The name of the strings on the violin. Thematic lesson in music "History of a small violin

Musical Instrument: Violin

The violin is one of the most refined and sophisticated musical instruments, with an enchanting melodious timbre very similar to the human voice, but at the same time very expressive and virtuoso. It is no coincidence that it was the violin that was given the role of the “queen of the orchestra”.

The magnificent variety of violin sounds has been surprising listeners for more than 5 centuries in a row, it can equally quickly cheer up, inspire optimism, make you suffer and experience. No wonder the violin was called the instrument of angels or the devil.

The voice of the violin is similar to a human, the verbs “sings”, “cries” are often used to it. It can bring tears of joy and sadness. The violinist plays on the strings of the soul of his listeners, acting through the strings of his powerful assistant. There is a belief that the sounds of the violin stop time and take you to another dimension.

The history of the violin and many interesting facts read about this musical instrument on our page.

Sound

The expressive singing of the violin can convey the thoughts of the composer, the feelings of the characters of the opera and ballet more accurately and more fully than all other instruments. Juicy, soulful, graceful and assertive at the same time, the sound of the violin is the basis of any work where at least one of this instrument is used.

The timbre of the sound is determined by the quality of the instrument, the skill of the performer and the choice of strings. Bass is distinguished by a thick, rich, slightly strict and harsh sound. The middle strings have a soft, soulful sound, as if velvety, matte. The upper register sounds bright, sunny, loud. The musical instrument and the performer have the ability to modify these sounds, add variety and an additional palette.

A photo:

Interesting Facts

• Athira Krishna from India in 2003 continuously played the violin for 32 hours as part of the Trivandrum City Festival, as a result of which he got into the Guinness Book of Records.
• Playing the violin burns about 170 calories per hour.
• Inventor of roller skates, Joseph Merlin, Belgian manufacturer of musical instruments. To present a novelty, skates with metal wheels, in 1760 he entered a costume ball in London, while playing the violin. The audience enthusiastically greeted the graceful sliding along the parquet to the accompaniment of a beautiful instrument. Inspired by success, the 25-year-old inventor began to spin faster, and at full speed crashed into an expensive mirror, smashing it to smithereens, a violin and seriously injured himself. There were no brakes on his skates then.

• In January 2007, the United States decided to conduct an experiment in which one of the the brightest performers violin music by Joshua Bell. The virtuoso went down to the subway and, as usual, Street musician played the Stradivarius violin for 45 minutes. Unfortunately, I had to admit that the passers-by were not particularly interested in the violinist's brilliant playing, everyone was driven by the fuss big city. Only seven out of a thousand who passed during this time paid attention to famous musician and another 20 threw money.In total, $32 was earned during this time. Usually, Joshua Bell concerts are sold out with an average ticket price of $100.
• Most large ensemble young violinists gathered at the stadium of the city of Zhanghua (Taiwan) in 2011 and consisted of 4645 school students aged 7 to 15 years.
• Until 1750, violin strings were made from sheep intestines. The method was first proposed by the Italians.
• The first work for violin was created at the end of 1620 by the composer Marini. It was called "Romanesca per violino solo e basso".
• Violinists and violin makers often try to create tiny instruments. So, in the south of China in the city of Guangzhou, a mini-violin was made, only 1 cm long. The master took 7 years to complete this creation. The Scotsman David Edwards, who played in the national orchestra, made a 1.5 cm violin. Eric Meisner in 1973 created a 4.1 cm long instrument with a melodic sound.

• There are craftsmen in the world who make violins from stone, which are not inferior to wooden counterparts in sound. In Sweden, the sculptor Lars Wiedenfalk, while decorating the facade of a building with diabase blocks, came up with the idea to make a violin out of this stone, because amazingly melodic sounds flew out from under the chisel and hammer. He named his stone violin "The Blackbird". The product turned out to be surprisingly jewelry - the thickness of the walls of the resonator box does not exceed 2.5 mm, the weight of the violin is 2 kg. In the Czech Republic, Jan Roerich makes marble instruments.
• When writing the famous Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci invited musicians to play the strings, including the violin. At the same time, the music was different in character and timbre. Many consider the ambiguity of the Mona Lisa smile (“the smile of either an angel or the devil”) as a consequence of the variety of musical accompaniment.

