How To Clean Outside Nylon Violin Case

Frequently asked questions regarding the proper care and handling of violins

On this page we seek to address frequently asked questions regarding the proper intendance and handling of your violin, the violin strings and other general issues. Most of the advice for cleaning and changing violin strings, installing fine tuners to your violin or cello and straightening the bridge is applicable to other stringed instruments equally well.

Content overview:

How to store a violin
How to make clean a violin
How to have care of the violin'southward varnish
When to restring the instrument
How to put on or change violin strings
How to choose the right violin strings
How to tune a violin
What to do about strong or slipping pegs
How to straighten and position the violin span
When to replace the violin bridge
How to install fine tuners
How to take care of the fingerboard
How to meliorate the violin'due south sound

How to store a violin

Every bit a rule, the safest identify to proceed a violin is in its violin case. The temperature of the room should exist constant and the humidity moderate. Having a few potted plants in the room volition ensure that in that location is enough humidity, provided that they are regularly watered. During the heating flavor it may be advisable to employ a "Dampit" to forestall harm to the gluing or, fifty-fifty worse, cracks in the wood. Equally a rule, smaller instruments such equally violins and violas are less sensitive to unfavourable fluctuations in temperature and humidity than larger instruments, especially cellos. A violin should be kept in a identify free of drafts and away from direct sunlight. Make certain that the violin example is neither "in the style" where information technology can become knocked over in passing, nor kept on a shelf or in a closet where it can autumn down when other items are retrieved. Although a corner would appear to be an ideal spot to keep a stringed instrument out of damage'south way, ane must exercise caution: the walls may be very cold, particularly in old buildings. The violin would then be exposed to warm, room-temperature air on one side and a cold wall on the other - a dangerous combination that could cause cracks. When placing the violin in its violin example, make certain that no abrupt or pointed objects can damage the varnish. Most cases come with a soft blanket to spread over the top, neck and scroll of the violin before the case is closed. This blanket protects the violin from being scratched past bows stored in the cover. If your violin case is not equipped with a coating or if the stringed musical instrument does not fit snugly, information technology is a good idea to wrap the frog of the violin bow in a large, thin cloth such as a handkerchief, because the edges of the frog pose the greatest risk to violin varnish. However, information technology is better to encompass the instrument completely to prevent information technology from coming into contact with rosin from the bow (encounter also the section on how to clean a violin). Many musicians even wrap their stringed instruments in silk or some similar material to give them better protection, a snugger fit and softer cushioning. Caution: the violin should never be put under force per unit area or forced into its case!
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How to clean a violin

All violins demand to be cleaned regularly, not only ones on display or those that are kept out of their violin cases and so that they are always readily available. The most dangerous kind of crud is rosin grit, which accumulates on the face each fourth dimension a violin is played and can impairment the varnish if information technology is not wiped away later each playing session. Rosin grit should always exist wiped off the strings and fingerboard equally well.For this purpose, it is best to use a soft cloth. However, avoid using the same cloth to make clean the residue of the body, equally any crude flakes of rosin that may be sticking to the cloth could scratch the varnish, and a fine layer of rosin grit from the textile would be distributed all over the musical instrument, eventually dulling the varnish. A well-equipped violin case should ever incorporate 2 cloths: ane for wiping rosin abroad from affected areas and 1 for cleaning the balance of the violin. Pure alcohol can be used to remove more than stubborn rosin build-upward on strings, although farthermost caution must be taken. Put a few drops of the booze on a make clean cloth and rub the strings. Since alcohol damages the violin's varnish, nevertheless, it is very important to use a bare minimum so that zilch drips onto the instrument. This technique can too exist used to clean the fingerboard, which is usually not varnished (see below). Other kinds of dirt such equally grease are best avoided altogether. Washing one's hands before playing is not only a good habit, only an of import means of maintaining the value of your stringed instrument. If there are marks that can not be completely removed by gently wiping with a cloth, try using violin cleaning products, which are available from violin makers and music shops. In extreme cases, it is best to put the instrument in the capable hands of a professional luthier who is trained to know what product and the proper amount to apply in every situation. Another office of the violin that will need cleaning from time to time is the inside of the trunk. Dust collects in all violins, not merely in those that have been hidden away in attics. The best way to remove dust is to sprinkle some household rice through the soundholes and gently just thoroughly roll them around inside. Grains of rice selection up dust very well, and they gently scrub the inside of the top, back and ribs.
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How to take intendance of the violin'due south varnish

