AboutAl Dzina Expertise I can answer questions about violin and guitar making and restoration. I will not answer questions about playing these instruments, because I am a maker, not a player.
Experience I was trained in violin making in Germany and have been working at this craft for sixty years.
Expert: Al Dzina Date: 9/26/2007 Subject: craftmanship of handmade violin
Question I have inherited what appears to be a handmade violin. It has no label or insignia. The sound peg has a string tied around it for some reason and the fingerboard is not straight, it angles outwards toward the bottom of it. A orchestra teacher suggested that the neck may have broke off at one time and it was not put back on correctly. He was unsure about the string around the sound peg. Any comments or suggestions? Also, I was wondering if, just because a violin is handmade, does that make it valuable?
Answer Hi Amy;
All good or great violins are handmade, but that does not mean all handmade violins are good or great. There is something called craftsmanship or skill in building that makes a violin valuable. The string around the soundpost was used by someone that did not have a soundpost setter, that is a very tough job.
Al;