• The violin stimulates the brain. This fact has been repeatedly confirmed by well-known scientists who knew how and enjoyed playing the violin. So, for example, Einstein from the age of six masterfully played this instrument. Even the famous Sherlock Holmes (composite image) always used her sounds when he was thinking about a difficult problem.
• One of the most difficult works to perform are "Caprices" Nicolo Paganini and his other compositions, concertos Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius. And also the most mystical work - « Sonata of the Devil"(1713) G. Tartini, who himself was a virtuoso violinist,
• The most valuable in terms of money are the violins of Guarneri and Stradivari. The highest price was paid for Guarneri's violin "Vietante" in 2010. It was sold at an auction in Chicago for $18,000,000. The most expensive Stradivarius violin is considered to be "Lady Blunt", and it was sold for almost $16 million in 2011.
• The largest violin in the world was created in Germany. Its length is 4.2 meters, width is 1.4 meters, the length of the bow is 5.2 meters. It is played by three people. Such a unique creation was created by craftsmen from Vogtland. This musical instrument is a scale copy of Johann Georg II Schoenfelder's violin, which was made at the end of the eighteenth century.
• A violin bow is usually strung with 150-200 hairs, which can be made from horsehair or nylon.
• The price of some bows reaches tens of thousands of dollars at auctions. The most expensive bow is the work of master Francois Xavier Tourt, which is estimated at about $ 200,000.
• Vanessa Mae is recognized as the youngest violinist to record Tchaikovsky and Beethoven's violin concertos at the age of 13. Vanessa-Mae made her debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 10 in 1989 At the age of 11, she became the youngest student at the Royal College of Music.
• Episode from the opera The Tale of Tsar Saltan» Rimsky-Korsakov"Flight of the Bumblebee" is technically difficult to perform and is played at high speed. Violinists all over the world arrange competitions for the speed of performance of this work. So in 2007, D. Garrett got into the Guinness Book of Records, performing it in 1 minute and 6.56 seconds. Since then, many performers have been trying to overtake him and get the title of "the fastest violinist in the world." Some managed to perform this work faster, but at the same time it lost a lot in the quality of performance. For example, the Discovery TV channel considers Briton Ben Lee, who performed "Flight of the Bumblebee" in 58.51 seconds, not only the fastest violinist, but also the fastest person in the world.

Dimensions

In addition to the standard full-size whole violin (4/4), there are smaller instruments for teaching children. The violin "grows" with the student. They begin training with the smallest violins (1/32, 1/16, 1/8), the length of which is 32-43 cm.

Dimensions of a complete violin: length - 60 cm, body length - 35.5 cm, weight about 300 - 400 grams.

Game techniques

The violin vibration is famous, which penetrates the soul of the listeners with a rich wave of sound. The musician can only slightly raise and lower the sounds, bringing even greater variety and breadth of the sound palette to the musical range. The glissando technique is also known; this style of playing allows you to use the absence of frets on the fretboard.

By pinching the string not hard, touching it a little, the violinist extracts original cold, whistling sounds, reminiscent of the sound of a flute (harmonic). There are harmonics, where 2 fingers of the performer participate, placed a quart or quint from each other, they are especially difficult to perform. The highest category of skill is the performance of flageolets at a fast pace.

Violinists also use such interesting tricks games:

• Col Legno - hitting the strings with a bow reed. This technique is used in the "Dance of Death" by Saint-Saens to imitate the sound of dancing skeletons.
• Sul ponticello - playing with a bow on a stand gives an ominous, hissing sound characteristic of negative characters.
• Sul tasto - playing with a bow on the fretboard. Produces a gentle, ethereal sound.
• Ricochet - performed by throwing the bow on the string with a free rebound.

Another trick is to use a mute. This is a comb made of wood or metal that reduces the vibration of the strings. Thanks to the mute, the violin makes soft, muffled sounds. A similar technique is often used to perform lyrical, emotional moments.

