Fun_People Archive
25 Oct
Scroll for 5 string fiddle

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From: Peter Langston <psl>
Date: Fri, 25 Oct 96 09:29:29 -0700
To: Fun_People
Subject: Scroll for 5 string fiddle

Forwarded-by: ErikThor@aol.com
Frowarded-by: LewHolt@AOL.COM (Lew Holt)

 I wrote to a friend recently that I was making a scroll for a five string
 fiddle (for another friend) and he wrote back:  (Thought I would share it
 with you - since you know of my interest in old violins.)

"Your mention of starting a scroll reminds me of a bit of musical trivia.
Gerhard Folkstein was a Bavarian violin maker in the 16th century.  Early
in his career he produced many violins, all of indifferent quality.
Although his violins were mediocre, he had the gift of designing the most
marvelous scrolls; ornate, original and truly beautiful.  Violin makers all
over Europe began to buy his scrolls for their products, and the ownership
of a Folkstein scrolled violin became a valuable asset.  They did have one
flaw.  No matter how he made them, violins with his scrolls made middle C
sound dull.  That one note did not resonate, but all the other notes did.
As long as the artist stayed off middle C, songs he played transcended the
majesty of the original music.  Folkstein became known as the originator of
the Dead C Scrolls."

© 1996 Peter Langston