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A violin coming from the hands of a single person — referred to as “benchmade” — is a rarity today. Most violins are made in pieces: a specialist carves the scroll, another carves the arching, a third inlays the purfling and so forth. While a nice violin often results, the individual character gets lost in the process. Character is what makes professional violins alive, thrilling, and visually fascinating.
Stephen Perry™ benchmade violins start at $6000.
NOTE: I'm not making very much at this point. Please inquire before counting on getting one directly from me!
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My approach: The state of violin making Most violin making today tends to be somewhat sterile. I suspect the sanded perfection of mass produced violins and the pressure to conform presented by competitions greatly stifles much innovation. I can't tell most modern violins apart, with notable exceptions, of course. Most don't seem to present any kind of real conceptualization; they are just clones of greater or lesser quality of the old violins. I like old violins, but I like to know I'm looking at a piece of wood, too. Most modern fiddles look over worked to my eye. Too much sanding and smoothing and messing about with this and that.
Fast and decent work I like looking at fiddles of the Brescian school. These guys worked with wood and acknowledged it, worked with it. Not that I don't like the Cremona school of imposing perfection on wood, but I'm rather fond of good solid carpentry. I have a difficult time distinguishing art from carpentry anyway. And a violin is simply a tool. A nice tool, but just a tool. I like violins to have texture, to be interesting. Reviews in The Strad like this too, writing of black mastic oozing around the purfling, lovingly pointing out tool marks and so on. Things the same writers would be horrified at in modern violins.
So that's what I try for: good solid carpentry, acknowledging and working with the wood, protecting the work with thin honest varnish, and striving for interesting and effective acoustics. And of course, to make a pretty fiddle.
Wood I've used a number of kinds of wood. For backs, I've used big leaf maple, hard birdseye maple, northern red maple, and nice Bosnian maple. Tops I've used red spruce, sitka, Engelmann, & European. I think I like the traditional woods best for a purely classical model, with red spruce or Engelmann and red maple for fiddles. Although big leaf is a strong second for fiddles. I prefer broad figure over tight figure, and rather like slab cut backs.
Arching, graduation schemes, and acoustics I mostly make Stradivari influenced models. I've been influenced by the Betts and the Milanollo, but I don't get too wedded to exact copies of the arching. Something I find important is to shape the top arch around the F holes in conjunction with cutting the F holes. That way I can get all the details worked out adequately. I use a bunch of different checks on graduation (thicknessing) of the final plates. I like to keep the weight down.
I'm interested in the Brescian work. I'll probably do some Brescian style instruments eventually.
I work a good deal on the acoustics of the instrument once it is set up as well. I'll work with scrapers on metal rods, small burnishers and so on to get the instrument the way I want it.
Finishing I’m constantly working on my finishes. Finishing lots of commercial violins has greatly helped me. With our production work, I used to finish more violins in a year than some makers do in a lifetime. I’m gradually evolving my own soft, supple varnish that dries quickly but remains wonderfully flexible.
I color my violins by mulling pigments in linseed oil, mixing with oil varnish, and brushing on. The varnish I'm using at the moment is mastic, tung oil, and turpentine. I only use the highest quality pigment I can find.
Time & Preferences I'm torn between doing everything else a busy shop needs and making violins. I also have mixed feelings about commissions and have stopped taking them. I'm making what I like and letting the instrument find someone it likes.
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Example:
2004 Stradivari Pattern
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