All about the violin. Violin Message

Violin as a musical instrument

It is difficult to meet in our time a person who has no idea about the violin - the main musical instrument belonging to the bow family. The violin is one of the most noble, widespread and perfect musical instruments of our time. The queen of music - this is the most apt description of this amazingly beautiful musical instrument. Enormous performing possibilities, richness, expressiveness and warmth of its timbre provided this instrument with a leading position in symphony orchestras, in various ensembles, in solo performing practice and in folk musical life.

The encyclopedia gives us the following definition:

The violin is a high-pitched stringed musical instrument. It has a folk origin, acquired a modern look in the 16th century, and became widespread in the 17th century. Has four strings. There are also five-string violins, with the addition of a lower alto string. The violin often solos melodious and virtuoso melodies.

But I like the first definition better, as it reflects all the versatility and magnificence of the violin!

violin device

The structure of a violin is very simple: body, neck and strings. Tool accessories are very different in their purpose and degree of importance. For example, one should not lose sight of the bow, thanks to which the sound is extracted from the strings, or the chin rest and bridge, which allow the performer to arrange the instrument most comfortably on the left shoulder.

Each part or element of the body is made of a certain type of wood. Spruce is used for the top soundboard, on which two resonator holes resembling the English letter “f” are located in the central part. This type of wood has the most pronounced elasticity, which allows you to achieve excellent sounding bass notes. The top deck is made either from a single piece of wood, or from two parts.

The bottom soundboard, on the contrary, is responsible for the top notes, and maple is generally recognized as the appropriate material for this. In addition, wavy maple was used for a long time, which was delivered to medieval Italy from Turkey, thanks to which their unique creations came out from under the hands of violin makers.

The neck is another important element of the instrument, which is an oblong plank. It is constantly in contact with the strings, and therefore subject to wear. It is made of rosewood or ebony (black) wood, which are particularly hard and durable. Rosewood also does not sink in water. Iron wood is not inferior in these properties, but because of its green color, which is not in harmony with the overall color scheme of the violin, it has not been used.

Strings - they are made of different materials and can be core, silk, metal.

The violin has a complex configuration that has bulges and curves. Each master who creates this instrument has his own handwriting of its creation. There are no and cannot be two violins of the same sound, but not only for this reason. The main one is the properties of wood that can never be repeated.

The history of the creation 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. In the course of musical evolution, there have been many different versions of bowed instruments that have influenced the modern look of the violin. 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 viol and the violin. Viola appeared earlier, it was of different sizes, they 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.

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.

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 perfect shape and filled it with the best materials. Gasparo Bertolotti is believed to be the first violinist to make the first modern violin. 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, the world-famous masters Guarneri and Stradivari worked on improving the sound of the violin, whose instruments today are valued at fortunes.

Violin relatives

The violin has many sisters and brothers and their history is very interesting. Everyone knows the viola and cello. But I want to talk about little-known tools that, perhaps, few people know, but they have a very interesting and rich history.

This is the Arabic great-great-grandfather of the violin, he is considered the ancestor of all European bowed instruments. No one can even name the date and history of the emergence of this musical instrument. He enjoyed great popularity in the East. It was played by folk singers and musicians of the East. In Europe, this instrument appeared in the 10th century.

This is a wandering violin of Western European wandering musicians and part-time dancers, magicians, poets, storytellers. The rebec was once played in fairs, streets, but also in churches and palaces. Images of the rebec remained in the paintings of cathedrals.

The greatest artists of the Renaissance painted angels and saints playing the rebec: both Raphael and Giotto.

Raphael - "The Coronation of Mary"

The history of the disappearance of this instrument is not clear and at present it is practically not found. But how did he disappear? Firstly, caring people made reconstructions in the 20th century, and secondly, maybe we feel some features of this instrument when we play the violin.

