violins

[Clover]

what's the price of a cheap but good violin?[think]

[Erika]

We bought my violin from some Mexican family in Texas a couple of years ago. It was only $100!!!!! Just search around in the classifieds or in Pawn shops. I'm sure someone has a good one for a good price.

[GuinnessGirl25]

I'm also shopping for a fiddle. Does anyone know what good brands/makes are? I've played before but never owned one, so I'm not sure what to start looking at...

[Erika]

Would you believe my violin didn't have a brand sticker ANYWHERE on it!! That was really weird. But I have no idea on a good brand of violins. My theory- if it looks good, it probaly is good, if it looks crappy, it probaly is crappy! Kepp that in mind as you shop for one!

[desert rose]

Hey! I know where you can get a great violin for a good price!!! I bought a brand new violin that plays like a dream, and is built excellent.....ebay!!! Now, don't underestimate ebay for frauds. My violin I bought for $75. Its the best violin/fiddle ive ever played. It plays awesome at competitions and performances. just be sure and question the seller if you're gonna look in to it. Hope this helps!:D

[fidlmaker]

If you are shopping for a violin that SOUNDS good, I would advise throwing the looks theory out the window. If my wife had seen me playing a 1703 Stradivari a couple of years ago, she would have said Save your money for something nice. If she had seen it at a garage sale, she might have offered 50 bucks for it because it sounded pretty good despite its looks. The owner paid $1.4 million for it.

My point is, looks have virtually nothing to do with the sound of a violin (excluding big open cracks, missing wood, or really bad repair jobs, etc.).

Some of the cheap Chinese imports look beautiful, but don't sound any better than a shoe box with strings on it. If you have a friend that's a good player, it's good to bring them with you so you can hear what the instrument REALLY sounds like. What you hear when it's 3 inches from your ear can be very different from what bystanders are hearing. You have to be VERY lucky to get a decent instrument off of E-bay for under $1,000.00. It can happen, but the odds are definitely against you. I most definitely advise against buying something you haven't heard unless you really don't care what it sounds like.

I can't talk too much about the prices of garage sale fiddles or the bottom shelf stuff at your local violin shop because I only sell the instruments I make and have never gotten into the used fiddle trade. What experience I do have comes from folks bringing in the genuine Strad we got at a garage sale for 5 bucks and the heartbreak of telling them that it's not really a genuine Strad, and it will cost them at least 200 bucks to make it playable.

Don't get me wrong, many an adequate fiddle has found it's way from Grandma's attic to the flea market and made someone very happy for less than $100. However, unless someone is very, very, VERY fortunate, a concert quality violin will be hard to come by for less than several thousand dollars. The average price for a soloist grade violin, custom made by a qualified contemporary luthier runs between $7,500.00 and $15,000.00 according to the last survey by Strings Magazine.

If your aim is to jam in a bluegrass circle or just to learn the ropes of basic fiddling, almost any fiddle that can be strung and tuned will do nicely.

Too much information? Sorry, can't resist when the subject comes up. Hope there's something useful here for someone.

Happy hunting!
Marty

[matt the fiddler]

totally agree with fidmaker.. [and i have played one of his fiddles- he has some good stuff out there]

ther is a difference between artist instruments and starting/ intermediate ones. adn then startign out ones and shoe box types.... most people it probably won't make a difference till you have a few years behind your belt to upgrade to a $7,000- 7 million model... but going incredibly cheap is not reccomended.. i teach a lot of lessons, and the students that get teh low grade cheap one sound horrid, want to quit, and have to take hours tuning/ keeping up... [sometimes on 1/2 and 3/4ths fiddles this is unavodiable...]

bows are also a frequently overlooked item in conservation between non players..., considerign they make up half of the tone/ articulation equation...

you can get a beginner one.. adn i woudl reccomend a carbon fiber composite to start on [like coda] because you can slam a door in them and they won't break.. plus they have a descent response..... then when you are more expirences bows go off the wall to. i have played several $16,000 + bows :) it really does make a difference..

just if you are serious on playing longer than a year- dont' start out trash... you will probably get so frustrated and quit if you do.. [there are exceptions always]

matt

[Silmarien]

Hi, I'm new here.....
I think your right though, I don't have a very good fiddle/violin but I really do want to learn I started learning fast and missed so much so I went back and now I'm going slower and learning as much as I can...but this fiddle is just for starting I'm saving up for a really nice one.. Well I really want a Mandolin too,, So I'm just going to be really rich when I get older :D

[ViolinMari]

i woudl reccomend a carbon fiber composite to start on [like coda] because you can slam a door in them and they won't break..

........[eek!!] MAT~!!!! Oh my gosh, how can you even live with the thought of slamming a bow in a door?!?!?!?.....even if it IS a coda bow..... [nono] I would have thought YOU would think better then that......

But anyways, now over my shock, violins: I also am right behind fidlmaker's words. I'm a constantly-performing classical violinist, as well as fiddler and jazz muician, and in the classical world, the violin you play on is everything. Like fidlmaker said, they run high in the bucks, but if you perform, it can't be helped. Personally, I got just about as lucky as anyone has ever gotten, finding a simply beautiful no-name (that is, unidentified maker) for only $4,000, when most of my friends spent upwards of $20,000, and some even higher then that. (one guys I know plays a $38,000 Italian violin. The thing sounds wonderful, but stil...[think har )

I must also restate what a few others have already said: That it depends greatly on you level. Many beginners in the classical world begin by RENTING insturments. This actually works out quite well for the first few years of study, so it may be a good option to concider. Most violin shops will rent insturments, and take them back in for repairs, etc... Another option is to find an ammature maker. A lot of guiys out there make beautiful fiddles, but if they aren't a big name dealer, then they don't charge the usual arm-and-leg for them.

