DESIGN PRINCIPLES OF THE VIELLE (medieval fiddle)

We know how craftsmen of former ages used geometry from the evidence of various practical handbooks and treatises, one of which, written by Henri Arnaud de Zwolle in the 15 th century, is partly devoted to the lute. 1 Detailed study of these documents bears witness to the ancient art of drawing with ruler and compass. Long nurtured by the oral traditions of craftsmanship, the skill fell into disuse during the 17 th century. To reveal these now vanished processes, it is sufficient to compare the measurements of an instrument's different dimensions. 2 We should remember, however, that such relations are legion and their limits often ill-defined. Consequently, interpreting them is a much more complex business than might be supposed from the primary evidence of their analysis. Too much data can conceal the bigger picture; a selection must be made, informed by familiarity with the history of science, technology and the arts. To complicate matters further, the notions of measurement and geometry are not the same now as they were in the Renaissance. An objective account of the techniques for ruler-and-compass drawing used in those bygone days therefore requires some prior explanation. Once these precautions have been taken, the instruments' dimensions are like a forgotten alphabet whose surprising elegance questions the whole idea of progress in instrument-making. The only plan of a musical instrument to have survived from the 15 th century, we owe this drawing of a lute, together with a description of its measurements and the principles for building it, to the astronomer Henri Arnaud de Zwolle. It contains information essential to an understanding of all instrument-making until the 17 th century.

Until recently the geometrical and proportional rules employed by Renaissance musical instrument makers have been considered lost. Numerous attempts have been made since the 1790s to rediscover the design process by which stringed instruments were formed but until recently no convincing scheme has come to light, leading some recent commentators to argue against the existence of any rules for design. This paper provides a general introduction to the principals behind English viol construction in the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods, and explains how Pythagorean principals of harmony can be directly applied to render the shapes of these musical instruments. The systems shown in this primer have been repeatedly tested successfully over a broad range of English viols by several makers, and allows us to understand the rationale of these early makers for the first time since the 1660s. *PLEASE NOTE: This paper represents work in progress. Subsequent to its publication, the author has made substantial developments in his research. Whilst this does not reflect the manner in which instrument makers engaged in the design process, it represents a set of valid observations about the intellectual process behind the design. In time, an updated study will be put forward. If you have a question relating to the content of this paper, or an enquiry about an instrument you either have or are looking for, please email me at: b e n j a m i n . h e b b e r t @ m u s i c . o x . a c . u k

Informazione Organistica, 2010

Two dimensions in a harpsichord which define the essential shape are the width and length of the instrument.16th-century Venetian harpsichord makers occasionally left construction marks on the baseboards of their instruments, which show us some of their design procedure. The width of the keyboard was measured in Venetian inches (1" = 28.98 mm) and allowance made for keyblocks either side. Thus, the case width was determined from these two components, which occasionally varied so that instruments by the same maker with the same compass sometimes had different widths. Lines for the f strings were marked on the baseboard, possibly using the jackslide intended for the instrument. From these string lines the bridge position was found and the bentside curve determined. Whereas the organ maker is obliged by the Laws of Physics to give pipes a length in proportion to their pitch, the Venetian harpsichord maker designed the bass string at F to be almost a foot shorter than its full length. The length of the instrument has been found to be related to the theoretical length of the F string, which was previously unknown. In six Venetian harpsichords the theoretical F length was used to define the length of the baseboard, either from the tail to the front edge of the baseboard, or, in shorter (higher-pitched) instruments to the front edge of the wrestplank. This procedure gave the theoretical F string length a significant, but symbolic position in the design. Two of the oldest harpsichords from 1531 and 1538 by Alessandro Trasuntini, who was both organ builder and harpsichord maker, demonstrate this procedure. Case width and case length were not related to each other by a proportional (or modular) procedure, rather each dimension was determined by the particular method described. Thus, case design was determined by a mixture of practical and symbolic design procedures, but which also respected the ancient theoretical teaching that string lengths would be proportional to pitch.