On the violin, you can take double notes, chords, perform polyphonic works, but most often her many-sided voice is used for solo parts, since a huge variety of sounds and their shades is her main advantage.

An essential part of the modern symphony orchestra. Perhaps no other instrument has such a combination of beauty, expressiveness of sound and technical mobility.

In the orchestra, the violin performs various and multifaceted functions. Very often, due to their exceptional melodiousness, violins are used for melodic "singing", for leading the main musical thought. The magnificent melodic possibilities of violins have long been discovered by composers, and have firmly established themselves in this role already among the classics of the 18th century.

Names of the violin in other languages:

• violino(Italian);
• violon(French);
• violine or Geige(Deutsch);
• violin or fiddle(English).

The most famous violin makers include such personalities as Antonio Stradivari, Niccolo Amati and Giuseppe Guarneri.

Origin, history of the violin

It has folk origin. The progenitors of the violin were Arabic, Spanish fidel, german company, the merger of which formed .

Violin shapes set to XVI century. Famous manufacturers of violins, the Amati family, belong to this century and the beginning of the 17th century. Their instruments are of excellent shape and excellent material. In general, Italy was famous for the production of violins, among which the Stradivari and Guarneri violins are currently highly valued.

The violin has been a solo instrument since the 17th century. The first works for the violin are: "Romanesca per violino solo e basso" by Marini from Brescia (1620) and "Capriccio stravagante" by his contemporary Farin. A. Corelli is considered the founder of artistic violin playing; then follow Torelli, Tartini, Pietro Locatelli (1693-1764), a student of Corelli, who developed the bravura violin playing technique.

The violin acquired its modern look in the 16th century, and became widespread in the 17th century.

violin device

The violin has four strings tuned in fifths: g, d, a, e (salt of a small octave, re, la of the first octave, mi of the second octave).

violin range from g (salt of a small octave) to a (a of the fourth octave) and higher.

Violin timbre thick in the low register, soft in the middle and shiny in the high.

violin body has an oval shape with rounded notches on the sides, forming a "waist". The roundness of the outer contours and the "waist" lines ensures the convenience of playing, in particular in high registers.

Top and bottom decks connected to each other by shells. The bottom deck is made from maple and the top deck is made from Tyrolean spruce. They both have a convex shape, forming "vaults". The geometry of the arches, as well as their thickness, to one degree or another determine the strength and timbre of the sound.

Another important factor influencing the timbre of a violin is the height of the shells.

Two resonator holes are made in the upper deck - efs (in shape they resemble the Latin letter f).

In the middle of the upper soundboard there is a stand through which the strings, fixed on the tailpiece, pass. tailpiece is a strip of ebony, expanding towards the fastening of the strings. Its opposite end is narrow, with a thick vein string in the form of a loop, it is connected to a button located on the shell. Stand also affects the timbre of the instrument. It has been experimentally established that even a small shift of the stand leads to a significant change in timbre (when shifting down, the sound is muffled, while moving up, it is more piercing).

Inside the body of the violin, between the upper and lower decks, a round pin made of resonant spruce is inserted - darling (from the word "soul"). This part transmits vibrations from the top deck to the bottom, providing resonance.

Violin fretboard- a long plate of ebony or plastic. The lower part of the neck is attached to a rounded and polished bar, the so-called neck. Also, the strength and timbre of the sound of bowed instruments is greatly influenced by the material from which they are made, and the composition of the varnish.

Violin playing technique

The strings are pressed with four fingers of the left hand to the fretboard ( thumb excluded). The strings are led with a bow in the right hand of the player.

Pressing the finger against the fretboard shortens the string, thereby raising the pitch of the string. Strings that are not pressed by a finger are called open strings and are denoted by zero.

violin part written in treble clef.

violin range- from salt of a small octave to up to the fourth octave. Higher sounds are difficult.

From the semi-pressure, the strings in certain places are obtained harmonics. Some harmonic sounds go beyond the violin range indicated above.

