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Violoncello da Spalla Podcast

Daniela Gaidano & A. Visintini
Violoncello da Spalla  Podcast
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  • Breaking news! Violoncello da Spalla case by Bogaro & Clemente!
    Finally! We have a top quality Italian case for the Violoncello da Spalla, made by Bogaro & Clemente! And it’s also very affordable, I don’t know the exact price of this one, that has a beautiful graphic and finish, but it will be around half the price of an a-case. The huge advantages of this case are very stable lockers and how handlers, a gasket to make it waterproof, and the lid that closes perfectly, you can open and close it with one hand. It is beautiful, cares for in all details, really a luxury Italian case.For more informations write to [email protected] from our workshop:This week we met with Chuck Hering, the men who invented Pegheds, the best geared pegs on the market. During a wonderful dinner we got to know each other better and he shared with us parts of his story. We had a very pleasant time together.Between the current offer of geared pegs on the market, we chose Pegheds not only because they are the first and only original ones, but also because they have strong steel gears that are designed to last the life of the instrument. In case something goes wrong, they have lifelong guarantee. They have beautiful wooden handles and they work really smoothly. I particularly like the fact that their design allows to have the brake working softer or a bit harder by gently pushing or pulling it while twisting, exactly like normal pegs. They have a beautiful feeling of smoothly working pegs, that is what they are, and not some plastic artifact or cheat. I really love them, and I will install them in my next modern instrument that will be completed by the end of the month, and presented in the next Cremona Mondomusica trade show, at the end of September. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit violoncellodaspalla.substack.com/subscribe
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  • How it’s made: part 13 - nailing the neck!
    Sorry, I played a bit with silly app sound effects. 😅I didn’t do that fancy thing, hammering a red-hot nail into the neck, and I will tell you why.My nails are hand-forged by Adelheid Snell, a Dutch lady blacksmith. I am grateful for including a piece of art by someone else in my instrument.It’s a bit difficult to write in a foreign language about someone you never met in person and still convey the emotions of your virtual acquaintance, so to avoid the risk of a dull, affected tone, I decided to veer towards a dry list of the things about this person that made me want to relate with her. I contacted her on Instagram, hoping she would want to be part of my projects.At the time, I was making an instrument for the first Women Luthiers exhibition, which was to be held in Atlanta, Washington and Burlington. When my eyes fell on the profile of a blacksmith woman on Instagram, I got excited and got in touch with her. Her Instagram profile is @judastojudith * She respects nature and deeply admires it, both in little details and in huge manifestations* Forging her tools gives her a feeling of deep connection with nature and the gods* She can see the word in the beauty of a piece of birch bark, enough to pick it up, bring it home and take and share pictures. I love doing the same with bark covered with colourful lichens in the autumn* She is sensitive about colours and uses them to convey her feelings* You can tell that she loves research, values preservation of old things, and knows early techniques and designs.She immediately understood what I was asking her; she had already made a few nails in the past for a viola da gamba maker. I couldn’t wait to get my custom handmade nails, and my expectations were surpassed when they also arrived in a lovely wooden and personalised box filled with straw. The nails were packed in oiled paper to ensure they won’t rust. They were very accurately made.Adelheid’s suggestion was to drill a hole into the block and the neck, of a measure not exceeding the measure of the square section of the nail, and a length about half a cm less than the nail. Then, “gently” hammer the nail in. She says handforged nails make a much stronger bond than factory nails, because of their shape and tiny irregularities.I also liked the idea of avoiding rust in my instrument, which would better preserve it for the future and reduce the pain for someone who eventually had to repair it and remove the nail.So, I decided to trust her and follow her instructions. Following the moment's inspiration, I used 1 to 3 nails in my instruments and never had trouble. To be safe, I purposely nailed them in different directions.What’s around that thing of warming the nail until it’s red hot before hammering it in the neck? Apart from the fascination of the smoke coming out, the sound of the burnt wood, the smell of the burnt wood, and the hope