Chapter I: Part I: The instrument

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Origin of the violin 1
The oldest violins 1
Development and perfecting of the violin 2
Prominent makers of the present day 3
Attempts at improving the violin 4
Search for the discovery of the old Italian makers’ secrets 6
Distinguishing features of the old Italian violins 7
Imitations of the old Italian violins 10
Constituent parts of the violin 10
Function of the soundpost and bass bar 12
Position of the bridge 12
Amount of pressure on the upper table 13
Dimensions of the violin 13
The wood 13
The varnish 14
The strings 14
Strings pure in fifths 15
The string gauge 15
Preservation of the strings 16
The bow 16
Different parts of the bow 17
Resin 18
Violin cases 18
Price of violins 19
Price of violin cases 19
Price of bows 19
Preservation of the instrument 19
Cleaning the hair of the bow 20
Names of the strings, and tuning 20
Compass of the violin 21