There then.....my two cents..... :D

[ViolinMari]

Oh yeah....forgot to add this:

You could try looking through string catalogs, like Shar or Notheast Strings. They sell some fairly nice insturments. Both companies are online and have shops and such around the country.

I don't hold MUCH with this approach myself, but I know pleanty of beginning/intermediate students who have done very well by this option

[desert rose]

You can also have them special made, if you have enough. Custom made, also. It's a bit pricey, though.

[matt the fiddler]

yippie for custom !!!!

my new fiddle will be doen in 4 months....

[SusanY2K1]

Matt,

Who is making your new fiddle? How exciting you'll have it in four months!

I've been thinking about contacting Jonathon Cooper to make me a new one. I loved the one Mark bought from him. It played like a dream and it was brand new!
I also concur with the fidlmaker. Most of the time, you get what you pay for, however, every once in a while you'll find a diamond in the dust, but those are few and far between.

Susan

[matt the fiddler]

you are gogin for a cooper???? nice!!!! that guy can make some beautiful fiddles....

silakowski is making mine-[i fell in love wiht the tone this summer.... ] same guy who made casey driessen's 5 sting, and britt haas's 5 string. funny thing is i found that he lives about an hour away form me- so i will occasionally be able to go down to his shop...

not sure if i am getting a 5 sting or a 4- i need it a lot for classical stuff- and people in the classical world get uptight when somethign gets changed.... i have been on a 5 string electric for probably 4 years or so- so i am used to the feel

[fidlmaker]

Matt, I'm hurt (just kidding),

More folks oughtta check out the latest fiddles from that fidlmaker guy in Illinois.

Seriously though, my prices are still pretty reasonable compared to those other guys. Both of the guys you mentioned definitely make a fine fiddle. I've had the chance to play a number of them in the last couple of years.

BUT........for those folks who are shopping for a custom fiddle in the Chicago area, I would be honored to have you as a guest in my shop. There you have it, a shameless plug for Brunkalla violins.

(Also check out the what they play section of the feature article on Nickel Creek in the December issue of Acoustic Guitar Magazine.)

Cheers,
Marty

[mandoBob]

hey fidlmaker, make any mandos?

[fidlmaker]

Sorry MandoBob,

Lots of folks have asked me that question including Chris. I've had a bunch of wood set aside and all the hardware for a couple of years now and never get the time to start. I play mando also and would like to make one for myself also. As it stands, the fiddle business is occupying all of my time these days. Stay tuned though, I may just get around to it one of these days. Meanwhile, an excellent mando builder lives about 1/2 hour from me. His name is Dale Ludewig ( ludewigmadolins.com I think ). If the website address isn't quite right, he's listed under builders on Mandolin Cafe. His prices are still reasonable. He is just finishing up a fine crop of F's with red spruce tops and quilted maple backs. THree of them are spoken for, but there's still time to put in your request for your favorite color scheme. Not only is his workmanship first class, but they sound great too.

Regards, Marty

[matt the fiddler]

lol i keep getting deeper in this hole.....

i am hoping i can play more of your fiddles martin...
mabye some day ... hey, i mgiht even get to play one of your long term...
lol- you understand love at first playing though... there was some serious magic between me and that tone.. unlike i have had recently even by some of the really $$$100,000+ fiddles...
the last time i had that happen [fallen in love wiht a violin]- it was a half a million dollar instrument.. no way i coudl even afford that...

i kinda want to change bela's polka on the banjo... to something about playing pricey fiddles.... but that would just ruin the fun.... [evil eye]

matt

[desert rose]

This is hilarious and I don't get any of it!

[SusanY2K1]

I was wondering if you have a website I could browse. I'd like to check out your work as I'm sure it sounds quite wonderful. I'm not close though to Chicago as I live in Oklahoma, but you never know.

were you at Mark's camp?

Thanks so much,
Susan

[fidlmaker]

Hi Susan,

Yes, I do have a web site (brunkalla.com) but I confess it's in serious need of updating. I'm working on a new one with lots more info and pictures, but it may be a month or two before it gets on the web. My site can also be accessed from this one if you look under Sara's bio, or from the official Nickel Creek site under links.

I've never been to Mark's fiddle camp, but I've had alot of folks reccommend it. Maybe one of these days.

Are you anywhere near Guthrie OK? Byron Berline has the Double Stop Fiddle Shop there. He has also tried a couple of my 5-strings.

Marty

[SusanY2K1]

Marty,

Thanks for your response. Re Byron Berline, yes, I live close to Guthrie, in Oklahoma City, which is maybe 20 minutes away. In fact, I've played with Byron before. What a great guy and incredible musician. I need to go back to his shop. You should definately go to O'Connor's camp. This year was my first time to go but it definately won't be my last. I'm anxious to play one of your violins! I can't imagine what's it's like to be able to make one of these beautiful instruments with your hands.

Susan

[desert rose]

I have a custom made Gibson violin, but I also have a Merroli brand violin. The Merroli and the Gibson sound quite similar, and the Merroli cost a lot less!!!:D