The Liutai

The violin is a thin, hollow wooden box with a long neck, a body shaped like a figure eight, and a capacity for more subtlety of expression than any other orchestral instrument. It was perfected in Italy in the 17th and 18th centuries by craftsmen of the Amati, Stradivari and Guarneri families. Others have been trying to duplicate their masterpieces of workmanship ever since.

Last week in Genoa some 2,000 visitors passed through the austere Villa Doria, examining and occasionally touching 189 graceful and lustrous stringed instruments, including one cello, 16 violas, 171 violins. The oldest was a small, ornamented Gasparo da Salo, dated 1609; the most famous was Paganini's own powerful Guarneri del Gesu, given to him (by a wealthy Leghorn merchant) on the condition that nobody else would ever perform on it; the most prevalent were modern models patterned closely after Stradivari designs. Because of their popularity among wealthy foreign fiddlers, there were no Strads at all available for the exhibit.

Secret Formulas. Most experts agree that there are plenty of modern fiddles every bit as fine as the finest Strad. Says one liutaio (literally, lutemaker): "I cannot tell you the names of my clients because they always claim to be playing a Stradivarius." In Italy alone there are some 120 liutai. amateur and pro, who turn out from three to six instruments a year and sell them for as much as $600 each.* Among the best known are the four Bisiach brothers of Milan and Flo ence, Rome's Politi family, Milan's Luigi Ornati and Ferdinando Garimberti.

Like their forebears', the violinmakers' first problem is finding the right wood. Some of it comes from the Italian Tyrol, some from the beams of 16th century buildings--fir for resonant belly and side walls, hard maple for back, neck and scroll. It is seasoned for 25 to 300 years. Testing for quality, the fathers twisted and tapped the wood as they worked it; their sons now listen with electronic ears and compute its acoustical properties. The instrument is put together with glue--also mixed for its resonant qualities--and at that point it is as mechanically perfect as it will ever be. But it will only last a few years unless protected by varnish--and the varnish, despite its unique softness and nonpenetrating qualities, destroys some resonance. Almost all liutai have secret varnish formulas.

No Telling. The U.S., too, has its liutai. Standouts: Wisconsin's Carl Beck er, Philadelphia's William Moennig & Son, Manhattan's Simone Sacconi. It also has such well-grounded amateurs as New York's Norman Pickering, who makes stringed instruments when he is not developing fine components for high-fidelity machines. By use of electronic devices, he has isolated dozens of "resonance systems" which give violins their unique sound. To work out his finished instruments' initial "tightness" of tone, he uses a mechanical generator that vibrates the bridge. But most professionals simply get students to play the fiddles until limber. Some experts believe it is not the sheer age of a fiddle so much as continual playing that mellows it.

The best modern violins have all the qualities of a fine Strad: instant response, no dead spots in the range from bottom to top, no perceptible difference in quality from string to string, a potentially sweet, powerful tone, and visual beauty. Despite all this, fiddlers often will not like the finished instruments, or if they do, they may not play them in public. Explained

Russia's David Oistrakh to William Moennig Jr. during his U.S. visit: "I'd love to play one of your violins in my concerts, but I must use a Strad. Otherwise, if I made a mistake, people would blame it on the instrument."

-There are probably 600 Strads still functioning. They bring up to $65,000 each; the rarer Guarneri can bring as much.

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