Pontic lira

The Pontic lira appeared at the crossroads of cultures. In the beginning, it traveled a long way from somewhere in Persia or from the Arab East, before manifesting itself in Byzantium and finding its present form in it. But even this Byzantine form of it hardly belongs entirely to any nation: Byzantium was a multinational empire, and Byzantine music absorbed elements of Arabic, Persian, Coptic, Jewish, Armenian, Syrian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Croatian and even Russian musical culture! The Pontic lyre is considered one of the "wandering violins" of the East.

Legends and stories related to the violin

For centuries, the amazing sound of the violin has fascinated people. Her melodic sounds delighted the ears of spoiled aristocrats and made ordinary people dance at unpretentious village holidays.

I want to talk about the most interesting stories and legends that are associated with the masters of violin music.

Wizard's Riddles

Of course, the wary attitude towards the violin also concerned its creators. At all times, people looked at violin makers with distrust, and legends were made about the most prominent of them even during their lifetime. Although it should be noted, the personalities of these people asked others a lot of mysteries.

The violins created by the great Antonio Stradivari, even three centuries after his death, have no equal. But even a careful study of these instruments did not reveal the secret of their divine voices. The creations of Stradivari did not differ from other violins either in the quality of wood, or in size, or even in varnish.

But for a long time it was believed that the incomparable voice of the great master's instruments gives an amazing varnish, made according to a special recipe. But a few years ago, some brave researchers carried out an almost barbaric experiment. One of the Stradivari violins was completely washed off the varnish, but even after this blasphemy, it sounded the same.

A few centuries ago, the next version was born, trying to explain the phenomenon of the master. Allegedly, in childhood, little Antonio was blessed by the Lord himself, giving him the talent to create instruments whose voice would remind people of the Kingdom of Heaven.

At the same time, the future great master received from the Almighty a wonderful substance, which he later added to the varnish for his violins. And it was this secret ingredient that allegedly gave Stradivari instruments a divine sound.

History of Master Paganini

It all started with the grim name of the birthplace of the greatest violinist of all time. In a small quarter of Genoa, in a narrow alley called the Black Cat, on October 27, 1782, Antonio Paganini, a former port worker, and his wife Teresa Bocciardo, a simple townswoman, had a son, Niccolo. Antonio had a small shop in the port, was passionate about music and played the mandolin and violin. These were simple songs, cheerful and catchy folk melodies, which were sung by Antonio with a gloomy face. Fortunately, his wife, Teresa, was a soft, meek and submissive woman. Unable to change the character of her husband, who was always dissatisfied and grouchy, she tried not to contradict him. Teresa found solace in religion and children. She had five of them. One day, Niccolo's mother had an amazing dream: an angel appeared to her and asked what kind of mercy from God she would like to receive. Since the deeply religious woman loved music very much, she asked the divine messenger that her son Niccolo become a great musician. The story of this wonderful dream made a strong impression on Teresa's husband, who was also not indifferent to music. After consulting, Niccolo's parents firmly decided to teach the child to play the violin - an instrument that, thanks to the efforts of Guarneri, Stradivari and Amati, became the musical symbol of Italy.

Niccolo was seven years old when his father first placed a tiny violin in the hands of the future virtuoso, which from that day became his only toy. But very soon the young violinist realized that making music is not only a pleasure, but also hard, painstaking work. The boy was very tired, but his father forced the talented child to work all day long, not allowing him to go outside to play with his peers.

Showing perseverance and unstoppable will, Niccolo became more and more interested in playing the instrument every day. Undoubtedly, such excessive activities, lack of oxygen, movement and nutrition, could not but affect his growing body and, of course, undermined the boy's health. One day, Niccolo, exhausted from many hours of study, fell lifeless in a cataleptic coma. The parents considered the boy dead because he did not show any signs of life. Niccolo came to his senses only in a coffin with the heartbreaking sounds of mourning music. His perfect ear was unable to perceive falsehood even when Paganini was between life and death. Returning from the "other world", the young violinist, with even greater zeal, set about mastering the complex techniques of playing his favorite musical instrument. Thanks to his diligence and firmness of character, Niccolo achieved such great success in a very short time that the fame of his extraordinary abilities stepped far beyond the modest Black Cat lane.

