How a handmade
violin is built.
Two hundred hours of work, spread across eight or nine months — condensed into seven moments at the bench.
- 01
Selecting the wood
Tonewood is chosen years in advance — Alpine spruce for the top, flamed maple from the Balkans for the back, ribs and scroll. Each billet is tapped, weighed and aged before it ever meets a gouge.
Stage 1 / 7 - 02
Carving the plates
Top and back plates are roughed out with a gouge, then graduated to thicknesses that vary by tenths of a millimetre. Tap tones guide the final voicing — the wood tells you when it's right.
Stage 2 / 7 - 03
Bending the ribs
Maple ribs are bent over a heated iron, one shape at a time, then glued to corner and end blocks on the mould. The garland defines the body — every following step depends on its accuracy.
Stage 3 / 7 - 04
Cutting the scroll
The scroll is carved entirely by hand from a single block of maple. It's the maker's signature — every turn, every chamfer, every fluting cut left visible.
Stage 4 / 7 - 05
Fitting the bass bar
The bass bar is fitted to the underside of the top in perfect contact, sprung with a slight tension. It carries the low end of the instrument's voice and supports the bridge foot for a century or more.
Stage 5 / 7 - 06
Varnishing
A yellow ground seals the wood, then oil varnish is built up in many thin coats over weeks. Each layer is dried in sunlight on the workshop terrace before the next is brushed on.
Stage 6 / 7 - 07
Setup and voicing
Soundpost, bridge, nut and pegs are cut and fitted to the finished body. The instrument is strung, played in, and adjusted by ear until it speaks freely under the bow.
Stage 7 / 7
Want to see it in person?
The workshop welcomes visitors by appointment — hear the difference between a fresh varnish coat and a cured one, and try instruments at different stages of the bench.