, scarcer now
The makers had their pick they tested II for IN
teusitv and quality. Cut strip OF wood aud strike
thcu you viii see how they viii vary IN musical
sound When good acoustic beam Was lound me
maker kent If for his best work. In Joseph Guar
nerius and 5 .raduarEs the same pine tree crops
up AZ intervals OF years. \ good maker VIII patch
and Join ana inlay 10 retain every paIt,c% ot uNd
t,rLcr Old wood is oddly vocal. As | sat m my
room surrounded by these instruments could not
cough CT move without ghCstiy voices answering
me IRON tie sixteenth, seventeenth ana elghieeiih
centuries. and even the oid-seasOned backs and bel
lies of unstrung violins are tull OF echoes;
Taking violin and teailng u open the lec,uIer
continued: II HE Vonn is made OF hlN-eigAt OF
seventy petcs Il is n miracle OF constTuc'l0n II
is rs heht rs n feather and as strong az horse.
Wood about as thick as "a hali-crOWn, BY exquisite
adustnlrut II ssfs for centuries pressure or sew
cr, hrn"redyyc.gllt. The belly of soft deal the
hack of hard sycamore. are united by SIX lids or
sycamore supported bv twelve blocks WIN iiulHss.
The sound-bai running obhqdelJ under the le1l 1907
If the bridge IS the uelNous sASlc, Oh 'Ie Ni"ii'
the sound post supporting the bridge Is me soul
through n pass ali the heart-throbs or vibrations
generated between the uacA and the belly on IT.
position depends uellONness tghihesS, Oh intensity
of sound The predictions strain OF the strings Is
resisted first by the arch OF the Delv then 10y tue
RIBS strengi hencd with the upright docks tHs pres
,lro among winch is evenly distributed by the ilh-
mos which unite them, aid lastly by the supporting
.ound-bar and sound-post and back"
After describing the olhcr parts 81 Tue lhstLHH-
which ne described after Mr.. Charles Reade as PROB
ably a heterogeneous Vamlsh, inst ot OH win gum
Ia solution, then o! color cyap0Iated IN spirit,
red and yellow gam appear 10 nav Dceil uaou aut
con biued. Although IT was sald tHat lnc seCie5
was now lost, bod as late as le3O VINO eIpOySp
the Fendts aud Lott and always vanished himself
had the receipt Tor something very liAe tHe CIS-
guolvz,l the varnish Of Joseph Gu2rnerlus ana
found amber IN It, but has himself produced VaIhlsh
OF an extraordinary quaiIty. 80
Inc 40 IN is not invention. y IS grown II
he. come together IL IS the survival 81 the httest
About The eleventh century an instrument OF the
VOL tribe emerged with frets, but 100 years were
required to get rio OF these mIPlotS DelIto ~
SEEN toward the true VOL could be made. before
the end Of the fourteenth century yiols were maze
in great profuslOn OF every SIZE ana shapeLttnte
knee VOL the bass VOL, viOi de GamDa, OF winch
certain South KensingtOn specimens are before YOU
Rnt the rise of the true violin tribe begins with the
rise of modern music. About the time When CaIis-
simi and MonteyeTde-l5o 5-ltlZ discovered the
true octave and the perfect cadence, pau slleIns
received a new impulse the human voice was Qls-
covered TO fall naturally into soprano, contIaItoi
tenor and bass and vol INSTRUMENTS Delng uu1pteI
10 these four divisions, the Violn tenor pass, aI
later contrabasso, before me, gTaduIlly separated
themselves from the confused hebHt@ OF NioIs De-
hind mo and shone out clearly as the true plan
etary system of the musical ornament"