Already at the age of eight, Niccolo wrote a violin sonata and several difficult variations. The first serious teacher of Paganini was the Genoese poet, violinist and composer Francesco Gnecco. At the age of ten and a half, Niccolo took 30 lessons from the violinist Giacomo Costa within six months and, at the same time, began to play regularly in churches at Sunday and holiday services. In the Genoese newspaper Avvisi of May 31, 1794, one could read: “On Monday, May 26, a mass was held in the church of San Filippo Neri. The harmonic concerto was performed by the most skilful young man of eleven years old - signor Niccolo Paganini, a student of the famous music teacher Giacomo Costa, who aroused universal admiration. It is impossible not to mention another teacher of Niccolò Paganini - cellist, excellent polyphonist Gasparo Garetti, who instilled in the young man an excellent composing technique. Developing the ability to hear with inner hearing, he forced him to compose without an instrument.

As the art of playing the violin Niccolo becomes more virtuosic and refined, Antonio Paganini goes with the young violinist on the first concert tour of the cities of Italy: Milan, Bologna, Florence, Pisa and Livorno. Success accompanies the little virtuoso everywhere and inflames the soul of the young talent more and more. Niccolo intuitively understands that he will not be able to best express himself and reach the heights of his art if he does not find an application for his passionate temperament in his writings. His predecessors were great: Corelli, Vivaldi, Tartini, whose work was deeply studied by Paganini, but their music, written in a calm and restrained manner, did not correspond to the stormy and unrestrained character of Paganini. Oddly enough, but it was at a young age that many of his famous capriccios were born, where one can trace the creative rethinking of violin techniques and principles in music, first introduced by the Italian composer Locatelli, which were rather technical exercises. But as soon as the hand of a genius touched the dry formulas, they, having changed, turned into original, brilliant miniatures, stunning in their virtuosity. The 24 capriccios of Paganini still remain one of the most unique phenomena of the musical culture of the violin art, they amaze with uncontrollable passion, incredible courage and originality of thinking. These small works had a tremendous impact both on the musicians of the great Italian's contemporaries and on the composers of future generations. Inspired by the new, original ideas of the Genoese virtuoso, having arranged for his instrument "Companella" and some of Paganini's capriccios, Franz Liszt opened a new era in the history of pianoforte art.

Niccolo, playing the violin, imitated the singing of birds, the sound of a flute, trumpet, horn, the lowing of a cow and human laughter, using contrasts in timbres and registers, applying a stunning variety of effects. Once Paganini replaced the usual bow with a long one, which at first aroused laughter from the audience, but soon he was rewarded for this oddity with warm applause. These were the early years of the genius, Niccolo Paganini, but there were still quite a few mystical rumors and legends around the life of the legendary violinist.

Red abbot

On March 4, 1678, the great Italian composer Antonio Lucio Vivaldi was born. His most famous work is The Four Seasons. Four violin concertos - autumn, winter, spring, summer. To this day he is one of the most popular composers in the world.

In his youth, Antonio was tonsured a monk. And after 10 years, Vivaldi became an abbot and he got into trouble with the Inquisition. Once, during mass, he left the altar three times to write down a melody that came to his mind. Followed by a call to the inquisitor and interrogation.

Is it true that you left the altar during Mass?

I had to do this because I suffer from asthma attacks.

And they say you left to record the music that came to your mind.

Slander! Everyone who knows me will confirm that this is due to bouts of chest disease.

