Student Finally Completes his Copy of the 1580 Gasparo da Salo Viola!

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Copy of 1580 Gasparo da Salo 15-1/2″ viola finally completed.

Student finally competes his viola!

It took a while, but he finally pulled it off! And it sounds great, with a huge, growly bass-end and very clear but not shrill, on the treble end..well balanced, very strong, and easy to play.

Good Intentions…

This young man was recommended to me by his orchestra director, eight years ago. Originally I agreed to work with him weekends and evenings for that summer. I said I thought he could complete it in 200 hours, with close supervision and diligent work…so I was volunteering weekends and evenings for 10 weeks, 20 hours a week. He agreed, and we got started.Within a week or two, I could see there were going to be glitches in the plan…he got a summer job, and started showing up at the time I needed to head for bed, as I was working a full-time job and had to be up at 4 AM. At the end of the summer, I think he had the rib garland done…maybe…and the plates traced and cut to size.So, we decided we would try again the next summer. It was even more spotty, but he got the scroll carved, as I recall. To be fair, I want to point out that the young man involved had never held a tool in his hands before– never built anything, never sharpened anything. Didn’t know what a “vise” was…etc. So this was ALL very new to him, and he made a great deal of progress over the journey.

Then he disappeared for a number of months and eventually called me during a Christmas vacation and asked if he could come up and work. My daughter was home from school, and I wanted to spend time with her, so I said I was not available at the time.

That time he disappeared for a couple of years or more…parts of his instrument were gathering dust in my shop, but I didn’t hear from him until the summer before last, I think. He wanted to come back and finish up…so…we started up again…Saturdays, if and when it was mutually workable.

Anyhow, it finally emerged from its “larval stage” as a full-fledged viola today. It is a copy of the 1580 Gasparó da Saló viola (a fairly asymmetrical, odd-looking instrument, but still played professionally after 430+ years), and, for a first try, not bad at all. It is quite similar to the original; I am very pleased, and, as you may imagine, vastly relieved.

Gasparó da Saló viola front

Front view .

Gasparó da Saló side

Side view .

Gasparó da Saló back

Back view .

First time maker with viola

New maker with new viola .

What a relief!

I guess he feels pretty good about it, too.

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April 28, 2014April 29, 2014

5-String Fiddle Finally Complete

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Five String Fiddle completed…just in time for the Show!

The Maryhurst University Musical Instrument show is this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, the 3rd and 4th. Admission is only $3 … this is a really good deal, and a great “peek” at up-and-coming makers, as well as the more well-established ones.

Last year there were two banjo-makers, three or four mandolin makers, one double-bass maker, one maker of traditional Persian instruments, one maker of electric Kalimbas, one maker of traditional Mexican instruments, three or so Ukulele makers, possibly ten makers of violin-family instruments, a couple of cigar-box ukulele makers, one orchestral harp maker and probably fifty to sixty guitar makers, of all varieties.

Handmade Bluegrass fiddle took months to complete

I have had more discouraging setbacks on this instrument than in any instrument of the last ten years, probably. I got sick early in the making, and was very busy with work as well, so that slowed things down. Twice I made errors and had to scrap the neck and start over. (Boy, is that frustrating!) Then I somehow got a serious muscle spasm in my back, and could hardly walk for several weeks.

However, perseverance pays off, and I finally completed the five string fiddle last night. There are still some spots to touch up on the varnish, and some other cosmetic issues, but for purposes of practicality, it is complete– and playing very well.

Oregon Bigleaf Maple and Sitka Spruce

The maple wood is from the same log from which I made last year’s five string fiddle. The flame is not quite as spectacular, as it came from a different portion of the log, but still definite eye-candy–the back looks like a cloudy golden sunset in the right light.

If you’d like to try it out, please come to the Marylhurst show this weekend. Meanwhile, here are some photos:

Front of Oliver Five String Fiddle — Front of the fiddle– colors are close, but in person it is more brown/red…less yellow.

Back of Oliver 5-String Fiddle — The back looks pretty good, but it is better, of course, in person…you can see the flame better.

Close-up of Oliver 5-String Fiddle Back — Here is a closer view of the grain of the back. It really requires the changing angle of the light, to get the best view of it.

Back of Oliver Five-String Fiddle neck — Here’s the back of the scroll. I really like the flame in the neck.

Side View of Oliver Five-string Fiddle scroll — And, finally, the side of the scroll itself. Not much flame in the wood, but I like the way it turned out, anyway.

Come and try it out at the show. I’ll hope to see you there.

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November 12, 2013April 27, 2017

Adding a new line of product–Advanced Student Violins.