to get a shadow of the burn from the outer side of the neck, like we can see in some old instruments… There is a mechanical purpose. The idea starts from the fact that a handforged nail is almost pure iron. Don’t do that with a modern nail, or you will only end up burning the wood and have a larger hole that will not keep the nail in place. Pure iron is relatively soft, and when hot, it will follow the vein of the wood it’s been hammered into. So it will bend, maybe the wood will crack a bit, and the red iron will follow that crack also in the shape and fill it. When it's hot, it’s bigger and longer; when it gets cold again, it will shrink, fixing the bond. Then, it will rust, and the rust, forming like little flakes or hairs running into the wood, will grip the nail to the wood even more. Someone wanting to take it out will have a hard time.I know; it is fascinating. And I will probably do it next time. Because my Adelheid’s nails are almost finished, I think I will spare them by using only one of them with this technique.What did they do in the past?In old necks, you can find everything: hot nails, cold nails, one nail, three nails, and even no nail at all, just glue.No question is too stupid to be asked; please ask if there’s anything unclear.Feel free to interact, send comments, and ask questions. The beauty of a newsletter on Substack is that the online version can be corrected and updated, so if you feel we missed something or weren’t clear enough, or even if you find a typo or an incorrect technical term (we are not native English speakers), we will be very grateful for your advice and corrections! Thank you!As always, I am opening a thread for your questions in the private chat. See you there!Featured video of the weekBeautiful quantz trio sonata, featuring Kaga Yutaka at the continuo on the Violoncello da Spalla! Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit violoncellodaspalla.substack.com/subscribe
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  • How it’s made: part 12 - checklist!
    At this point, closing the soundbox is in sight. This is when I need a checklist the most because the excitement grows, and I tend to forget some passages. For example, my most common mistake is forgetting to erase pencil marks and going over them with sealer or glue so that I can fix them as permanent.I used to write a to-do list on the bench every time, but this year, I decided to create a real checklist useful for the future and share it with you. Next time, we will discuss nails and how to nail the neck. Stay tuned!No question is too stupid to be asked, please ask if there’s anything not clear.Feel free to interact, send comments, and ask questions. The beauty of a newsletter on Substack is that the online version can be corrected and updated, so if you feel we missed something or weren’t clear enough, or even if you simply find a typo or an incorrect technical term (we are not native English speakers), we will be very grateful for your advice and corrections! Thank you!As always, I am opening a thread for your questions in the private chat. See you there!P.S. Are you curious about the primer and sealer we use on our instruments? The short answer can be found at this link. However, the more interesting detail is that we are part of a luthier mastermind group hosted by Sofia Vettori and Ted Skreko on Skool. That group is a space for discussing all things related to violin making. It's a safe and enjoyable environment to be in. There’s a chat feature where members can share things or ask questions and receive prompt feedback and detailed answers. Additionally, there are weekly Zoom calls to discuss more in-depth topics. During these calls, every couple of months they invite special guests to cover specialized topics such as tools for setup, fittings, alternative materials, and strings. These guests are the top professionals in the world!Another exciting aspect of the Zoom calls is that they hold a monthly raffle where members can win valuable prizes. For instance, the last two prizes were a book by Scrollavezza and Zanre, and a Lie Nielsen 101 block plane.By the way, I share drafts of this newsletter about making the Violoncello da Spalla in the group, so all the information you receive here when you are a paying subscriber is also included there, along with the possibility to ask me anything and the support and assistance of Sofia, Ted, and the group.It’s a fantastic group to be part of. I'm including the link here. Note that this is an affiliate link; if you choose to join the group, please make sure you do so through this link. By subscribing, you can save the money you would otherwise spend here, and I will be compensated for my losses through the affiliate commission I receive.Featured video of the week: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit violoncellodaspalla.substack.com/subscribe
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  • Alessandro’s latest Violoncello da Spalla reached his home in Catalonia!
