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Why I don't like varnished strings:
Maybe if you live in a very humid place, like Vietnam or Japan, it looks like this is the only solution. It may be true in fact if you want to buy a “ready to use” string.
But if you have the patience of organizing your olive oil process and oiled strings stock, you will have much greater results.
It’s just to add one step more to your planning: buying your strings in advance so you have time to leave them one month in oil and give them a couple of weeks to dry.
Here are my advises on how to do it, and which is the best string to support you in your battle against humidity
(Warning: don’t do this with wound strings!) Concerned about the short life of your strings? Do your strings get hairy in minutes in the summer? Your strings could last much longer, you need only some olive oil, and some time…. It may seem complicated, especially if you are always touring and you are never at home… but think for
Read MoreWhat happens to a string while polishing. (one more way to save money) The difference between a slightly polished string and a perfectly smooth string and why it is definitely worth to choose the first One. Want to know more? There’s a downloadable report here, it’s free, no opt-in required!
Read More“I couldn’t play without varnished strings. Yes, I know they are not historically correct, but there is no other way for me, as my hands are so sweaty and I am so busy, that I move from hard air-conditioned to hot and humid environments even trice per day.”Is this familiar to you? I hear this
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baroque music, double-bass strings, early music, gut strings, gut strings history, gut strings maintenance, gut strings manufacture, viol strings, viola da gamba strings, viola strings, violin strings, violoncello strings
Not only sheeps or lambs… you will be surprised to learn! My sources for this video are the letters of Roberto Salerni, the interviews to the old string makers in Salle, and Labarraque “Nuovo dizionario universale tecnologico delle arti e dei mestieri…”, “Minugiaio”, Venezia 1823
Read MoreThat’s me , or at least this is what I was in Aquila from 2002 up to 2016… On gauge imposed on a string by the polishing process… why half polished are definitely better and why the quality control and the polishing must be done by the same person. Want to know more? There’s a
Read MoreWhat to check and what to avoid when you are choosing your strings. The most important thing to check is that the twisting of your string is even in the whole vibrating lenght. No white spots, no open twist, no different angles. You can easily feel those by Mersenne’s test. What is less important is the
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