He was really unwell. A thin red-haired man with a sunken chest, narrow shoulders, pale, in a black cassock. The illness choked him. But he was very energetic, worked at a crazy pace. Vivaldi was the only composer of that time who could compose an opera in three days. This is still a record today. Moreover, he staged his own operas. Rapidly. Three or four rehearsals and you're done. He wrote the score faster than the copyist took a copy from it. He worked mostly on commission. He wrote music for almost every holiday, and Catholics have many holidays. Moreover, he became famous throughout Europe as a virtuoso violinist, and in his native Venice he was a prominent figure.

For 36 years, Vivaldi was director of music at the orphanage for girls Ospedale della pieta. Thanks to the intense and multifaceted musical activity of Vivaldi, his small "conservatory" began to stand out noticeably from others in Venice. Red-haired, groovy, there are always musicians and children around him. And, of course, the Inquisition became attached to him.

For Vivaldi, the nickname was fixed - "The cunning, red-haired abbot." This was due to the fact that he had a cheerful and unrestrained disposition, and also always got out of a difficult situation with honor.

... Vivaldi ended his life in Vienna as a beggar, forgotten by everyone, sick ... and for a long time his music did not sound anywhere. He was remembered only by the great Bach, who made several transcriptions of his violin concertos. But it was quite a bit, Vivaldi had 500 concerts, more than 50 operas, contata, symphonies ... All this was not remembered for almost three centuries. It was only in the 1920s that some old, useless notes were discovered, and they began to play - great music! It was Vivaldi. And since then, Antonio Vivaldi has become one of the most popular composers among classical music lovers. Even mobile phones now play The Four Seasons (c) Andrey Konchalovsky, It's Worth Remembering

There are not so many mystical stories and legends about any musical instrument, and also there are no such brilliant musicians and composers who would play and compose music for any other instrument. This indicates that the sound of the violin leaves no one indifferent and the violin is a truly Great instrument.

Interesting Violin Facts
(Anna Blagaya)

God or devil?

Legends about violinists who allegedly sold their souls to the devil are known to everyone: let us recall, for example, Niccolo Paganini.

In many countries, the clergy took up arms against good violinists - even in quiet Norway they were considered accomplices of dark forces, and Norwegian folk violins were burned like witches.
But not everyone knows that there were directly opposite stories!

If we look into a more ancient "layer" of time, we find that with bowed instruments, related to the violin, they were actually originally depicted on the frescoes of temples and in manuscript Bibles angels, and in one old manuscript Christ was called not by anyone, but "beloved violinist".

Such things were hushed up later, and the frescoes were destroyed, but on the fresco of St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, you can still see a musician playing a bowed instrument.

(And not only there. See page "Angels with violins (frescoes)")

Why Mona Lisa smiled

Leonardo ordered that all the time while Gioconda was posing in his studio, there was music performed by strings. The smile of the model was a reflection of the sound of the music; apparently, therefore, it is considered either the smile of an angel, or the smile of the devil. (See above: God or Devil?)
In general, the artist, apparently, did not accidentally conduct this experiment with music. After all, he wanted to achieve in his picture a synthesis, a unity of opposites (see Chicherin about this in a book about Mozart). And the violin has just such a property. Auer quoted Berlioz as saying that “The violin is capable of many apparently opposite shades of expression. It has strength, lightness and grace, conveys a gloomy and joyful mood, thought and passion. You just have to be able to get her to talk.”

Violins and Venetian gondolas

There is a beautiful episode in the film “Stradivarius” (with Anthony Quinn): a gondola gliding in the rays of the setting sun, on the stern of which a violinist was playing, so impressed the imagination of the young Antonio Stradivarius that he threw himself into the water, tagged along with the violinist and eventually became a violin maker .

The violin and the gondola really do have something in common. Moreover, this connection is not only aesthetic, it also manifests itself at the most “organic” level.

The violins of the legendary Cremonese school use the same sycamore (wavy maple) from Dalmatia and Bosnia, which was used for the oars of the Venetian gondolas.

