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Choosing Strings to Improve Your Sound
by Diane Houser, violin/viola and private teacherThere are so many strings on the market and each type of string has its own characteristics, which can dramatically alter your instrument's...
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Why Violins Aren't Viol
by Andy Fein and Joe PetersonAt a glance, violin family and viol family instruments are very similar. For instance, they are both made of wood, both are played by bowing the strings, and both names...
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Ginette Neveu, and the Tour that Never Happened
by Andy Fein and Joseph PetersonGinette Neveu, noted for her power, intensity, and impeccable sonority, was one of the best violinists of the early twentieth century. To put things in perspective, she...
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Joachim and Brahms - It was a love hate sort of thing
By Joe Peterson and Andy FeinIf you were best friends with Brahms, you might hold onto that relationship through all the ups and downs of life. Not so for violin virtuoso Joseph Joachim. A rift between...
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Hot Enough For Ya?
written by Joe Peterson, violinistThere is a common misconception that violinists have to start playing at age 6 or younger to get anywhere. Nope. Not true. We have a guy who bought a cello from us,...
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Customers of Fein Violins: Comments and Reviews
Here's our running blog with comments and reviews from our customers:Andy Fein, Violin & Bow Maker, Fein ViolinsI'm just so happy to have a violin that's COMFORTABLE for me now as well as sounding...
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Voller Brothers Violins. Copies, Fakes, or Frauds?
By Andy Fein & Joe PetersonWorking in a violin shop, we get a lot of phone calls about violins labeled "Antonius Stradivarius". (How many? Two or three each day!) Excited voices on the other end...
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Bruch's Violin Concerto. How to NOT Make Money on a Mega Hit
By Andy Fein and Joe PetersonThe Bruch Violin Concerto in g minor is one of the finest concertos in the violin repertoire - it's been performed by nearly every major soloist since its premiere...from...
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These Are A Few of Our Favorite Strings! Part I, Violins
By Andy Fein and the staff at Fein ViolinsKaplan Violin Strings, Vivo on the left, Amo on the rightStrings can make or break the sound of an instrument. They can help a violin produce a sound that...
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These Are A Few of Our Favorite Strings! Part II, Violas
Following up our previous entry talking about violin strings, here is Our Favorite Strings Episode II The Viola.MacDonald Stradivari viola, 1719Viola tone quality is a bit of a difficult subject...
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Old and Not In the Way, Part I, Guarneri Family Instruments
In our first installment of Old and Not In the Way, let's take look at the string instruments of the Guarneri family. The scroll of the 1697 'Primrose' Andrea Guarneri violaThe Guarneri family gave...
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These Are A Few Of Our Favorite Strings- Part III, Cello
By Andy Fein and Martha McDermottTaste in cello tone varies quite a bit, from bright to very mellow. But I've never had someone ask for cello strings that will make their cello tinny, very bright,...
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Stradivarius At His Peak, 1715
By Andy Fein and Martha McDermottThis year, 2015, marks three hundred years since Antonius Stradivarius hit his peak in craftsmanship and tone quality. That's not just my humble opinion. The period...
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Your (Violin) Neck Used To Be Shorter
By Andy Fein and Martha McDermottHave you ever experienced this phenomena?- You or an orchestra friend gets some new string that's just hit the market, or a shoulder rest, or some other doodad AND it...
View ArticleAn American in Paris
By andy Fein and Martha McDermottNot many pieces of classical music can claim to have inspired a series of ballets, movies, and musicals, but Gershwin's 'An American in Paris' has done all of that!An...
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Violins- New, Used, Vintage, Old, or Antique. What's Best?
By Andy Fein, violin maker, Fein Violins"I have an old violin that's been in my family for generations......" We get a phone call that starts out like that almost every day at the shop. There's a...
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Bach's Six Suites. For Cello? Or Something Else?
By Andy Fein and Martha McDermottBach's 'Six Suites' are the Holy Grail of Unaccompanied Pieces for Cello. They have been transcribed for multiple instruments including violin and viola.Cellists...
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Want to Ruin or Lose an Instrument? Leave It In The Car!
Recently, an instrument valued at $1,000,000 (yes, that's one million US dollars!) was stolen. Well, actually, I'm not sure you could say the instrument was stolen. The car that it was in was stolen....
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Pernambuco or Brazilwood, What's the difference?
If you're an avid fan of stringed instruments and their bows, you might have noticed two names for wood bows- Pernambuco and Brazilwood. So, what's the difference? The answer is- not much. In fact,...
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Wood or Carbon Bows- Which are Better?
Recently, a Facebook friend asked a reasonably simple question, "Which are better, wood or carbon bows?" And the definitive, absolutely right answer is......Read more »
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