My violin buying experience Part II
Who wants a part II to my violin buying story? Nobody? Well, it’s too late because here is part II.
To recap, on my violin buying journey, I encountered the greatest woe that is the combination of high standards and low budget. I wasn’t happy with any of the four violins I had on trial. In a last ditch effort, I contacted a local luthier at the beginning of July right before he went on summer vacation. Although we wouldn’t have time for home trial, he invited me to his workshop to try out some instruments regardless. He was extremely patient and knowledgable. Most importantly he left me in the front room with over 50 violins to play with, many of which were way over my budget but it didn’t matter. I was in heaven.
I promised to come back 6 weeks later when he is back from vacation. But in the meantime I would need a violin to practice on.
“Do you have violins for rent?” I asked the luthier. ”No I don’t do that anymore. Why? Do you not have a violin?” He asked, slightly surprise.
“No, I’ve been renting since the beginning and I’ve returned my rental. It’s ok. I’ll rent another.”
He chuckled and gave an exaggerated sign, “Wait here.”
A few moments later he returned with a “decent fiddle”, his words, not mine.
“Just take this. You can bring it back when you come back.”
“Oh thank you so much.” I was surprised by his generosity.
“Do you have a bow?”
“Er…No.”
He sighed again. “Wait here.”
A few moments later, he returned with a bow. I took it from his hand gingerly, expecting the next question.
“Do you have a case?”
“Er…No.”
He laughed out loud this time and shook his head. “Wait here.”
A few moments later he reappeared with a violin case and put both the violin and the bow in it.
“Do you have food and shelter for the next month?”
That cracked me up. “Yes sir. I have everything I need now.” I bid him goodbye and left feeling optimistic about finding “the one” in his shop.
6 long weeks went by before I was finally able to return to the shop with my friend. We were both optimistic that this could be it. So imagine our disappointment when nothing sounded outstanding. I started to question my judgement and became frustrated with my inability to make a decision. Everything just sounded fine, as in mediocre. Nothing caught my ear. My friend has the patience of a saint but even she was pushed close to her limit by my indecision.
I asked the luthier if I could take home two of the violins we tried that day.
“I’m not going to send you home with something you don’t like.” Seeing that I was almost crest fallen, he consoled, “I’ll tell you what. Come back in a few weeks. I’ll have more staff coming in. You can borrow the violin and bow for as long as you need. We’ll find you something. I’m sure we’ll find you something.”
It was painfully obvious now that the reason I couldn’t find my dream violin was me, not the lack of choices. It was time for some soul-searching.
It didn’t take long before I realized that I had been looking for faults with each and every instrument. Instead of looking for positive qualities, my default was to scrutinize what was “wrong” with them. Too bright, too nasally, too gruff, too shrill, too unbalanced, too hard to play, too new, too red, too yellow… the list goes on. Nothing is perfect. If I was determined to find faults, there was bound to be something for me to find. If I could not change this perfectionist mentality, I would never be satisfied.
Ahem…Are we still talking about violins here?
A couple of months passed by. In Oct, 5 months after I began my search and 4 appointments later, I returned to the luthier’s with the big gun, aka, my teacher. I needed her guidance and expert opinion. I also needed to hear the potential of a violin, to hear what it could do in the hands of a seasoned professional.
We had fewer choices this time, which was an advantage. Trying out violins is a bit like buying perfumes. After five or six, things start to blend together. It’s actually counterproductive to have too many options. With my teacher’s help we picked out three. The first one is by Bodor, which has a lovely dark, rich sound. There was nothing remarkable but nothing lacking either. The second was an antique French JTL circa 1910s, which my teacher preferred. The sound was mellow and refined. It didn’t project much but since I wasn’t going to be a soloist, projection was not a priority. The third one is pure extravagance - a vintage Gaillard circa 1890s, which was way over my budget. I only agreed to try it because I was buoying on cloud 9 from some recent good news. I thought hey, maybe I deserved a treat! The Gaillard had a “cantabile” quality to it and it sang sweetly in my teacher’s hands. But because of how refined it was, it did not have a lot of tolerance for my beginner’s struggles. It instantly lost its luster when it was placed in my hands. It was such a shame! While I was looking for an instrument for the future, something I can grow into, it needed to meet me half way. Otherwise I’ll be looking at 10 years of frustration before I can do the violin justice.
In the end I chose the French. It may or may not have something to do with me being a francophile… Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce Lady Amber. She sounds as gorgeous as she looks.
Meet “Lady Amber”, my pride and joy.
