Chapter XIV: Effect of Age on Tone

It has always seemed to me that theories dealing with the effect of age upon the tone of the violin are lacking in conviction, and that most of them are held as mere beliefs, founded upon a larger experience of the old violins than of the new. Many celebrated players have expressed the opinion to me that age alone gives to a violin its mellowness, or richness, of tone; some, indeed, adding that the instrument must also be much played upon. As to this last, it would appear disproved when we consider the few magnificent examples of the old masters’ work which have come down to our times almost untouched, and with the tone of which we have heard no complaint. Manifestly, then, the theory refers to the age of the violin, that is to say, the age of the wood of which it is constructed. To accept this theory would be to say the old violin had no mellowness, or richness, of tone when new, a statement impossible of proof, as no living man has seen or heard it when fresh from the maker’s hands. Documents exist which go to prove that the violins were quite satisfactory from a general tone point, and were much sought after solely on that account, even when their makers were living. But if we take refuge in the hypothesis and say that age of wood is responsible for mellowness of tone, how do we account for the failure, in this respect, of violins constructed from materials one to two hundred years old, and in some cases even older? Everybody knows these fiddles are not one whit better in mellow, or any other kind of tone, than those made from new, but thoroughly seasoned, wood.

It is because of these contradictions between theory and fact that we cannot accept the idea that age is solely responsible for mellowness of tone--even were we not possessed of concrete evidence to the contrary. There is no denying the lack of mellow tone in many new violins. One would hardly expect it in machine-made and spirit-varnished factory fiddles with plates arched by compression between hot iron moulds, and I shall presently indicate the reason why it is so seldom found in handmade instruments of a higher grade; but to say the bulk of new fiddles have little or no mellowness of tone is, after all, only what may be said regarding the bulk of old violins, and brings us no nearer a solution of the problem.

Mellowness, softness, richness, or whatever it may be termed, appears to me as merely one of those elements which, like purity, adds one to the total of desirable features which we look for and expect in a violin of Quality. It may appear reasonable to assume that time might improve one or all of these features, provided they originally existed, or act with more potency on the quality of mellowness; but it is against experience, as well as reason, to say that time is an unfailing creator of them, else mellowness would not be absent in the tone of hundreds--not to say thousands--of hand-made violins constructed prior to 1800. Furthermore, should we accept this theory we must be prepared to believe that the greatest makers of the olden time were not the masters of tone we have always supposed them to be. Again, how does it come about that time has selected the violins of certain old makers, and not always the best workmen either, while the violins of others just as old, or even older, remain untouched by this miraculous, mellow-producing elixir? If it be said that certain conditions in the structure of the instrument are unfavourable to the action of age, is it too much to ask that these be pointed out to us?

This question of age and tone is but one of the many and much-debated aspects of the violin which resolves itself when considered from the standpoint of tone-creation advanced in these pages. In whatever age a violin maker (if he be also a capable tone-builder) may work, he will construct his tonal edifice according to his ideals. He may hold every desirable element as an ideal save mellowness, while another may develop much of that quality and little else. To hold the balance evenly between all the desirable elements of tone is, therefore, no easy task, and we may well marvel at the genius of the great ones who accomplished the feat, and even admire those who succeeded only partially. We can also understand why the copyists, those who work without tone ideals, fail so often in the production of a mellow quality, and, on the occasions when they do produce it, remain in ignorance as to how it was done.

I do not think many will object if I state that it takes a certain length of time for a newly made violin to settle down to its work; that the fullest measure of its tonal beauties become available to the player only after the instrument becomes accustomed to the tension of its strings, and when the varnish is settled and seasoned. All this is purely mechanical. There is no creative force at work. It is simply an adjustment of the various parts to the work for which they are intended, and, after much experience, I find the time required for these beneficent changes to be from three weeks to three months, depending on the season. I have even known instances where they became operative within the space of a few days. After this the violin may be expected to improve slowly, or not to improve at all, for about a year, depending upon the instrument, and the amount of time required to put the final seasoning touch to the varnish, and accomplish the last adjustment of its various parts under the strain of concert pitch and use.

The effect of age on tone is, therefore, practically nil. It does not and never has created it. The instrument may, indeed, be consumed by the rotting of its wood, or fall to dust through the corroding influence of time, or be totally splintered by an accident, or even injured by fire when, without any doubt, its tone will disappear. I have indicated wherein and why time may be of some aid to tone, but the idea that it takes a lengthy period to “bring out the tone” in a finely constructed and properly tone-developed violin, in whatever age its maker lived, I characterise as sheer nonsense.

Let me make this appeal to all lovers or owners of a violin, old or new, or to all who contemplate the purchase of either: Do not allow the inexperienced, self-constituted expert, who usually appears in the guise of a “candid friend,” or one who possesses that type of knowledge which is little and dangerous, to lead you astray on this matter of age and tone. If your violin is a year old you may consider its tone has acquired from age all it is ever likely to receive. If the instrument be heavily built it may be extended to eighteen months. In any case, such improvement as the tone will receive after this will be so small as to be scarcely worth considering. Remember that tone is _not_ created by age, nor has age any power (other than that which I have indicated) to destroy it. In a word, if your fiddle be well built, its tone (whether good or bad) _may_ improve slightly, and it will not deteriorate if the instrument receives ordinary care.