Time Machine

Good violinists, in addition to hearing and dexterity, have some talents that have not yet been explained by science. Including the ability to manage time. (Not only violinists can do this, but all concert performing musicians). V. Grigoriev writes about a curious mechanism that allows you to “travel in time” (let's call it that), when the whole piece in the mind of a musician folds into a certain formula, code, and unfolds already when playing on stage. There were also cases when the "machine" failed. (Which, of course, only proves its existence =) There are a number of interesting testimonies about how this or that virtuoso stopped after playing just one note, because time for him passed at a different speed than for the listeners, and the whole work had already completely echo in his mind.

Another interesting point: musicians often look younger than their years. Apparently, here the point is that time flows differently on the stage. But there is also something else. Opera bass Matorin recalls on this occasion the words of Obraztsova that “we, artists, until old age - Masha, Petka, Katka, because b about We spend most of our time outside of this world.” (That is, in the creative world, this is a different dimension, where time slows down). Science has yet to explain these things.

Virtuosos are scientists

The word virtuoso was once applied to scientists. Many violinists were not only artists, artists, violin poets, but also scientists and inventors. (One violin work written at that time was called “sonata for inventive violin”).

The word "virtuoso" is now used (if we are talking about music) in only one sense - "technical". Meanwhile, the state of affairs has not changed: in order to play the violin well, including virtuoso music, you still need to have not developed muscles, but a flexible mind and strong intuition.

Interesting facts about the violin will tell a lot about this stringed musical instrument.

The modern violin is over 500 years old. It was designed in the 1500s by Andrea Amati.

In 2003, Athira Krishna from India entered the Guinness Book of Records by playing the violin continuously for 32 hours.

Playing an instrument burns 170 calories per hour.

Violins are usually made from spruce or maple wood. Violins are very complex. More 70 different pieces of wood brought together to create the modern violin.

Before 1750 strings were made from sheep intestines.

The tool stimulates the brain.

The word violin comes from the medieval Latin word vitula, which means stringed instrument;

In the city of Guangzhou (southern China), the smallest violin in the world, 1 cm long, was created.

Violins produced by Stradivari and Guarneri are extremely highly valued.

The most expensive violin ever bought by a private investor was purchased for 16 million dollars. However, the Ashmolay Museum currently owns a violin worth $20 million.

Notable violinists:

• Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713) was an Italian violinist and composer, one of the founders of the concerto grosso genre.
• Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) - Venetian composer, violinist, teacher, conductor.
• Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770), Italian violinist and composer. He improved the design of the bow, lengthening it, and developed the basic techniques for conducting the bow, recognized by all contemporary Italian and French violinists and came into general use.
• Giovanni Battista Viotti (1753-1824) was an Italian violinist and composer who wrote 29 violin concertos.
• Nicolo Paganini (1782-1840) - Italian violinist, guitarist and composer, author of violin caprices, concertos.
• Henri Vietain (1820-1881) - Belgian violinist and composer, one of the founders of the national violin school. Author of numerous works for violin - seven concertos with orchestra, a number of fantasies, variations, concert etudes, etc.

The violin is an ideal instrument for developing the imagination. Playing it is also good because it gives the ability to creative insights.
Did you know that out of more than a hundred musicians in a professional symphony orchestra, more than thirty are violinists?
The beauty of tone, as well as the wide range of expression of sounds, are considered much better in violins than in any other instrument.

The violin, practically the only musical instrument, apart from ritual drums and Greek harps, was deified. The names of the parts of the violin have been preserved: head, neck, chest, waist, darling. The violin was created as an analogue of the human voice. Until now, even with the most modern technology, it has not been possible to synthesize the timbre of the human voice and the violin. For centuries, technology, materials and methods of its manufacture have been perfected, which have practically not changed since the middle of the 18th century. The violin has become one of the most classical instruments.

