Stephen Fine Posted July 25, 2014 Report Share Posted July 25, 2014 I've been shopping for a year or so looking for a Baroque viola, and I finally stumbled onto one that I like. The thing is an enormous tenor (17.75"!), but the short neck makes it easily playable. It came to me from the shop of Gabriela Guadalajara by a luthier named Christopher Bollman working out of Brooklyn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rue Posted July 25, 2014 Report Share Posted July 25, 2014 Absolutely awesome alliteration... ...and congrats! That is a big viola ...hope you have long arms... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deans Posted July 25, 2014 Report Share Posted July 25, 2014 Good looking instrument. Reminds of the work of Michael Blaurock who produces very similar baroque instruments. In fact at first glance I thought this was the copy of the A. Guarneri tenor he made a while back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Fine Posted July 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 26, 2014 My wingspan is nothing special. But Baroque performance technique allows for the arm to rest on the chest a good bit. So far, practice has been comfortable. I haven't tried anything too hard yet. Michael Blaurock has a nice website! Pretty violas too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeyerFittings Posted July 26, 2014 Report Share Posted July 26, 2014 Mr Bollman contacted me a few years ago and asked me to recreate the pegs on the Bros. Amati viola in the Ashmolean. I was always curious about the era and design of those pegs going back to when I first saw them in Oxford, so I gladly took on the project. He sent me detailed photos and measurements and the pegs were copied using mountain mahogany instead of boxwood. As usual I am not qualified to comment on the finer aspects of viola construction but if the instrument follows the spirit and thoroughness of the maker, who was a pleasure to work with, you have made a great purchase. Mr Bollman and Ms. Guadalajara are both class acts. Ms. Guadalajara worked for years with William Monical and you can't get much better training in the Baroque than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berl Mendenhall Posted July 26, 2014 Report Share Posted July 26, 2014 Beautiful instrument. Very tasteful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Fine Posted July 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2014 Mr Bollman contacted me a few years ago and asked me to recreate the pegs on the Bros. Amati viola in the Ashmolean. I was always curious about the era and design of those pegs going back to when I first saw them in Oxford, so I gladly took on the project. He sent me detailed photos and measurements and the pegs were copied using mountain mahogany instead of boxwood. As usual I am not qualified to comment on the finer aspects of viola construction but if the instrument follows the spirit and thoroughness of the maker, who was a pleasure to work with, you have made a great purchase. Mr Bollman and Ms. Guadalajara are both class acts. Ms. Guadalajara worked for years with William Monical and you can't get much better training in the Baroque than that. Hey, cool! This is that viola. Thanks for the pegs, they're great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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