    Nicolas Chédeville, 1737, sonata IV da “Il Pastor Fido, sonate del sig. Antonio Vivaldi op. 13” 😉Yesterday, we played it in Bolzano, and the above recording, taken with a bare iPad, is live and unedited. We plan to record the whole sonata better this summer because we really like it—the continuo part is sparkly!Two weeks ago, we had the enormous pleasure of receiving the visit of Ton Fabres from Catalonia, who came to pick up his new Violoncello da Spalla made by Alessandro.Ton is such a nice and kind soul. He presented us with old books on early music and art, and his friends cooked for us Fideuá, a typical meal from Catalonia. It's a paella made with seafood and pasta instead of rice. It was delicious, and we had a great time together!But this happened at the end of the weekend we spent in his company! This story is more than that!When he arrived, he introduced to us his two da spallas and told us about his musical path. He has been a recorder teacher all his life and is now retired. During the pandemic, he heard his neighbour playing the cello, fell in love with this instrument, bought himself a Chinese cello da spalla, and started practising. A few months ago, he felt ready for an upgrade and decided to make himself this beautiful present of a top-quality Violoncello da Spalla.To make the most of it, he rented a campervan with some friends and came to pick it up personally, enjoying a holiday in northern Italy. By coincidence, they came on the weekend of the Verschneider Ritt: this is a big medieval game with horses that is organised in our village every year. Many teams from all over Tyrol come to take the challenge, and good food is served all day on-site. We were happy we could also offer him this special experience, it was a weekend of real sharing of culture, passions and traditions.The games take place very close to the small church of St. George, where there is a wooden altar from 1609 on which are painted two angels, one of them playing a very big viola, resembling a Violoncello da Spalla 😬. St. George is also the patron of Barcelona, so Ton’s small cello is now named Jorge.Ton is passionate about early music. In 1978, he attended the famous early music courses in Urbino! He researched the Violoncello da Spalla and is enthusiastic about its use in Catalonia in the 18th century.He plays it da gamba, like a normal cello. He mainly plays songs from his land, accompanying his wife Carmen, who has a beautiful voice. He is an amateur player on the cello and quite a novice on it. He immediately sensed how easier it was to play on our instrument compared to his previous two. Before going away, he told us he was so happy because he felt he had left behind some technical problems that were preventing him from fully enjoying his playing.He practised hard to solve them in these years, and finally he thought of buying a professionally made instrument with a good setup. So he got in touch, and meeting his new cello piccolo, he had the confirmation that he can enjoy a beautiful sound and playing is easier and more joyful! When the instrument is made with care and attention to playability the hours of practising are far more effective, and maybe one could discover that it’s not even necessary to practice for hours!Now Alessandro’s Violoncello da Spalla has found his home between the mountains and the wonderful sea of Catalonia, and we’re grateful to have met such a nice man as Ton and having spent a weekend with him and his friends!With this instrument I left behind many little technical problems and now I really enjoy playing!Now our end-of-school-year things are over and we’re finally committed to making full time. So in the next issue expect more making instructions for the paying subscribers, maybe even on a tighter schedule than usual. Thanks for your patience and thanks for being here and following our work! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit violoncellodaspalla.substack.com/subscribe
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  • Alessandro Visintini’s Violoncello da Spalla is ready to leave the nest!
    When we recorded this video, it was intended as a promo video for the BVMA makers day to show and explain the three different setups we brought there: one modern, with Thomastick/Warchal strings and pegheds, one baroque, with three plain gut strings and only two would basses (Aquila VN and Boussoir), and this “one fits all” instrument. It has the modern silk set by Eliakim Boussoir, which is totally made with historical natural materials, not synthetics, following a historical process from the end of the 19th century. This set offers the colours, complexity and grip of historical strings but with thin gauges and the whole five strings overspun with metal wire. As expected, at the show, this instrument was considered by many the “sweet spot” (words by Nick Wright, thank you Nick!).We are fond of this instrument, made by Alessandro, because we think the neck is particularly comfortable, so we took it as reference for the later instruments. We also particularly like the varnish, which is our usual ground, a few coats of oil varnish and our usual finish with spirit varnish.Because this instrument was sold a few days before our trip to London, we didn’t rush in publishing this video, and we are publishing it now as our farewell to it. It will go to Catalonia at the beginning of May, we will write more later about its future!Would you like to order a Violoncello da Spalla like this? It’s just a click away! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit violoncellodaspalla.substack.com/subscribe
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Not only classical music: from research to pure fun, through early music, jazz, pop and rock! Musical instruments, repertoire, accessories, technique, people... and everything about Violoncello da Spalla! violoncellodaspalla.substack.com
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