Letters to the Editor
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modes and their tuning to prescribed frequality control—were generated: without quencies, is arbitrary. This would be fine actual bowing and often with the strings if the results were truly significant; howdamped. Thereby the significant contriever, violin makers have concluded that bution of the neck was eliminated from such tuning makes no difference Qoseph these data, and the response curves Curtin, in/. Violin Soc. Amer. XII, No.3, p. revealed only an artifact, i.e., a distortion 25,1993; Peter Prier, ibid. XIII, No.3, p. 63, of what remains of the strongest reso1994). The investment of time and effort nators. In fact, when violins are bowed, in free plate studies is a waste considering they exhibit significant neck-body contrialso the lack of theoretical justification. To butions even in the lowest notes. my knowledge, Dr. Jack Fry, a highly Hutchins's account may represent the respected physics professor at the progress of her own Society, but it is University of Wisconsin, was first to hardly informative of the enormous conpoint out that the violin—as an asymmettribution of materials sciences. It is amazric and nonlinear system—is too remote ing that so much intricate work was done from the state of its free parts to be preby the old school of violin researchers dictable. which has little practical relevance. There is a definite need for re-directing the I also have problems with what I susresearch efforts from the study of the pect to be an imprecise view of the violin, components to the understanding of the shared by Hutchins and the acoustics whole violin. This should begin with the community. In a very simplistic way, realization that the very idea of violin described in several textbooks of quality is inseparable from the subjective acoustics, the violin is pictured as an oddprocess of playing the violin. shaped box driven into vibrations solely at the bridge. The most obvious flaw of Our interdisciplinary program for the this model is that, in reality, the box has a description of the Cremona violins at sizable neck-pegbox assembly attached to Texas A&M University has taken the it. Thus, the violin represents a lever with more expedient, holistic approach, which considerable transverse seesaw motion, began with the study of the primary qualwhich is driven at both ends of the vibratity standards of the violin: the "open ing string. (Just how significant the lever tone," the tone color, and the role of nonmotion is can be shown in a simple experharmonic resonances. Materials science iment with a tuning fork on a violin after has emerged as a key to reproducing the removing its A string. Hit the fork and tonal effects unique to good old violins. touch it first to the bridge; then hit the Progress reports of our research were prefork again and touch it to the neck on the sented in 1994 in a dozen lectures for the nut: The latter sound is louder in most American Chemical Society (and MRS in violins!) This is hardly a secret to violin San Francisco) under the title, "Decoding makers and players, who place hi
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