The application of the fingers of the left hand is called fingering. Forefinger the hands are called the first, the middle - the second, the nameless - the third, the little finger - the fourth. Position called the fingering of four adjacent fingers, spaced from one another by a tone or semitone. Each string can have seven or more positions. The higher the position, the more difficult it is. On each string, excluding fifths, they go mainly only up to the fifth position inclusive; but on the fifth or the first string, and sometimes on the second, higher positions are used - from the sixth to the twelfth.

Ways of conducting a bow have a great influence on the character, strength, timbre of sound, and indeed on phrasing.

On a violin, you can normally play two notes simultaneously on adjacent strings ( double strings), in exceptional cases - three (strong bow pressure is required), and not simultaneously, but very quickly - three ( triple strings) and four. Such combinations, mostly harmonic, are easier to perform with empty strings and more difficult without them, and are usually used in solo works.

Very common orchestral technique tremolo- fast alternation of two sounds or repetition of the same sound, creating the effect of trembling, trembling, flickering.

Reception if it's lazy(col legno), meaning a blow with the bow shaft on a string, causes a knocking, deathly sound, which is also with great success used by composers in symphonic music.

In addition to playing with a bow, they use one of the fingers to touch the strings. right hand - pizzicato(pizzicato).

To attenuate or muffle the sound, use mute- a metal, rubber, rubber, bone or wooden plate with recesses in the lower part for strings, which is attached to the top of the stand or filly.

The violin is easier to play in those keys that allow the greatest use of empty strings. The most convenient passages are those that are composed of scales or their parts, as well as arpeggios of natural keys.

It is difficult to become a violinist in adulthood (but possible!), since finger sensitivity and muscle memory are very important for these musicians. The sensitivity of the fingers of an adult is much less than that of a young person, and muscle memory takes longer to develop. It is best to learn to play the violin from the age of five, six, seven, perhaps even from an earlier age.

Famous violinists

• Arcangelo Corelli
• Antonio Vivaldi
• Giuseppe Tartini
• Jean-Marie Leclerc
• Giovanni Batista Viotti
• Ivan Evstafievich Khandoshkin
• Niccolo Paganini
• Ludwig Spohr
• Charles-Auguste Bériot
• Henri Vietain
• Alexey Fedorovich Lvov
• Henryk Wieniawski
• Pablo Sarasate
• Ferdinand Laub
• Joseph Joachim
• Leopold Auer
• Eugene Ysaye
• Fritz Kreisler
• Jacques Thibault
• Oleg Kagan
• George Enescu
• Miron Polyakin
• Mikhail Erdenko
• Yasha Heifetz
• David Oistrakh
• Yehudi Menuhin
• Leonid Kogan
• Henryk Schering
• Julian Sitkovetsky
• Mikhail Vayman
• Victor Tretyakov
• Gidon Kremer
• Maxim Vengerov
• Janos Bihari
• Andrew Manze
• Pinkhas Zuckerman
• Itzhak Perlman

Video: Violin on video + sound

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The violin is the most common bowed instrument, which has been incredibly popular since the 16th century as a solo and accompanying instrument in an orchestra. The violin is also called the "queen of the orchestra".

Origin of the violin

The debate about when and where this legendary musical instrument appeared does not subside to this day. Some historians suggest that the bow appeared in India, from where it came to the Arabs and Persians, and from them it already passed to Europe. During musical evolution there were many various versions bowed instruments that influenced modern look violins. Among them are the Arabic rebab, the German company and the Spanish fidel, which were born in the XIII-XV centuries. It was these instruments that became the progenitors of the two main bowed instruments - the viola and the violin. Viola came before, she was different sizes, played it while standing, holding it on their knees, and later on their shoulders. This type of playing the viola led to the appearance of the violin.

Rebab

Some sources point to the origin of the violin from the Polish instrument violin or from the Russian violin, the appearance of which dates back to the 15th century. For a long time, the violin was considered a folk instrument and did not sound solo. Wandering musicians played it, and the main place of its sound was taverns and taverns.

