Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1889-05-09
oosr OF a FIDDLE.



store on the Bowery whore violins are
made and repaired.
"Well," replied the dealer thought
fully, much depends upon the age, tone
and make of the instrument. But can
sell you very respectable fiddle. good
enough for the ordinary player, for S25
or $50, while an undoubted Stradivarius,
on the other hand, will cost as muoh as
$1,000"
what" exclaimed the reporter in
astonishment, do you mean to say that
such insignificant bits OF wood will
realize such stupendous prices ?n
Eyes, frequently; and have known
instances whore that figure has been far
exceeded. In 1880 StradlvaYius violin,
dated 1904 and known TO connnisseurs as
the Belts Strad,' was purchased by Mr..
George Hart of London for e800 or
$4,000. Some 80 years previously 1t waa
bought by JohuBetts, the violin maker, and
he afterward declined all Offers OF sale,
though the then unprecented sum of
$500 was rendered. Bat after his death
/ it was disposed of TO M. Vuillaumes OF
Paris, aud afterward to Mr.. Wilmoth of
Antwerp, from whom Mr.. Hart subse.
| quently purchased it. Then again, In
| 1883, violin, dated 1887, and known TO
'fdiculamanics' as the Spanish Strad,'
was sold by Messrs. Puttick ~ Simpson
OF London for $500, or S2,500.
"The latter instrument was once the
properly Of the celebrated Norwegian
yiollnist, Ole Bull. Another famous and
genuine violin, known as The Swans
Song. and dated 1897, was sold in Paris
in 1886 for the sum of Is, 1901, or about
W, 500. Stradivarius was 43 years old
when he made this much coyeted prizs,
which belonged to d man we'll known in
the musical world, the late NJ. de Sainte.
Senoch, whose three other violins by the
same 'author,' as II is technically the
etiquette to term the maker OF hddles,
also brought fabulous prices"
when were iddles introduced ~
well, GRsparo di Salo appears TO
have made, toward the end of the six.
teenth century, the earliest OF what may
be called modern violins. The world
famed Cremona fiddles are all of late
seventeenth and early eighteenth century
manufacture. The Amatis o. Oremona
lead the van "a authors of these wonder
full instruments. Andrea Amati was the
first to gain renown for his fiddles, and
then caIue his sons Geronimo and An
tonic, and the son of the former, Nicoli.
The prestige OF the Awaits, however, il by
some considered to have been ecipsed by
Antonio Stradivari or Stsadiyarius, the
tradition Of whose excellence was con.
timed by the Guarneri and Rugqieri
families. These extraordinary crafts
men knew well enough where lay the tone
in fiddle and their wonderful instru-
ments, which were works of art, have
never been surpassed
'What are their Characterization ?'i
swell, according to the learned Mr..
Otto, first. clnsa Oremoua fiddle is con-
stFucted in strict accordance with the
rules Of mathematics.
"Ihe instrument comprises SIS distinct |
diyisions-some authorities give 60-but
In cheap violius tue parts are not SO
infinitely subdivided. Ihe back, neck,
sides, and circles are made Of sycamore;
the belly, G@5a bar, sounding pe sni |
aix blocks OF deal, aud the ApSaf h1nsG
and tail-piece OF ebony. A Oremona /
fiddle should have strong, reedy tone,
something like a olRriouet; but tbs tone |
OF Stainer or Steiner may be compared |
to fiute."
Are there not modern limitations Of |
the old makers or authors 2"
Eyes, and violins, like watches, are |
nowadays turned out by the gross, where |
the construction of the instrument was
once labor OF love, patience and art.
In Paris there is factory doing a Large
business in the fabrication of sham an
tlque Oremona tiddlee, and there have
been sold In New York so-called Crsmona |
violins Of great makers in Sufficient
quantity TO have made, when broken no,
kindling wood for large majority Of
householders during q severe winter
Mus. violin look old in order to sell
we'll ?"
Age, OK the appearance OF age, is
often an excellent recommendation. A
fiddle is something like port wine. Age
makes it mellow aad improves its tone.
People know this and generally select an
instrument which looks venerable.
Therefore II or you were to construct
one OF the best make and finish lustrous
With Varnish, il it had the appearance OF
being brand new, if II were not scratched
apparently where the strings had snapped
IL its glossy surface was not dimmed by
chin aDrasions, and you found a buyer at
all, you would have 70 sell it at the lowest
| figure possible"
"Ihen violins seem to be one OF that
class of objects which, like horses, in.
dnce people in their disposal TO become
rasoals
Exactly, and besides the unscsupulous
dealer there ia GLASS of Observation-Disclosures
who carry out the same business in the
United States by constantly Offering their
viohns for sale. Their method Of pro
cedure is as follows:
THE yiolinist buys fiddle lit NAV DO
a fair one-at bargain. He plays on il
FOR week or 80 or, Just as likely, for an
evening, and then announces that he has
been performing on an extraordinary In.
strumant that he is DESTROYS OF selling.
On come the silly dupes anxious to hay
signor This or Herr That's own instru.
ment 'lps the real one and marvel,
the7 assure yon, and a violin worth barely
30 or 10 ls thus disposed OF for from
SlVJ TO SZ0O--a business quite as lucra
tive as concert or orchestral perform.
ance5 to some ylolinists."
are musicians often deceived in the
make aud quality Of yiolins ?"
''Ses, providing they are not experts,
and Mr. George Geiaunde tells, in Lis
book on The Progress OF Violin Making,
q violin Of his own make which Ole
Bull took for Stradiyarius. II ia hard
to dispute an assertion of this character.
bnf among tho many violinists OF the
world Bah was probably one OF the most
proheient in his acquaintance with all
tue old makers OF instruments and rarely
made mistakes. should therefore have
thought that glimpse at the varnish on
the snpposititious Stradivarius would
have prevented him from making sQch
an extraordinary error"
What was there peculiar about the
old yarnjsh ~
well, 1t has marvellous TRANSPARENT
nrlslAncy which brings out the grain Of
the wood TO admirable perfection and its