The device of the violin is the most complex in terms of physics, acoustics and resistance of materials. In fact, this is the most complex acoustic device that requires precise tuning and adjustment.
The exact date of the birth of the violin is unknown, but approximately one can still judge the time of its occurrence - this is the end of the fifteenth or the beginning of the sixteenth century. The very first violins were made by the same masters who made lutes and viols, and then violin makers appeared. One of them, Gasparo Bertolotti, settled in 1562 in the Italian town of Brescia and worked there until the end of his days. Bertolotti had many students, and among them - Giovanni Paolo Magini, who later founded his own school of masters.

Bertolotti, Magini and their students have already arrived at basically the form of the violin that we know. And the sound of the instruments also took shape with them - it became louder and brighter than that of the viols. And the first Brescian masters, apparently, did not set themselves any other tasks. Their work was continued by the famous Cremonese. However, "continued" is not entirely accurate.

There are many schools and trends in violin making, but the most prominent are Italian, French and German. All of them have their advantages and disadvantages and differ significantly from each other both in sound and manufacturing methods. The sound of the instruments of the Italian school is recognized as the most timbral, plastic and manageable. That is, the musician can control the timbre characteristics of the instrument. The sound of the instruments of the German School is distinguished by its brightness and emptiness. French instruments sound somewhat "glassy" and booming. Although in all schools there were instruments with "foreign" signs.

Dramatic and sometimes mystical events always unfold around the violin. No musical instrument in the world has been involved in so many criminal stories, including bloody murders. Masters did not put their soul into any musical instrument so much, endowing each of their products with unique features that allowed them to assign their own name to the instrument, like a person. No musical instrument appears regularly at famous auctions, where astronomical, most often seven-figure figures appear in connection with it. No one! Except the violin.

So why do things like this always unfold around her?! Let's dig history! The violin “came” from an old viol - a fairly large instrument with frets on the fingerboard. The viol was played while sitting, holding it between the legs or laying it sideways on the thigh. Years passed, the instrument changed. History connects the final transformation of the viola into a violin with three families of violin makers from the Italian city of Cremona: Amati, Guarneri and Stradivari. It is the founder of the Stradivari dynasty - Antonio (1644-1736) - who is revered as the main creator of the modern violin.

The new instrument had many influential opponents and even outright enemies. And the violin took the place that it rightfully deserved only thanks to the great musicians who advanced the technique of violin playing far ahead. And the most notable of them was the great Niccolo Paganini.
his performances led the audience into ecstasy.
Those present were always amazed by his incredible, “inhuman” mastery of performance. He effortlessly extracted virtuoso trills from the violin, performed the most complex variations even on one string.
They said that his art is the music of heaven, angelic voices. But there were others who whispered behind the musician's back that witchcraft signs were inscribed on his instrument and that he had long ago sold his soul to the devil...
Having learned all the facets of success, the brilliant violinist lived to be 58 years old, leaving behind several million francs and dozens of musical works written by him, some of which are so complex that no one can still play them. Humanity has not yet given birth to a second Paganini.

Amati Nicolo (1596-1684) was an Italian violin maker. From the 2nd half of the 16th century. Throughout Italy, the violins of the masters of the Amati family, who had long lived in Cremona, became famous. In their works, the classical type of instrument, which has survived to this day, finally took shape. Violins and cellos, created by the most famous of the masters of the Amati family - Nicolo, are few and far between, and they are especially highly valued. It was from N. Amati that A. Guarneri and A. Stradivari adopted the most complex art of violin design.

The Guarneri are a family of Italian string instrument makers. The ancestor of the family, Andrea Guarneri (1626 - 1698) - a student of the famous N. Amati. Instruments created by his grandson, Giuseppe Guarneri (1698 - 1744), nicknamed del Gesu, received particular fame and recognition. Few instruments by del Gesú have survived (10 violas and 50 violins); they are currently of exceptional value.


