DAY 8 : Participant’s comments

The body of the violin is being glued together and now needs to dry.

Meanwhile, we have been keeping a visitor’s book and here are some of the comments:

Hannah Shaw (viola) : Despite being someone who has been busy with playing a string instrument for most of my life, I realised a few years ago that I know remarkably little about how they are made. Since then, I’ve been interested in finding an opportunity to try my hand at instrument-making myself, and this was the perfect chance to not only try a few things myself (with varying levels of success…) but also to watch Mark and Peter at work. I think the most interesting thing to me has been seeing how the creative processes of making an instrument and those of playing it are so similar—it’s the same sort of balance of one’s own personality, technical skill, creativity, and expression within the parameters of tradition. Apart from that, anyone who knows me knows that I love making anything and everything with my hands, so it’s been the perfect way to relax between rehearsals!

Lisa Romain (violin): I will never look at an instrument the same way again after doing even very minimal work on shaping the arching. Until now, I had always thought of violins as being built – which of course, they are – but from now I would say that they are shaped rather than simply built or assembled. I was scared the WHOLE time.

Lisa Romain

Garfield Jackson (viola): I attempted some mini planing and therapeutic scraping – my best work was sweeping the floor.

Susanne Schäffer (violin): Edgework – at first scary but then quite therapeutic. Thanks for the experience!

 

Susanne Schäffer

David Waterman (cello): This is such fun, watching and learning and seeing how many wood shavings you’ll make! What a great new IMS Prussia Cove development – wonderful to see it.

Anita Leuzinger (cello): Shaping the linings – a quite challenging but nevertheless wonderful experience! Looking forward to hearing the result…

Anita Leuzinger