New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-06-04
The instrument.

How instruction Of most entertain
isr character can be extracted from the
crosby Brown collection may be sug-
rested bv some comments on the PRINT
tive bowed instruments which were the
prototypes Of the king Of all music
nakers.-the violin. The exposition may
be helped out by means Of the plct-
ures on this page. The feature OF the
violi7 which difcrentiates It from all
musical Instruments save those OF Its
own tribe. is the bow, by means oil
which the strings are set into vibration.
Il has long puzzled musical students
.hs. none Of the monuments OF antiq-
ui.v. neither mural paintings, nor
,,plntures. nor vase-designs, shows a
,snreseDtation Of the hddle-bow. II suen
negative evidence is conclusive, then
neither Assyrians nor Hebrews. neither
Trvptians nor Greeks nor Romans
new ANYTHING about the principle Of
he bow. Nero didn't fiddle when Rome
burned for Nero never saw hddle'
Y he played anything 1t was the
lvr, the water-organ or the Oagpipe-
70, they we're the instruments with
vl;,b he was familiar. SO far as the
ush,.vs are concerned, Winston has
troubled Youthful investigators little
h. Milling I'D fiddle bows as well as
,-rrne+s bv the thousand IN the tenn
NE Al Jerusalem in mis- translation Oh
Jo,ephus's history; but this is only
Nprdsr due 10 Whiston's plentiful lack
Of musical knowledge. The word ~hicn
he translated bow was plektron. and
plekfron was a plectrum, bit OF WOOD
or metal with which musical strings
we're plvcked or picked. not rubbed.
The invention Of the violin bow, and
therefore Of the violin, is claimed by
the Hindus. who say that a rude n
.trument called rdUGnnstr0n (stiII 70
be found occasionally in the hands OF
nendieant monks was invented IN
their land not less than 1000 years
ago. The simplest form Of bowed IN
strument shown in the raUandstron Is
also to be found in the Chinese ur-hlen
OF "two-string," which may yet be seen
IN the orchestras Of the Chinese the
aires. This, IT is said, was introduced
into China by the Buddhist monks; but
II the principle Of tone production ex-
snplifed in the fiddle bow was known
in India 5000 years ago it is passing
strange that so artistic people as the
Greeks never assimilated 1t.
Nevertheless it is very likely that IN
the ravanastron and ur-hien we have
the earliest form Of the violin. This
fiddle is a small cylinder Of wood, one
enc Of which is covered with tightly
drawn bit Of snakeskin on which rests
& tiny bridge. A round stick is thrust
through the middle Of the cylinder. 1t
terminates in d head holding pegs for
tuning the two strings Of waxed six
IN China or gut Gin India. There is
no hnger-board like that OF the violin
o. Instruments Of the guitar tribe, but
ne strings are stopped for the produc-
ton Of tones Of different pitch by
simple pressure against them. This is
also the case with the SG3C.dadnQ
which the young lady from Siam is
playing in our photograph. The strings
a'e set into vibration by very print
I've bow, which is merely q piece Of
bamboo bent by tuft Of horsehair held
'y a knot at each end. The horsehair.
rubbed with resin, moves between the
NO strings, both Of which are sounded
'hen the bow is drawn back or forth.
Ffst cousin 20 the raUGndstron and
Written is the kemGnqeh. whose origi-
IA home Was Persia, but which is
"m'non now in Arabia, Egypt, Turkey
'No other Oriental countries. Never
.'hd It's names; wherever you turn 70
Tue East you will find il with its
wy or resonator. Of coeosnut she'll,
F" belly or soundboard, Of fish skin,