The most important mode to accept care of the varnish of a violin was already discussed under "How to clean a violin": carefully wipe off the rosin dust every time afterwards playing. This piddling play a joke on is more than effective than all of the other broader measures which were ultimately only created to start the damage which results from by failing to "dust off" the strings. Some other way to take care of the varnish is to handle the instrument only past the neck so as to protect it from the sweat on your hands. Fifty-fifty the cleanest hands leave behind traces of sweat and acidic fat compounds; in a best-case scenario, they make the varnish wearisome, and in a worse case they gradually erode it. Luthiers and specialist shops sell special polishes and care products that remove build-ups which are astringent or have developed over a longer period. If a stringed instrument requires serious attention, the best thing is to consult a luthier, who has feel in selecting, dosing and applying the proper cleaning products.
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When to restring the instrument

Selecting the right time to change one or more violin strings depends on as well many factors for us to be able to make a general statement. Unlike kinds of violin strings — gut, synthetic cadre, steel core — invariably have different life spans which can vary non but from brand to brand but fifty-fifty from string to cord. The demands that can be placed on a cord depend on the intensity with which you play and amount of daily practice fourth dimension, the idiosyncrasies of each musician'south personal technique and the instrument's structural features. Oft a violin string to wear out prematurely or pause if the ridges in the span and nut are also deep or too angled. Many practiced musicians, yet, realize early on when a string has passed its prime number considering the audio and response are no longer as good equally they should exist. Visible impairment such as unravelling can occur well before a violin string tears and should be taken every bit the occasion to change the violin cord in question.
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How to put on or modify violin strings

Irresolute a single violin string is very elementary: if the sometime string is still wound on the peg, loosen it by turning the peg until the end of the cord slips out of the small-scale drilled hole, and then release the other end at the tailpiece. Please note that you should apply your other hand to go on the string from dangling loosely and so that it does not scratch the stringed instrument. Once the violin string has been loosened, take a critical look at the grooves in the upper nut and bridge. If they take become too deep or have acute angles where the strings lay, please consult with a luthier; the grooves may need to exist adjusted. You lot can make the tuning process easier and offset the tensions that can cause strings to break past rubbing a bit of graphite into the grooves to lubricate them: this lowers resistance and lets the strings motility more smoothly. Use the atomic number 82 of a soft pencil.

To put the new violin cord in place, begin by threading the lower end (which has a brawl or loop) into the tailpiece or fine tuner. Now continue gentle pressure on the lower finish and so that it does non sideslip out of place; use your other hand to thread the upper end into the peg hole, making sure that you have pushed the violin cord all the style few and a few millimetres are visible on the other side of the peg hole. And so wind the string by turning the peg towards the ringlet, gently pushing the peg deeper into the peg box as you become. Each violin string should be wound in such a way that it is tightly and closely wrapped. Criss-crossing the string on the peg tin can be helpful in keeping the string from slipping out of the peg hole too hands. Otherwise, however, the violin string should be wound so that it lies apartment along the peg, since points of heightened pressure can brand a string pause more than easily.

Peg holes that are located too deep in the peg box can also squeeze the string between the peg and peg box, and the result will be another weak signal. Violin strings which are likewise long can put pressure on the side wall of the peg box, and this too may cause them to tear. If this is the case, unwind the cord and employ a string trimmer to cut it to the advisable length. As soon as most of the violin string has been wrapped around the peg, care must be taken to ensure that the string is positioned properly. As the tension increases, it has to be on acme of and not next to the appropriate groove on the span and the nut; otherwise it could damage them. Particularly sparse violin strings (especially the East cord on the violin) should have a small protector placed on the spot where they residual on the span to prevent them from cutting too deeply into the wood. When you supersede a violin string, whatsoever fine tuners should kickoff be unscrewed every bit much as possible. Afterwards, once yous have brought the string up to pitch at the peg, you will accept enough room to manoeuvre the fine tuner. If multiple violin strings or the entire ready needs to be replaced, it is very important that you lot go along ane at a time – in other words, do not loosen all of the strings at once, only replace each individually. This keeps the bridge from falling over: the bridge is non mounted onto the trunk of the instrument, simply held in identify past the pressure of the strings. When irresolute multiple violin strings, you should also brand sure that the span is still in its correct position and adapt it if necessary (come across below). To restring an unabridged violin string gear up, please follow the process described to a higher place for individual violin strings - making certain yous modify 1 string after another and never remove more than one violin string at the time.
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How to cull the right violin strings

