  Of all the characteristics of a violin, those that concern its shape are
probably the most important ones, as the violin maker has complete control over
them. Contemporary violin making, however, is still based more on tradition
than understanding, and a definitive scientific study of the specific relations
that exist between shape and vibrational properties is yet to come and sorely
missed. In this article, using standard statistical learning tools, we show
that the modal frequencies of violin tops can, in fact, be predicted from
geometric parameters, and that artificial intelligence can be successfully
applied to traditional violin making. We also study how modal frequencies vary
with the thicknesses of the plate (a process often referred to as {\em plate
tuning}) and discuss the complexity of this dependency. Finally, we propose a
predictive tool for plate tuning, which takes into account material and
geometric parameters.
