Oztechi
But the vital question has not been answered...does the copied violin sound and play exactly like the Stradivarius violin it is based on?
Christian Galles
wood grain is a factor?!
Sambath Pech
I guess he is an \"amateur\" as stated in the article. I was in orchestra for almost 9 years, and the biggest factor of how a violin sounds is the type of wood that was used and how old it is (the biggest factor). A new violin will never sound the same as a 40 year old violin....even if they\'re exact replica\'s because the 40 year old violin\'s wood has been naturally drying for the past 40 years. I don\'t know the physics behind it, but I guess the structure of the wood changes as it dries and ages - changing the vibrance of the violin? It is just like whiskey, you can\'t make a 4 year old whiskey taste the same as the one that had been aging in the barrel for the past 18 years.
Scott Nathan
Anyone who has been in the same room as a Strad being played will likely acknowledge that the voice of God can not be recreated by a CNC mill. Sambath makes an excellent point about aged wood. Even modern guitar companies have decades old wood to make their guitars. In the case of the Cremonese master violin makers, there has been much speculation. The forumlae of the varnishes, the various types of molds that grew on the the maple as it traveled downstream. The strain of maple & where it grew.
The attempt to recreate the sound of a Stradivarius has gone on for hundreds of years. This sounds like an amateurish start. I\'m not saying it\'s technologically impossible, but this is NOT craftsmanship. It\'s computer science.
TogetherinParis
Like human anatomy, only from a knowledge of many individuals can we be lead to truth. Humanity should insist that all Strads are so analyzed.
Clint Ferreira
I\'m sure this debate will go on forever, but Bob Taylor, the founder of Taylor Guitars argued that the wood wasn\'t the biggest issue. He made the pallet guitar to prove his point. http://www.taylorguitars.com/guitars/archive/older/pallet.html I am not suggesting a taylor is a Stradivari, but it is a fine instrument. Later he purchased a large lot of historic trees that were used in colonial times as meeting places. He built a series of guitars more to pay homage to the historical significance rather than the tonal quality of the very old wood. http://www.taylorguitars.com/News/NewsDetail.aspx?id=32
Christopher DeMars
Stradivarius violins sound good because the wood they used was infested by a fungus due to a climate cool down during that time.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090914111418.htm
Reproducing the exact shape of a Stradivarius is cool and all, but at least make it out of the right materials.
kendall
.The Secrets of the Stadivarious are many, so are the related Urban Legends. Some facts: the wood used in those times, from that part of Italy, virtually doesn\'t exist any more. Trees growing on the tops of hills where the soil is poor, water scarce, and wind the worst, will create a strong cellular structure that will resonate much better than those growing in the valley with ample soil, good water, little wind, having an easy life. This old growth has long since been harvested. After being cut into workable sized slabs an aging process of at least 50 years is necessary. There are many tricks to test for the tone of the wood during the construction process. Books have been written over varnish and glueing. Yes, after completion aging helps, but most important is how the violin is \"played in\". Ant. Strat. Had the luck to have his violins picked up by some of the better/best players of that time. They were given a great, and necessary, start in life by being played full, in true tones and using good techniques. Violins will have a life expectancy of about 350 years. Strats. have a quick response, building to full resonance on any tone with a great dynamic range and an evenness of volume throughout the tonal range. They are soft under the ear but project the sound relatively, quite far due to more pure wave forms and controlled harmonics. Part of the design of the violin and the bridge is to soften or eliminate unwanted tones and harmonics. A.S. designed the \"modern\" bridge which has not really been improved upon. Those little scrolls are not just for decoration, they vibrate at certain frequencies absorbing energies to help give a more even volume and pure tone.
Page Schorer
I wish they would do one of his guitars, which I understand have died of old age. Be great to hear what they sounded like when they were alive.
Zom LaCroix
@Page Schorer: there\'s a strad guitar at the national music museum in south dakota, and another in the ashmolean museum at oxford, england. don\'t think they\'re played though :(