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A R T I C L E S
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Set-up - a four part introduction Part 1 Part 3 Part 4
Part 2:
Improving comfort and ease of playing Making an instrument comfortable to play is a crucial process in the eyes of the luthier, equal in importance to making an instrument work well tonally. In this article we will focus on issues of comfort and ease of playing as experienced by a series of players and their instruments, past and present. A pain in the neck? As the main point of contact, the neck of a stringed instrument is one of the most intimate and sensitive areas for the player and even the slightest variation in shaping, size or texture can affect the player positively or negatively; for instance, an oversized neck can cause strain, an unconventional shape at either end can cause poor intonation, while awkward shaping near the body can cause difficulty in playing in fourth position and above. A player recently compared two violins and declared one of them to be heavier than the other. In fact the ‘heavy’ instrument was the lighter of the two but the fact that it had a thicker neck made it feel burdensome to that particular player. A baroque viola player tried a new instrument and declared, ‘I love this neck but I will have to get used to it as at the moment it is making me play sharp.’ Two violinists of very different physical build swapped instruments. The smaller player found her friend’s instrument arduous to play because her own instrument had a fairly small neck. Her larger friend confessed feelings of insecurity when working round the small neck of the unfamiliar instrument. String Heights It is easy to jump to conclusions about the causes of discomfort in the playing action (the height of the strings above the fingerboard) the most common assumption being that the bridge is too high or low. The following examples give an idea of the sheer range of complaints and solutions possible in this area. Cellist 1. Warped fingerboard and neck An amateur cellist was finding it increasingly painful to play his cello, particularly in the lower positions. When I looked at the cello I saw that there was an extraordinary amount of scoop in the fingerboard but when the string tension was released the scoop diminished. This mysterious phenomenon occurred because the upper half of the fingerboard had become unglued from the neck and the resulting loss of strength allowed the neck and fingerboard to become warped when under normal string tension. This is quite a common problem. Cellist 2. Seasonal adjustments A distinguished friend was having problems with the string clearances on the great Italian cello he was playing. The string clearances were well below the standard measurements and the lower strings were clattering on the fingerboard when he played anything above mezzo forte. Fortunately there was nothing seriously wrong with the instrument. It was winter and the cello was adjusting to the dry centrally heated air around it. This is a common problem for cellists. The arching height of the front can alter quite dramatically with the level of humidity in the air, altering both the string clearances and the amount of tension in the sound post. In the friend’s case, his cello needed a higher bridge. In the more extreme climates of North America cellists often have different bridges for different seasons. Cellist 3. Fingerboard scoop This cellist came to me with playing discomfort due to excessive string height, particularly on the A string. A number of violin makers and shops in the past had persuaded her not to have the height of the bridge reduced but now things seemed to be getting unbearable. Would I please lower the bridge for her? When I examined the instrument the string clearances at the bridge and the nut were standard but the scoop in the fingerboard was excessive under the D and A strings. When the fingerboard was trued to reduce the amount of scoop and the string clearances at the nut reduced to a minimum the player was perfectly comfortable. Violist. Sunken neck A violist came to me with a fine contemporary viola which he had owned since it was first made. He loved the instrument’s sound and during his years of ownership the viola had been adjusted a number of times and was developing in exactly the way he had hoped but it was becoming harder and harder to play, particularly in higher positions. When I checked the string clearances on this instrument they were so high that I was amazed that the owner could play it at all. It was clear that the neck elevation had sunk and needed to be adjusted or re-set. String clearances can change as a result of some long-term movement in the instrument. In the case of new violas (and to a lesser extent, new violins) this is always expected and it is perfectly normal for neck angles to require adjustment. However, such changes can be one of the big warning signals that all is not well with an instrument and it is always wise to go to a competent luthier who will assess the instrument as a whole rather than just address the symptom. Cellist 4. Hard/soft ‘suspension’ I had completed some restoration work on a fine old English cello for an amateur player. When the cello was put back together I cut a new bridge and post for it and really enjoyed putting the instrument through its paces. However, the set-up turned out to be much too firm for the owner, who brought the cello back to me after a week because it was too difficult to play. I adjusted the sound post and took some more wood out of the bridge and the player was delighted. Intriguingly, she thought I had moved the bridge down the instrument because of the ease she experienced in playing close to the bridge. In an almost identical situation, a violinist described the difference between a firm and a soft set-up as being like driving a car with hard or soft suspension. The driver who wants to push a car to the limit will require a very firm suspension which other drivers might find most uncomfortable. The underlying message of all these experiences is: ‘don’t suffer needlessly’. It is too easy to assume that only bad workmen blame their tools. This is by no means true for string players; the violin family is designed to be utterly flexible so that each instrument can be adapted to suit its player. Pegs, nut, fingerboard, bridge, post, strings, tailpiece, and even the neck are all dispensable and should not be regarded as having the semi-sacred status of the box. Expert adjustments to improve comfort and ease of playing can dramatically improve a player’s performance and are an essential process towards enjoying and making the most of your instrument. © Robin Aitchison 2001. Published in ESTA News & Views Summer 2001
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prior permission of Robin Aitchison |
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7 C A M B R I D G E R O A D, E L
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