Just 2 generations agone, the pick of violin strings was a simple thing: serious violinists played on gut strings, while steel strings were used on lesser instruments. Today the state of affairs has completely changed. Since the 1920s, the quality of steel strings has continuously improved thanks to better manufacturing techniques. In add-on, violin strings with a synthetic core have get a real alternative to gut strings. The sound produced past then-called "nylon strings" is practically as good as that of gut strings, which mainly observe apply today in historical performances on authentic menses instruments. Synthetic violin strings also have sure advantages: they fit perfectly on well-nigh whatever stringed instrument, stay in tune meliorate and are generally stronger and more durable than gut strings. Corilon violins use Pirastro Tonica or Pirastro Evah Pirazzi on all instruments in their online catalogue. But Thomastik Dominant or Larsen Tzigane are also quite recommendable. Contemporary musicians choose violin strings that all-time lucifer their musical preferences, their playing technique and especially their instrument. The all-time way to find the most suitable strings is to seek professional advice, for instance from an instructor or violin maker, and to try out diverse kinds and brands. Many violinists apply a combination of different brands. Violin strings can be purchased both individually or as a string set.
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How to tune a violin

The starting indicate when tuning whatsoever stringed instrument is concert pitch a', which, aside from a few regional preferences and traditions, is the universally accepted standard at 440 Hz. Using a tuning fork or a CD from a violin method book, showtime tune the a' string. The best way to melody the other strings is to have a adept ear. Learning to hear when the g – d – a' and e'' notes are tuned in intervals of perfect fifths is an important exercise that should not be underestimated. Many websites and smartphones feature tuning programs of variable quality. These are useful aids, but they can non replace tuning in fifths.Many violins have merely one fine tuner on the tailpiece. Tuning such violins requires more than practice because pegs are much harder to adjust than the lever-operated mechanism of a fine tuner.
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What to practise nigh strong or slipping pegs

Although violin pegs look deceptively simple, their concrete machinery is complex because information technology must fulfil ii contradictory requirements: on the ane hand, pegs must move easily so that the violin can exist finely tuned; on the other hand, they should hold the strings firmly in place to that information technology stays in tune for as long as possible, regardless of changes in temperature or whether the musical instrument is moved from 1 location to some other. No peg can maintain this balance over time without requiring some care. Bug tend to occur at the kickoff and end of the heating season, when temperature changes cause the wood of the pegs to contract or expand. Peg lubricant helps stiff pegs turn more than smoothly and tin can be purchased from a violin maker or music shop. Peg chalk solves the opposite trouble and prevents slippage. Pegs can be prevented from sliding out when new violin strings are put on: guide the string so that it lies very close to the edge of the peg box as y'all wind it. Whatsoever the violin case may exist, the pegs must always fit well. Violins should be looked over regularly by a luthier, who will then bank check the status of the pegs.

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How to straighten and position the violin bridge

Many violin bridges yield to the increasing tension of the strings from tuning and lean somewhat towards the fingerboard, a situation which tin be manually corrected by applying fifty-fifty pressure with both thumbs.However, straightening or adjusting the violin bridge correctly can involve a certain risk, since whatsoever bridge collapse during adjusting it incorrectly tin can damage the instrument's table. It must also exist said that many musicians are often too timid to correct the bridge position themselves or put a violin bridge back in identify if it has fallen.

If the violin bridge has fallen over, take a brief look through the audio hole to brand sure that the sound post is even so standing as well. If it is, you can put your violin bridge into position. If the sound post has fallen, however, you lot must take your instrument to a luthier. If the sound post is nonetheless continuing, the violin bridge is centred betwixt the notches of the sound holes, ideally at a perpendicular bending to the summit of the violin. It is then anchored in this position gradually by the strings beingness slowly tightened. Every bit the violin strings gradually reach the proper pitch, check repeatedly from higher up and from the side to exist sure that the violin bridge is yet in the right position and full the height of the bridge backwards according to our video instructions on how to straighten a violin span. Often musicians become ahead and identify their bridge at a slight angle towards the tailpiece so the position corrects itself while tightening the strings. This approach calls for a sensitive touch and good cognition of your own instrument. Since the position of the bridge has a major impact on the instrument's sound, adjusting the span tin can exist used to improve the audio as well (see beneath).
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Video instructions: how to correctly straighten your bridge

When to replace the violin bridge

There are two things which will allow you lot to see when the time has come for a violin bridge to be replaced: the depth of the ridges on which the strings rest, and the fact that the bridge has warped towards i side, unremarkably towards the fingerboard. Both of these signs of use affect the audio and ability to play the stringed musical instrument, which means that imperfections in the audio may also exist a sign that a new violin bridge is necessary. Even though it is easy to order violin bridge blanks on the Internet nowadays, adjusting a bridge to the musical instrument is a task that requires extensive experience and preparation. This should be left to a violin shop or luthier and not attempted at home.
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Video: violin maker fitting the violin bridge

