String Theory Meets Practice as Violinmakers Rethink Their Craft

by Adrian Cho Science, 2 Dec 2005 A little thin down low, the sound of the violin blossoms as Bach's unaccompanied sonata in C major wends into the upper registers. Close your eyes, and you can almost see the instrument making the bright, crystalline sound, its classic form curving as gracefully as the music, its amber finish enriched with nicks and scrapes accumulated over the centuries, its compact body resonating with the very emotion of the soloist. It may be best to keep your eyes closed, however. The instrument looks less like a violin than a model airplane gone horribly wrong, and it's hard to reconcile the beauty of the sound with the device's homely appearance. Read more