Articles
By Peter Zaret
"Secrets" of Stradivarius Debunked (New!)
Tips for Renting a Stringed Instrument
Repairing Your String Instrument
What is a Violin and What is a Fiddle?
Are Old Violins Better than New Violins?
Quest for Power: This is about the historical and ongoing effort to increase the power of stringed instruments.
How to Judge if a Violin has a Good Tone
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
How to Keep Your Violin, Viola, Cello and Acoustic Bass in Excellent Condition
A Survey of Strings for Violins, Violas, Cellos and Basses
How to Choose a Violin for a Child
Choosing a Violin: this article is from School Band & Orchestra Magazine, posted on Allen Orchestra website. It makes some good points to keep in mind when looking for violins, especially for kids.
Read the text of two of talks that Peter gave at the 2004 Suzuki Conference in Minneapolis: Developing a Good Tone From the Start, and How to Buy a Good Sounding Full or Small Sized Violin.
Guest Articles
Perfect Violin: Does Artistry Or Physics Hold Secret? By MALCOLM W. BROWNECAMBRIDGE, Mass., New York Times; Jun 14, 1994; pg. C1 **This article is a PDF and will open in Adobe Acrobat Reader** Someone sent Peter this article recently and he thought it was interesting.
Music in Schools, Changing Lives, by Joan Murray, San Francisco Classical Voice
"In 40-plus years as an inner-city orchestra teacher, I saw many examples of classical music's influence on young lives..." This article also points out that some major universities have given string players full scholarships in exchange for playing in their orchestras. The students didn't need to major in music either.
The Difference between a Fiddle and a Violin, From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"A violin is sometimes informally called a fiddle, regardless of the kind of music being played with it. The words violin and fiddle come from the same Latin root, but violin came through the Romance languages and fiddle through Germanic languages..."
Michael "Doc" Dreyfuss Takes the Viola to the Limit! An Interview with groundbreaking Electric Violist/Violinist Michael Dreyfuss
Learning Fiddle Tunes Straight From the CD by Deborah Clark Colón
Deborah has been playing and teaching Irish fiddle professionally for over a decade. She has conducted workshops for a variety of folk festivals and weekends. Deborah recorded most recently on Gaelic Storm's CD, Special Reserve, which reached #2 on the Billboard World Music Chart. She performs and records regularly with Changeling, and can be found at www.madcelts.com.
How to Choose an Acoustic Double Bass by Christopher Vance
Christopher is a bass player who freelances in Cleveland area orchestras, and teaches. He has an undergraduate and Masters Degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Making the Transition from Electric Bass to the Double Bass by Christopher Vance
How to Get the Best Jazz Sound Out of Your Double Bass by Christopher Vance
From Classical to Old Time Fiddling: A Young Violinist Expands Her Stylistic Repetoire And Pleases Audiences Along The Way! An Interview with Heather Malyuk
How to Buy a Violin by Julie Tebbs
Peter Zaret, along with folks from some other violin shops, contributed to this article, which first appeared in the Violin Case Newsletter and is now archived on that website.
Magazine Articles
Ace of Bass
Peter Zaret's patented bass bar pleases players and puzzles Luthiers
by Patrick Sullivan, Strings Magazine, March 2004. Read an HTML version, or a PDF, courtesy of Strings Magazine (www.stringsmagazine.com)
Banishing the Wolf
Does Peter Zaret's patented redesign of the bass-bar really give a stronger wolf-free sound? by Heather Kurzbauer, The Strad, May 2003
Read an HTML version, or a PDF (which includes photos) courtesy of The Strad magazine (www.thestrad.com)
With Permission From Strings Magazine
Drying Times: How to protect your instrument from climate changes by Richard Ward
"While this is an extreme example, most instrument owners are less than certain about how to prevent damage caused by changes in humidity. Stringed instruments are made of wood, a material that expands when it absorbs moisture, and contracts when it dries..."
Too Much, Too Soon? Too much practicing and wrong playing techniques, can catch up quickly with beginners by Janet Horvath
"We've all witnessed the spectacle of the 12-year-old playing Tchaikovsky's violin concerto. Where once the exception, the outstanding child artist is now a fixture on the concert scene. But at what cost? Among teachers, doctors, and therapists, there is a concern that developing muscles and bones may be damaged by repetitive activities. . ."
Finding the Right Teacher in Five Steps by Patrick Sullivan
"Indeed, choosing the right teacher may be the most difficult decision facing a beginning string musician. It's a process full of questions: Where should the search start? What responsibilities does the student have in the process? And what qualities in a teacher are crucial for productive learning?..."
The Reel Deal: 12 questions violinists ask about fiddling by Donna Hébert
"How many times have you heard someone (perhaps yourself) ask, "What's the difference between a violin and fiddle?" Beyond the short answer, "spelling," this age-old conundrum invites the ponderer to step beyond stereotypes and assumptions, and to explore music's many meanings..."
To Memorize or Not by Sarah Freiberg
"I began to wonder what the role of memorizing should be in a performance. Does playing without the music improve or detract from one's performance capabilities? In search of answers, I..."
