On choosing a contemporary instrument

Someone recently asked me what the difference could be between buying an old or a new instrument.
This got me thinking and I am not sure there is one clearcut answer to this question, but I thought I would write down a few reflections over this subject and hope someone find it interesting.
There is no doubt that the old violins of the famous makers of the 17.th an 18.th century holds a fascination to modern day players and violin makers alike. They represents unique pieces of art that amazingly are still in use.

We can hear the voice history ring out across the centuries whenever the bow is brought to the strings. Musicians are artists and also storytellers and playing an old instrument I believe helps in this regard as it becomes a vessel of history.

Some instruments in fact have been on incredible journeys in order to reach the hands of their modern owners. A great example would be the instruments of the Violins of Hope as each and every one of these violins have been the property of survivors of the holocaust before and during the war. I have not had the pleasure to hear them played however I can only imagine the emotion a musician must feel when playing one of these treasures. These emotions transcends any objective judgement of the instrument.

So what are the arguments in favor of contemporary instruments?

Access to the maker

Having access to the actual maker of your instrument is highly valuable. If an accident happens and the violin needs repair the violin maker knows exactly what kind of glue is used and where. Pietro and I personally keep a detailed record of each instrument that we have built over the years and can easily go back and pull out every measurement and so on.

Thus knowing a person who knows every inch of the instrument can be extremely useful during your years of companionship.

Fewer unexpected expenses

It is useless to deny that you as a musician would rather not end up with an unexpected bill maybe only a year after buying a new instrument.

And unfortunately no matter how well you look after your violin certain issues can build up over time and if you have an old instrument it just is more likely you will have to face some of them.

For example a sound post crack is just the consequence of years of build up tension in a fragile area but the repair work needed is extensive. So if you decide on buying a contemporary instrument, the likelihood of these things happening just is way less.

Centuries of knowledge

Contemporary makers have access to a catalogue of knowledge unique to our modern age.
Even though we practice a craft that has changed very little over the past 400 years we are equally blessed by how easy access we have to a huge amount of research on the works of the old masters that are being conducted every day by other makers, scientists and other experts within the field.
This of course gives us a huge advantage when perfecting our skills so that we can build the best instruments possible.

Sharing is caring

Sharing of knowledge between makers is another advantage point that we have nowadays and it is something that lifts all of us to a higher level. That is true in many fields and especially violin making.

If we look at the making of a violin as a scientific experiment in search of the ideal sound, progress is extremely slow on your own. Usually you count about 200 hours for the making of an instrument and if you want to test out a hypothesis you only want to change one small detail from time to time. It does not take a lot of calculating to discern that putting many minds together means that we all will advance much quicker.

Putting your own spirit into the instrument

This argument might get a bit cooky. As i was arguing in the beginning of this post musicians are storytellers and playing an instrument with a lot of history certainly can help in that process. However there can be an equally great value in knowing you are the first owner of an instrument that is hopefully going to survive centuries. Then you as a musician have the possibility of playing a little bit of yourself into the instrument.