Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-09-07

va 49, AOAA3 l
II have here a Stradivarius violin,
be explained, triumphantly removing
the instrument from it's case INC hold
ing it aloft SO that all might be pr,
vileged to gaze theron. I'm toid
they're very rare and bring big prices,
and L would like to know just what
would be considered a fair price Tor
this one. I've already received an
offer of $500 for it, but a frlend OF
smine who is a violinist says tnat Is
much too little
The clerks looked politely interest
ed, but they did not seem impressed.
Presently the head of the Vloin ae-
.partment appeared and picked up the
violin. There was a noticeable lack
of enthusiasm in his manner as he
examined it.
'How did you get the Instrument
he asked.
"Why, it was among my deceased
uncle's effects which were recently
turned over to me-" explained the
proud owner. .The old gentleman
used to play on it a good deal, put
he had no idea of its real value.
| Neither had / until / happened to see
the name of Stradivari in the INSIDE.
Then l remembered hearing some
where that old yiolins of that make
were valuable"
But did you not see this!' in
ouired the violin expert, pointing to a
fine imprint at the base when reau,
MADE in Germany" You did? Well,
that little mark proves beyond ques-
ion that your violin is not a genuine
Stradivarius, even if the Indifferent
workmanship did not do so. Genuine
| Strads are not made in Germany. This
violin, / regret to say, is not valuable
1t is probably not worth more than
| S."
When the erstwhile jubilant gentle
man had departed in great deJecuon
of spirit, the violin expert said: we
are always having to take the JOY out
of life like that. / am compelled to
disappoint many people every year.
The ignorance of the public on the
subject of violins is incredible. People
who are not otherwise easily 1ooieu
allow themselves TO be completely tax
en- in by newly printed S~tradivarius or
| Guarnerius labels inside their vIoilns.
This man who was just here was
fortunate. He had the violin be
aueathed to him. He did not pay
do"
Labels May Lie
As a matter of fact, he said, the
label is one of the least important
things to be considered in determining
the value Of a violin. The main points
of interest are the lines of the in
strument. the wood, the varnish, the
scroll, the Il holes, the characteristic
tone of the instrument, the general
character of the workmanship and the
many little ~mannerisms characteristic
of the maker. There is a strong sug-
gestion of holiness and power about
the violins made by Joseph Guarnerl,
for instance, that is altogether lacking
in the fine, sweet-toned instruments of
Nicholas Amati, another OF the famous
old Italian masters.
1t is q simple matter to procure
well executed counterfeit labels and
paste them in any violin, much easier
than it is to forge the signature of a
famous artist. When blackened by q
little dust they will easily deceive the
Iayman. Yet in the case of the cheap
|. er %violins, there is no intent to de-
ceive. The labels are pasted in by
modern makers merely as trade marks
or to indicate the model of the violin
If it is a cop Of a Stradivarius,
Guarnerius or some other famous
make. Many of these instruments, as
, in the incident already described, are
also frankly labeled Made in Ger
! many
; While this form of labelling is wei
known to all persons acquainted witt
the making of violins and their his
/ tory, it arouses NAM false hopes IL
the un~enlightened. In one instance,
family in a small New York town dis
4 covered an old violin in their attic. /
was creaky with age and badly bat
tered, but there was great excltemen
when it was found to have the name o.
. Js-a-, =. 81 ILL., A-,-s
, of the local fiddlers was solicited, ant
they seconded the view that it was
a indeed, a genuine Strad. One of then
= even got himself disliked by offering
. the family only $500 for the instru
I ment. News of the marvellous finl
spread about the town and finally tn
:. family came to be regarded as poten
tally rich. They acquired new, e.
pensive house furnishings and an auto
0 mobile on the security of their Strad
MANY liberal offers for the violin wer
rejected, but, as it turned out, the
S waited too long. For one evening
friend brought a well known concer
violinist to the house, who told then
c that their wonderful Strad was only
cheap German copy not even wort
the cost of repairing.
> Injuries Do Not Improve VIoIins
c There is also a widespread super
stitiOn TO the effect that q violin !
8 often improved by being injured an
having its injury repaired" explaine
e the violin expert. Nothing could b
more absurd, of course, but it IL cas-
. to see how the idea must have orig
! mated. People who have had their vic
Inns cracked take them to an expert t
i. be repaired. In mending the crack, b
often discovers several other defect
c as well and also corrects them. AS
result, the instrument often doe
sound better than it did before. Blu
it is not the damage which improve
t the violin; it is the repairing-the sui
II stitution of new parts for old, or tn
altering of the size and thickness c
10 certain parts.
1t Not only is a violin not improve
by injuries, but the value of a Gre
mona violin is greatly enhanced il it
in good condition. The condition {
the varnish is especially important.
recall at least one instance where a
ignorant violin repairer ruined a gent
inc Guarnerius violin by scraping OF
all the original varnish and applying
thick coat Of the modern variety"
1t is remarkable how well preserve
J. are some of the old violins in the pc
session of collectors. One made t
Gaspard da Salo and gorgeously orn
lr mented, so it is said, by the gre'