Violin transformation

In the 16th century, Italian craftsmen engaged in the production of viols and lutes took up the production of violins. They dressed the instrument in an ideal shape and filled the best materials. The first master who made the first modern violin, believed to be Gasparo Bertolotti. The Amati family nevertheless made the main contribution to the transformation and production of Italian violins. They made the timbre of the violin sound deeper and more delicate, and the character of the sound more multifaceted. They fulfilled the main task that the masters set themselves excellently - the violin, like the human voice, had to accurately convey emotions and feelings through music. A little later, in the same place in Italy, they worked worldwide to improve the sound of the violin. famous masters Guarneri and Stradivari, whose instruments today are valued at fortunes.

Stradivarius

In the 17th century, the violin becomes a solo member orchestral composition. In a modern orchestra, there are about 30% of violinists from total number musicians. Range and beauty of sound musical instrument are so wide that works of all genres of music are written for the violin. The great composers of the world wrote many unsurpassed masterpieces, where the violin was the main solo instrument. The first work for violin was written in 1620 by the composer Marini and was called "Romanesca per violino solo e basso".

The body of the violin has a specific rounded shape. In contrast to the classical form of the case, the shape of the trapezoidal parallelogram is mathematically optimal with rounded notches on the sides, forming a "waist". The roundness of the outer contours and the "waist" lines ensures the comfort of the game, in particular in high positions. The lower and upper planes of the body - decks - are connected to each other by strips of wood - shells. They have a convex shape, forming "vaults". The geometry of the vaults, as well as their thickness, its distribution to one degree or another determine the strength and timbre of the sound. A darling is placed inside the body, transmitting vibrations from the stand - through the upper deck - to the lower deck. Without it, the timbre of the violin loses its liveliness and fullness.

The strength and timbre of the sound of the violin is greatly influenced by the material from which it is made, and, in lesser degree, lacquer composition. There is an experiment with the complete chemical removal of varnish from a Stradivarius violin, after which its sound did not change. The lacquer prevents the violin from changing the quality of the wood under the influence of environment and stains the violin with a transparent color from light golden to dark red or brown.

bottom deck ( musical term) made from solid maple wood (other hardwoods), or from two symmetrical halves.

Top deck made from resonant spruce. Has two resonator holes - efas(in shape they resemble the Latin letter f). A stand rests on the middle of the upper deck, on which the strings, fixed on the string holder (under the fingerboard), rest. A single spring is attached to the top deck under the foot of the stand on the side of the G string - a longitudinally located wooden plank, which largely ensures the strength of the top deck and its resonant properties.

shells unite the lower and upper decks, forming side surface violin body. Their height determines the volume and timbre of the violin, fundamentally influencing the sound quality: the higher the shells, the muffled and softer the sound, the lower, the more piercing and transparent the upper notes. The shells are made, like the decks, from maple wood.

Dushka- a round spacer made of spruce wood, mechanically connecting the soundboards and transmitting the string tension and high-frequency vibrations to the lower soundboard. Its ideal location is found experimentally, as a rule, the end of the homie is located under the leg of the stand on the side of the E string, or next to it. Dushka is rearranged only by the master, since its slightest movement significantly affects the sound of the instrument.

Subvulture, or tailpiece, serves to fasten the strings. Previously made from hardwoods of ebony or mahogany (usually ebony or rosewood, respectively). Nowadays, it is often made of plastics or light alloys. On the one hand, the neck has a loop, on the other - four holes with splines for attaching strings. The end of the string with a button (mi and la) is threaded into a round hole, after which, by pulling the string towards the neck, it is pressed into the slot. The D and G strings are often fixed in the neck with a loop passing through the hole. Currently, lever-screw machines are often installed in the neck holes, which greatly facilitate tuning. Serially produced are light alloy necks with structurally integrated machines.

The loop thick string or steel wire. When replacing a strand loop larger than 2.2 mm in diameter with a synthetic one (2.2 mm diameter), a wedge must be inserted and a hole with a diameter of 2.2 must be re-drilled, otherwise the point pressure of the synthetic string may damage the wooden sub-neck.

Button- the head of a wooden peg inserted into a hole in the body, located on the opposite side of the neck, serves to fasten the neck. The wedge is inserted into the conical hole corresponding to it in size and shape, completely and tightly, otherwise cracking of the shred and shell is possible. The load on the button is very high, about 24 kg.