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Advanced Student Violins Now Available

I have decided to add a new line of violins: affordable to advanced students, but still very high-quality instruments. These instruments were built by me, but not from raw materials; rather from pre-machined parts (CNC-cut) bought elsewhere. I do not sell these as signed and numbered luthier-made violins, because I am not the one who (completely) made them. I only completed the job; installed purfling, corrected arching, graduated the plates as needed, installed and trimmed the bass-bar to my standard, set the neck, installed the end-pin, saddle, fingerboard, nut, pegs, etc., and finally, after careful assembly, varnished with the same care that I use on my handmade instruments. I provide the same guarantee and return policy on these instruments as for my handmade instruments.

I will, of course, continue to offer my own handmade violins, violas, cellos, double basses and five-string fiddles, as always.

Rationale:

The reason I am doing this is three-fold:

(a) Not everyone can afford a luthier-made instrument, especially when they are just starting out.

(b) Buying the materials in pre-machined form reduces my labor significantly, so I can charge a great deal less, while my customers still get a very good instrument, whose final character actually is determined by me, and is personally attended to by me…not like a factory instrument.

(c) I can meet a known need much more quickly, so that the wait is less frustrating for the customer, when an instrument is ordered.

Current Limitation:

For the moment I am only offering 4/4 violins, but I may extend the selection later. I am even considering learning to machine the parts myself, which would, of course, also involve buying the necessary tooling, but which might keep the price low indefinitely, and allow me to offer a full- range of instruments in the advanced student price-range. It would also mean that ALL the labor would once again be mine, even though I would be using a machine to do all the rough work. I will label any such instruments as “shop-made” instruments, with the “West Wind Strings” workshop label, as my house-brand instruments. They will enjoy the same 100% trade-in policy as my handmade instruments, but there will not be any confusion as to which is which.

Photos of Current Samples:

Here are two finished violins which are currently available. If they sell quickly, I will put more up immediately, as quickly as I can complete them. (see Photos below:) Both have pretty amazing tone, I must say. I was not really sure what to expect, as I have never before built from CNC carved parts. I am very pleased with the results.

Front #1

Back #1

Front #2

Back #2

Chez Les Eveques from Chester O. Bishop on Vimeo.

If you are interested in either of these violins, or others like them, please contact me and we can arrange to get one into your hands for a trial.

Thanks for looking.

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October 9, 2013November 18, 2013

Tool-making is part of the game, too!

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Biggest Little “Thumb-plane”

(OK, it is too big to be a thumb-plane, but I was simply making a larger copy of one of my thumb-planes (also called “finger-planes”) so I thought of it as a large thumb-plane.)

Handmade tools are part of the Luthier’s Trade, too.

The tool shown here is a curved sole plane specially made for carving the inside of a compound curve—in this particular case, the inside of an upright bass viol—sometimes called a double bass. (That’s a standard violin scroll beside it, and a twenty-five-cent piece, to compare size) Many such thumb-planes are made of cast brass—this one is all steel. It features all welded construction, and a hardened high-carbon steel blade.

I began with a short piece of scrap 2.5″ I.D. steel pipe. I mashed it to the oval shape in a hydraulic press, welded the sole in place, added the plane bed and blade retainer pin, and hand-crafted the chip-breaker to fit.

The blade was made of a cast-off piece of a commercial scraper blade. I think it would benefit from a thicker blade, but it works well as it is.

New Hand-Plane with vVolin Scroll — New Hand-Plane with Violin Scroll

The sole of the plane is curved laterally, as well as longitudinally, to allow the blade to smoothly follow the surface of an inside curve. The blade, also curved to match the sole, is adjusted by loosening the keeper bolt and manually repositioning the cutting edge. In two tries, I had it shaving smooth ribbons of maple from the inside of the bass.

The plane weighs in at about two pounds, so it is not a featherweight, but the extra mass seems to make it cut more smoothly. On the other hand, it gives your deltoids a good workout…but that is part of woodworking.

First Bass Project

And then, there’s the project itself…. When complete, that bass will be 6’-3” tall—with the endpin retracted. But it will weigh only 20 pounds or so. The curved-sole plane is what allows the control to make the plates so thin—4.5mm in many places—9mm at the thickest. (Bass was completed and sold in 2006; I hope to build another one soon.)

Here is what the finished handmade double bass looked like:

Yes, I know now that the little white felt pads go on the inside of the tailpiece…but the photograph recorded my ignorance at the time, so I will let it stand.

This Double Bass was handmade in Oregon. It plays very well, with a huge powerful tone. It was sold and now lives somwhere in Illinois, I am told. This was a “William Tarr” model, built from plans obtained from Peter Chandler. My next Double Bass will be a “Panormo” model, modelled after a bass by Vincenzo Panormo, and using drawings by the late Peter Chandler.

All my Double Basses are of Oregon Big Leaf Maple and Sitka Spruce.

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September 23, 2013January 27, 2014

Completed 16-1/2″ Oliver model Lion Head Viola

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The Lion-head Viola is Finished!