Stradivari (Stradivarius) Antonio (c. 1644 - 1737) - an outstanding Italian violin maker, a student of the famous N. Amati (1596 - 1684). From a young age until the last days of his life, Stradivari worked in his workshop, driven by the desire to bring the violin to the highest perfection. More than 1000 instruments made by the great master have survived, which are distinguished by the elegance of form and unsurpassed sound qualities. The successors of Stradivari were the masters C. Bergonzi and J. Guarneri.

In many countries, the clergy took up arms against good violinists - even in quiet Norway they were considered accomplices of dark forces, and Norwegian folk violins were burned like witches.
But not everyone knows that there were directly opposite stories!
If we look into a more ancient "layer" of time, we will find that with bowed instruments related to the violin, angels were originally depicted on the frescoes of temples and in handwritten Bibles, and in one old manuscript Christ was called not by someone, but "beloved violinist".
Such things were hushed up later, and the frescoes were destroyed, but on the fresco of St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, you can still see a musician playing a bowed instrument.

The word virtuoso was once applied to scientists. Many violinists were not only artists, artists, violin poets, but also scientists and inventors. (One violin work written at that time was called “sonata for inventive violin”).
The word "virtuoso" is now used (if we are talking about music) in only one sense - "technical". Meanwhile, the state of affairs has not changed: in order to play the violin well, including virtuoso music, you still need to have not developed muscles, but a flexible mind and strong intuition.

Interestingly, the opposite is also true: the violin stimulates the brain (which has a scientific explanation). It is not for nothing that many brilliant minds have enjoyed playing this magical instrument in their spare time to prepare their minds for the birth of new ideas. (See - the violin of Sherlock Holmes and Einstein).

Can a stone violin sound beautiful?

Swedish sculptor Lars Wiedenfalk designed the Blackbird violin from stone. It is made according to the drawings of Stradivarius, and black diabase served as the material. The idea of ​​such a violin came from Wiedenfalk, when he decorated one of the buildings with large diabase blocks, and the stone worked with a hammer and chisel “sang” beautifully. The violin sounds no worse than many wooden ones and weighs only 2 kg, since the thickness of the stone walls of the resonator box is no more than 2.5 mm. It is worth noting that the "Blackbird" is not the only such instrument in the world - the marble violins are made by the Czech Jan Roerich.

Among the works of Mozart there is an unusual duet for two violins. The musicians should stand facing each other and put the page with the notes between them. Each violin plays a different part, but both parts are recorded on the same page. The violinists begin to read notes from different ends of the sheet, then meet in the middle and again move away from each other, and in general a beautiful melody is obtained.

Is the price of Stradivarius violins proportional to the quality of their sound compared to modern instruments?

The most expensive violins in the world are Stradivari instruments of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, supposedly sounding better than all other violins thanks to the master's secret that has not yet been unraveled. However, in 2010, this prejudice was disproved during an experiment in which 21 professional violinists double-blindly examined 3 modern violins and 3 old instruments - 2 by Stradivari and another by Guarneri. Most of the musicians participating in the experiment were unable to tell the difference between the old violins and the new ones. Moreover, as it turned out as a result of testing, instruments of living masters have the best sound quality, while more than a hundred times more expensive Stradivari violins took the last two places.

Who and when called Einstein a great violinist?

Einstein loved to play the violin and once took part in a charity concert in Germany. Admired by his playing, a local journalist recognized the name of the “artist” and the next day published an article in the newspaper about the performance of the great musician, the incomparable virtuoso violinist Albert Einstein. He kept this note and proudly showed it to his friends, saying that he was in fact a famous violinist, and not a scientist.

What happened to the inventor of roller skates at their first demonstration?

The Belgian Jean-Joseph Merlin is considered to be the inventor of roller skates. He demonstrated them at a London masquerade ball in 1760, riding among the audience in expensive shoes with small metal wheels and playing the violin. However, these videos were still so imperfect that Merlin could not stop in time and crashed into the wall, breaking a very expensive mirror.