Standaffects the tone of the instrument. It has been experimentally established that even a slight shift of the stand leads to a significant change in the instrument's tuning due to a change in the scale and to some change in timbre - when shifted to the neck, the sound is muffled, from it - brighter. The stand raises the strings above the top sounding board to different heights for the possibility of playing on each of them with a bow, distributes them on greater distance one from the other on an arc of greater radius than the nut.

Vulture

Fretboard (detail of a musical instrument) of a violin - a long plank of solid hard wood (black ebony or rosewood), curved in cross section so that when playing on one string, the bow would not cling to adjacent strings. The lower part of the neck is glued to the neck, which passes into the head, consisting of a peg box and a curl.

threshold- an ebony plate located between the neck and the head, with slots for the strings. Slots in the nut distribute the strings equal distance apart and provide clearance between the strings and the fretboard.

Neck- a semicircular detail, which is covered by the hand of the performer during the game, constructively unites the body of the violin, neck and head. Vulture With threshold attached to the top of the neck.

peg box- part of the neck, in which a slot is made frontally, two pairs are inserted from both sides pegs, which are used to tune the strings. The pegs are conical rods. The rod is inserted into the conical hole in the peg box and adjusted to it - failure to comply with this condition may lead to the destruction of the structure. For tighter or smoother rotation, the pegs are pressed in or pulled out of the box, respectively, while rotating, and for smooth rotation they must be lubricated with lapping paste (or chalk and soap). The pegs should not protrude much from the pegs box. The tuning pegs are usually made of ebony and are often decorated with mother-of-pearl or metal (silver, gold) inlays.

Curl has always served as something like a corporate brand - evidence of the taste and skill of the creator. Initially, the curl rather resembled a female foot in a shoe, over time, the similarity became less and less - only the “heel” is recognizable, the “toe” has changed beyond recognition. Some craftsmen replaced the curl with a sculpture, like a viol, with a carved lion's head, for example, as Giovanni Paolo Magini (1580-1632) did. Masters of the XIX century, lengthening the fretboard of ancient violins, sought to preserve the head and curl as a privileged "birth certificate".

strings

The strings run from the neck, through the bridge, over the surface of the neck, and through the nut to the pegs, which are wound around the headstock.

The violin has four strings:

• first("fifth") - upper, tuned to mi of the second octave. The metal solid string "mi" has a sonorous, brilliant timbre.
• second- tuned to la of the first octave. Veined (intestinal or from a special alloy) solid "A" has a soft, matte timbre.
• third- tuned to D of the first octave. The core (intestinal or artificial fiber) "re", entwined with aluminum thread, has a soft, matte timbre.
• fourth("bass") - lower, tuned to the salt of a small octave. Vein (intestinal or artificial fiber) "salt", entwined with a silver thread, harsh and thick timbre.

Accessories and accessories

The bow is an accessory for continuous sound production. The basis of the bow is a wooden cane, passing from one side into the head, on the other, a block is attached. A ponytail hair is pulled between the head and the block. The hair has keratin scales, between which rosin is impregnated when rubbed, it allows the hair to cling to the string and produce sound.

Chinrest. Designed for the convenience of pressing the violin with the chin. Lateral, middle and intermediate positions are selected from the violinist's ergonomic preferences.

Bridge. Designed for the convenience of laying the violin on the collarbone. Mounted on the bottom deck. It is a plate, straight or curved, solid or coated soft material, wooden, metal or plastic, with fasteners on both sides. In a metal structure, the necessary electronics are often hidden, for example, a microphone with an amplifier. The main brands of modern bridges are WOLF, KUN, etc.

Sound pickup devices. Required for conversion mechanical vibrations violins into electric ones (for recording, for amplifying or converting the sound of a violin using special devices).

• If the sound of the violin is formed by acoustic properties elements of its body, the violin is acoustic.
• If the sound is formed by electronic and electromechanical components, it is an electric violin.
• If the sound is shaped by both components to a comparable degree, it is a semi-acoustic violin.

Case (or wardrobe trunk for violin and bow and additional accessories.

The mute is a small wooden or rubber "comb" with two or three teeth with a longitudinal slot. It is put on top of the stand and reduces its vibration, due to which the sound becomes muffled, "socky". More often mute is used in orchestral and ensemble music.