As always, I am sure there are things I may do differently next time, particularly with the hand-carved lion-head, but, overall, I am satisfied with the results on this viola. It plays easily, has a big, deep voice, and is becoming more responsive day by day. Here are some photos:

The style is closely related to the Andrea Guarneri “Conte Vitale”, but has been changed significantly enough that it is simply my own design, hence the “Oliver” model designation. It definitely qualifies as a large viola, so only players who are comfortable with a big viola will like it, but, that being said, it is a relatively easy-playing viola, too.

I realize that lion-head scrolls are not terribly conventional, but I also remind myself that Jacob Stainer made a few lion-head instruments, and a whole bunch of German copyists followed his lead…still they are maybe one in a thousand. I changed one last thing and attempted a little more realism. Perhaps it will be difficult to sell; I don’t know. But it is one of the best violas I have made, and I trust someone will eventually see it as the one they have been waiting for. 🙂

Thanks for looking. Feel free to contact me.
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September 17, 2013January 27, 2014

Completed Varnish on Lion head Viola

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Varnish is complete on the Lion-head viola.

I will still have to complete the rubbing out of the varnish and the final setup of the instrument, but I expect to have it playing by Friday. Here are some current photos:

Front of lion head viola with final varnish

Side of lion head viola with final varnish

Back of lion head viola with final varnish

Scroll of lion-head viola with final varnish

Side of lion head scroll with final varnish

I am sure there will be minor retouches to do after everything is complete, but this is pretty much what it is going to look like. I like the way the big leaf maple is glowing under the varnish, and even the hard rock maple scroll seems to glow a little. I hope it plays well. 🙂

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September 13, 2013November 28, 2013

Lion-head viola with three coats varnish

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Lion-head viola looking good, with three coats of varnish, but far from finished.

Here are a few pictures of the viola with three coats varnish. I definitely intend to go darker, but it is looking sorta nice. I especially like the way the heavily flamed one-piece Oregon Maple back is beginning to show its inner glow. Back with three coats varnish

Side with three coats varnish

Scroll with three coats varnish

I may not get much done on it tomorrow. I need to clean the chimney and move firewood.

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September 10, 2013September 13, 2013

Lion-Head Viola Progress.

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Lion-Head Viola Progress:

OK, here are some photos of the way things ended up tonight: The color is due to a fresh coat of strong coffee…I had intended to take the pictures before I soaked the whole thing in coffee, but slipped a cog, there, somewhere, so this is what you get.

You can tell I got my peg holes a little off– I will have to move them, or my strings will definitely end up rubbing on the adjacent pegs.

I hope to be varnishing by this weekend. I will keep you posted.

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February 18, 2013November 28, 2013

Lion-head viola in progress

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Not your “typical” Lion-head viola

So many of the “lion-head” instruments of the past have been either so highly stylized that they were unrecognizable, or so poorly carved as to achieve the same result, or, when done in a completely recognizable fashion, were representative of a snarling, dangerous beast which I find difficult to associate with a viola. I wanted the dignity and power of the lion– the majesty, to coin a cliché, and not the predatory beast.

Grafted Scroll

I wasn’t even sure I could carve such a head, so, rather than risk a perfectly good neck-billet on a gamble against my questionable artistic ability, I decided to plan a grafted scroll. I have done this in the past, but this is the first time it was planned. Usually, a scroll graft is a repair, or a major alteration. In some (relatively rare) instances, a maker will perform a scroll graft in the new-making process, so that the new instrument will seem to be old. (No deception involved, it is just that virtually all instruments made before 1850 now have a scroll-graft, as a result of a shift in musical demands, and changing construction styles. Most of the “baroque” instruments were re-worked in this way, so that very few have the original neck.) The scroll-grafts I have done were repairs, up until now.

Knowing that there was a very good chance that my lion-head might not turn out well, I chose a very hard, even-grained maple block for the head, and only enough of the pegbox area to permit a graft. When/if the head turns out acceptably, I have a viola neck billet prepared to graft into the hard maple head, and after that it can be treated as any other scroll/neck for a viola.

Lion-head in the making

This is how the Lion-head looks for the moment. The mane will have to fair into the cheeks of the pegbox–(which haven’t been sawn out, yet, as full-width is easier to hold in the vise.) That will have to happen soon, to finalize the shape of the head and mane.

Oliver Lion-head Scroll (unfinished) — Lion-head scroll from bass side

16.5″ Oliver Viola

The proposed viola is 16.5″ on the body, with a one-piece big-leaf maple back, and Sitka spruce top. The neck is big-leaf maple, except for the hard-rock maple head. (BTW, that hard-rock maple really earns its name– it was really hard to carve). As the viola is one of my own design, it is labelled an “Oliver” viola (my middle name, and that of my Dad and Grand-dad.) I use that name for all the instruments I design myself. Any design I copy from someone else’s work, I label as “Modelled after…”

The other violas I have made to this design (same body as #11 Oliver Viola– see the chronology) have had very good tone…I seriously doubt that the lion-head will affect the tone significantly for better or worse. But some people like a traditional scroll and will not like the lion. Others may find the lion attractive. We’ll see how folks respond. So far, I like it.

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