One-dimensional experimental modal analysis of an unvarnished trapezoidal violin built after the descriptions of F. Savart and an anonymous trapezoidal violin on display in the Music Instrument Museum of Brussels is described. Ten prominent modes were found and described. A mode that may potentially play a role of the “tonal barometer” of the instrument is pointed out. Mode shapes are symmetric and of high amplitude due to the construction of the instrument. Subjective evaluation of sound revealed no big differences between the trapezoidal instrument and a normal violins.

One-dimensional experimental modal analysis of an unvarnished trapezoidal violin built after the description of F. Savart and an anonymous trapezoidal violin on display in the Music Instrument Museum of Brussels is described. The analysis has revealed ten prominent modes. A mode that may potentially play a role of the "tonal barometer" of the instrument is pointed out. The mode shapes are symmetric and of high amplitude, due to the construction of the instrument. Subjective evaluation of the sound quality demonstrated no pronounced difference between the trapezoidal violin and normal violin.

Matière et musique: the Cluny encounter: …, 2000

It is generally believed that historical stringed keyboard instruments were constructed by transferring their pre-determined shape and dimensions from a master reference design of some sort. This transfer would have had to be accomplished by a measurement process, or, in general, using some technique that compared two dimensions (messen heist vergleichen). If this approach was indeed used we are forced to conclude that: (1) some method existed for developing the original reference design; (2) a mechanism was needed for recording and storing the reference design; and (3) the transfer of dimensions could be accomplished with adequate and repeatable accuracy. The conventional organological solution is that instrument makers recorded their designs, and physically transferred them to an instrument under construction, using reference "sticks", or diapasons. However this leaves the most important question unanswered, viz. how was the original design developed? We propose that a completely different approach was used, solving all three aspects of instrument design and construction in a simple pragmatic method of working. In particular, there is extensive evidence for the ubiquitous use of constructive proportional geometry, not only to develop the original design in accordance with acoustical, practical and aesthetic requirements, but also to record, retrieve and transfer this to an instrument under construction. In this way it is possible to dispense altogether with measurement in the process of achieving a repeatable, and highly self-consistent and accurate case design, with the exception of a single reference dimension from which the entire case design can be derived. Case dimensions have been examined from the earliest extant keyboard instruments to mid-nineteenth century pianos and found to be consistent with the proposed method of working. This relies only on simple and fundamental practical knowledge that was well-known, and commonly employed in related crafts. This article discusses the specific case layout schemes for five-octave Viennese grand pianos from 1780 to about 1800, and illustrates these by presenting reconstructions of two different methods used by J.A Stein.

Springer Handbook of Systematic Musicology, 2018

The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 2020

Because violins are traditionally hand-crafted using wood, each one is unique. This makes the design of repeatable experiments studying some aspects of its dynamic behavior unfeasible. To tackle this problem, an adjustable finite element (FE) model of a violin soundbox using the geometry and behavior of the "Titian" Stradivari was developed in this paper. The model is parametric, so its design and material properties can be varied for before/after comparisons in both the frequency and time domains. Systematic simulations revealed that f-holes set lower in the top, as seen in some Stradivari violins (e.g., Hellier, Cremonese), raise the frequency of the Hill (a feature in the bridge mobility); conversely, the higher set f-holes seen in some Guarneri violins (e.g., Principe Doria) reduces such frequency. This agrees with the widespread belief that the high-frequency response of Stradivari violins is stronger than Guarneri violins. Changes in the response of the system were quantified once each part of the design was added, calling attention to the influence of the blocks on the behavior of signature modes, especially in the frequency and shape of B þ 1. A text file of the FE model is available in supplemental materials; it runs in ANSYS (free version), for which guides are included. V

2016

Professional flute-players recently asked a Parisian flute maker to conceive a period Boehm flute with an open key system, similar to the one inaugurated in 1830. Jointly conducted by acousticians, musicologists and flute makers, the objective of the study is to conceive such a nineteenth century flute. In order to achieve this, our aim is to understand the historical and musical context of flute manufacture, the playing techniques developed by musicians, the acoustic responses of the instrument and the characteristics of the key mechanism. We will be using an interdisciplinary approach, combining musicology and acoustic studies. The former will be using historical documents and academic articles in order to establish a coherent overview of the flute making industry in France in nineteenth century; the latter will be using geometrical surveys, models of admittance and admittance measurements in order to determine the acoustic characteristics of the nineteenth century flute, to ident...