"Jammer"- heavy rubber or metal mute, used for homework, as well as for classes in places that do not tolerate noise. When using a jammer, the instrument practically ceases to sound and emits barely distinguishable pitch tones, sufficient for perception and control by the performer.

typewriter- a metal device consisting of a screw inserted into the neck hole, and a lever with a hook used to fasten the string, located on the other side. The machine allows finer tuning, which is most critical for mono-metallic strings with low stretch. For each size of the violin, a certain size of the machine is intended, there are also universal ones. They usually come in black, gold, nickel or chrome, or a combination of finishes. Models are available specifically for gut strings, for the E string. The instrument may not have machines at all: in this case, the strings are inserted into the neck holes. Installation of machines not on all strings is possible. Usually in this case, the machine is placed on the first string.

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« Short story appearance of the violin"

Concertmaster

Nikitas Irina Evgenievna

Even at a glance at Symphony Orchestra it becomes clear that his main group is bow instruments. In an orchestra of 100 people, 60-70 musicians play strings. The group includes violins, violas, cellos and double basses, that is, those instruments whose sound is extracted by moving the bow along the string. their name: stringed, or bowed.

Bowed instruments were known to the peoples of all continents long before the appearance of the violin. Apparently, through the Persians and Moors, they came to Europe in the 8th century AD. AT medieval Europe wandering minstrel musicians had miniature bowed instruments - fideli and rebecca.However, even before the invasion of Europe by the Arabs, the bards (itinerant poets and singers who once lived in Ireland and Scotland) had a three-stringed instrument of Celtic origin called mole. Bowed strings were also known in ancient Russia. In the northern tower Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, built in the 11th century, you can see a fresco depicting a musician playing a bowed instrument. The musician holds it at his chin, like a violin.

It is impossible not to mention one more completely unusual bowed instrument, which was widespread in the XIV-XVIII centuries in European countries. it trumshite or blood clot marina(sea pipe) - an instrument taller than human growth with one single string, which apparently had an unusually strong sound. English sailors played it when it was necessary to give a signal.

Favorite bowed instrument the Renaissance was viola, rather, the family viol.The shape of the case, the number of strings, a carved curl - it was decorated with a lion's head, a female or male head - and most importantly, a muffled, quiet sound, violas were very different from modern bowed instruments. The family of viols was numerous: it included various sizes viola da gamba(foot viols), viola d'amour(love viola) and others . And only in the XVI century are the first mentions of violin.Some believe that the viola was her ancestor, others more rightly believe that the violin is a different kind of bowed string, and that it came from lira da braggo- an instrument of the lyre group.

First violins appeared in France and Italy in early XVI century. Soon the art of making them spread widely throughout Europe: violins began to be made in Tyrol, Vienna, Saxony, Holland, England. But Italy was famous for the best violins, namely two small but busy cities in the north-east of the country: Brescia and Cremona.From father to son, from master to student, the art of making violins, the secrets of craftsmanship, now largely lost, were passed on. ear for music- all this helped unsurpassed violins to rush into the world.

The masters knew the amazing secrets of making violins. In order for the instrument to sound well, its various parts must be made of a certain material. settled on the plains of Europe, for the neck - ebony, for the bow - “bee tree”, fernambuque. bark to the core, like orange slices, and only the central part of the trunk (not too close to the roots, as then the tree will be wet, and not too close to the top, because the sun dries it too much) can be considered suitable. Finally, it is preferable to take a part trunk facing south,” writes the French scientist Claude Marly. The color of the body of unique beauty is golden or reddish, the violin is varnished. The Cremonese artisans are said to have made the lacquer from a resin that only a few plants in the Tyrolean forests produce. Claude Marly writes “... since these plants were cut down, this resin has disappeared, or people have simply forgotten how to extract it, and the quality of the varnish has deteriorated.” Nowadays, it has not been possible to restore the secret of Cremonese lacquer, even chemical analysis could not reveal its composition.