How to install fine tuners

To install new fine tuners on your instrument, y'all simply need a bit of technical knowledge and a delicate touch on. First, remove the screw and the nut from the fine tuner. Then, loosen the cord in question until the ball finish tin can be removed from the tailpiece. Make certain the string is only loosened as much as is necessary; the peak of the body should not be scratched. Now the new fine tuner can be installed into the opening from below where the string was before; later on that, put the spiral and the nut in place again, hook the ball into the holder on the fine tuner, and tune the cord. When dealing with thicker strings, it may be helpful to go along the slot held open up carefully using a knife or a similar tool. After all of the fine tuners take been installed, the violin should be re-tuned with the tuning pegs so that the tuning spiral of the fine tuners can remain extended as far out equally possible. Depending on the individual distance between the body and the tailpiece, the mechanism of the fine tuner tin can quickly reach the top of the violin and cause unnecessary scratches to the varnish. If at that place are buzzing or rattling sounds afterward you have installed the fine tuners, you may need to tighten the nut. I interesting alternative to fine tuners on the tailpiece is installing special Wittner pegs with cocky-inhibiting gear mechanisms; hither, the tuners are located inside the pegs deep in the holes of the pegbox, and they arrive possible to fine tune without creating undue wear on the pegs. Since this approach ways the strings are hooked directly into the tailpiece, their resonant length beneath the bridge increases, which often has a positive effect on the violin's sound. There are as well fine tuners which have a claw for strings with looped ends instead of brawl ends, and they yield similar results. They are shorter, which means the interval between the bridge and the tailpiece is larger than it is with the strings that have a ball end.
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How to take care of the fingerboard

As is the example with the rest of the stringed instrument, regularly cleaning off the rosin dust every time afterward you lot play is the simplest, best and most effective long-term style of taking care of the fingerboard. Here you lot need zippo more a soft microfiber material (or something similar) which can also exist used to clean the strings and fingerboard.Older or more than persistent crud on unvarnished fingerboards can certainly exist removed by applying a very modest amount of rubbing alcohol or ethyl alcohol. As is the example in cleaning the violin strings, however, dandy caution must be exercised here to make certain that no booze any comes in contact with the summit, where information technology could harm the varnish. Please be very careful if the fingerboard has inlays; if in dubiety, consult with a luthier starting time. The colour of hardwood fingerboards with black varnish can be affected by the apply of alcohol, although this is easily corrected and is a purely aesthetic problem. After cleaning, care for the fingerboard by lightly rubbing it with a fabric on which you take placed a few drops of oil; equally a rule, this will restore a beautiful sheen likewise. Y'all can use any kind of vegetable oil that is very pure, such as a good-quality linseed oil or olive oil. Generally you will not even need to loosen the strings when yous do this. If grooves have formed on the fingerboard later on long and intense utilize, this certainly does not mean that the instrument has to undergo the complicated process of replacing the fingerboard. A luthier with the correct tools can level a adept fingerboard many times without affecting the playability or sound of the violin. This is exactly how the specialist luthiers in our atelier handle the historic stringed instruments which may still characteristic fingerboards that have survived for generations. Re-levelling the fingerboard is a perfect solution which saves the musical instrument the risks of undergoing such all-encompassing modification.
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How to ameliorate the violin's sound

Optimising the sound of a violin or of any stringed instrument non merely calls for expertise and experience, but for patience in finding the right settings by deliberate trial and mistake. Even professionally prepare-up instruments may benefit from readjustment if they practice not adequately run across the demands of an individual actor's technique or satisfy their new owner's audio-visual expectations. The most important measures for improving the audio include repositioning the sound post and violin span, which can accept a deliberate effect on certain frequency ranges. If yous are extremely cautious, y'all can certainly try your hand at adjusting the violin bridge yourself, but moving the audio post is clearly a job for a professionally luthier. This is likewise the case when information technology comes to repositioning the bass bar, another modification that can be very effective but is very technically enervating. Many times, however, musicians who have chosen their violin advisedly and institute the right instrument can often accomplish the desired effects with far simpler methods. For case, using different rosin non only alters the responsiveness of the violin, but its audio as well. Selecting different strings tin can open entirely new aspects of an instrument's voice. Cellists in item take a corking deal of experience in blending sets of strings, and they develop a certain virtuosity in finding just the correct A string. Last just not least, in that location is great potential for change in a stringed musical instrument's nearly important "accessory": the violin bow. Many musicians invest a great deal of time looking for a better violin until they realize that a different bow gives them new and previously unexplored musical options in their playing.
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Source: https://www.corilon.com/us/library/practical-advice/the-violin-practical-tips-on-care-and-maintenance

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