There are many interesting things in the manufacture of strings. Claude Marly reports: “The strings used by the Italian craftsmen were made in central and southern Italy, in particular in Naples, and they were made from the intestines of seven or eight-month-old lambs. The intestines were soaked in alkaline water for a long time, after which they were dried and rolled. It was believed that the location of pastures, the time of slaughter of lambs, the properties of water affect the quality of the strings, especially their strength. Indeed, the strength of these strings is very high: after all, the four strings of the violin experience a tension of 23 kilograms.

The founders of the Brescia school in Lombardy were Gasparo Bertolotti (nicknamed da Salo) and Paolo Magini. Its heyday falls in the second half of the 16th - early 17th centuries.

The founder of the violin school in Cremona was Andrea Amati. Having arisen simultaneously with the Brescian, the Cremonese school for two hundred years gave the world outstanding violin makers: Andrea's grandson - Nicolo Amati, Andrea Guarneri, his sons and nephew Giuseppe Guarneri and, finally, the student of Nicolo Amati, the greatest of the greats - Antonio Stradivari.

Outstanding violinists of the world have played and still play on the instruments created by the hands of these masters. Niccolò Paganini played on one of the violins of Guarneri, nicknamed “del Gesu”. The life of “del Gesu” is covered with legends. allegedly made in prison. These instruments were called “prison violins”.

Antonio Stradivari lived a long life: he died at the age of 93 (apparently born in 1644. He died in 1737). The brilliantly gifted master was also extremely hardworking. More than 1000 instruments were signed with his name. Among them there are not only violins, but also violas , cellos, double basses, as well as lutes and guitars. His violins are monogrammed in which letters A and S were often given names: the most famous of these instruments are “Rode”, “Dauphine”, “Dawn”, “Swan” (before the Second World War in America, $ 60,000 was paid for the “Swan” violin).

Of the 11 children of Antonio Stradivari, only two inherited his profession. Stradivari had students, but it was he who was the last great representative of Italian violin makers.

The shape of the violin was determined as early as the 16th century and since then it has changed only in details, but the nature of the sound has changed noticeably.

The violins made in Brescia were distinguished by a harsh, muffled tone, the early Cremonese violins (Amati) had a silvery but weak sound: they were designed for small rooms, aristocratic salons. Stradivari's violins combined tenderness and richness of tone.

The technical capabilities of the violin are enormous: it is the most mobile and flexible instrument among the bowed ones. Niccolo Paganini especially greatly expanded the possibilities of the violin. So, Paganini mastered the amazing art of playing double notes, chords, pizzicato, harmonics. When the strings broke during the game, he continued to play on the remaining ones. theme from Rossini's opera "Moses", written for one string, rebuilt a tone and a half higher. The features of Paganini's playing seemed so unheard of, the impact of his personality and his musical genius it was so irresistible to the audience during the performance that many of his contemporaries readily believed in the then widespread rumor that Paganini had sold his soul to the devil for the extraordinary art of playing the violin.

Paganini was an outstanding virtuoso. True, what is available to great soloists cannot always be performed by a mass of orchestra players. Composers, as a rule, take this into account in their works. But individual achievements of virtuosos gradually penetrate into the orchestra, and what seemed impossible to a hundred years ago, it became an ordinary phenomenon in our time. Such is the fate of the flageolets, only with mid-nineteenth centuries that have become the property of all orchestral musicians.

In the 18th century, the custom appeared to divide the entire mass of violins in an orchestra into two parts: first and second violins. The first is entrusted with more high voice who can be compared to a soprano in a choir. In some cases, composers divide all violins into several parts, thus achieving a transparent and at the same time more saturated sound.

The violin can be heard not only as a soloist, and not only in the orchestra, where she is, as it were, a participant big choir strings. The violin, like all other strings, is an indispensable member of chamber ensembles - joint performance, in which only a few instruments participate. The violin performs in duets, trios, quartets, quintets and other ensembles.

The violin came greatest invention humanity. From the time of its first appearance until the golden era Italian masters, the violin has undergone many different changes in sound and construction. The ingenious school of Italian masters created the forms and sounds of this instrument as they are to this day.

Literature:

D. Rogal-Levitsky "Conversations about the orchestra". GMI 1961