The school year is here and kids are starting orchestra. You finally have a little spare time to learn to fiddle. Right now, all over the world, people are looking for violins and have no idea how to get a good one. There are a few things you should know.
Student Violins
Unlike many items you buy, old violins are better than new violins. Part of this is that "They don't make 'em like they used to." Part of it is that fewer and fewer true violin makers are around. There are young people learning how to make violins, but not as many as in the past. Mass production has taken over and that's just a sad fact.
An older, quality instrument that is scratched and has mended cracks, is a far better buy than a mass-produced violin made from questionable materials. It's going to sound worlds better, too. And when I say older, I mean twenty years and older. Even a ten-year-old instrument will sound better than a comparable instrument that is new. I don't know how it happens, but new wood just sounds new. Kind of thin, a little hollow. It takes playing an instrument to make it sound good. We say, "That violin will sound great once it has warmed up." It does take time for a new violin to develop depth and warm tones.
Don't get me wrong. Junk will never sound good. So if you have a cheap, Chinese violin that has a plastic nut and soft wood, you might as well do what I do. Go to the hobby shop, buy a clock mechanism, cut a hole in the darned thing and make yourself a nice novelty clock.
Most of those really bad Chinese violins are out of circulation now, thank goodness. There are some nice Chinese violins around. So don't abandon or ignore a violin just because it is made in China.
Meisel made some very nice student violins, some in China. Robertson & Sons, in Albuquerque, New Mexico carry a line of very nice Chinese instruments.
On the other hand, WalMart and Fred Meyer carried some horrendously awful instruments in boxes for $25 and $50. Don't even think about it!
On the other hand, there are some violin makers who produce some gorgeous instruments right here in the USA. Be prepared to pay $900 or more, but you will get something that will last you a lifetime. In the case of a hand-made violin, a good quality luthier-built instrument will beat an old, beat up student instrument any day. It's apples and oranges.
Ebay is another way people go to buy instruments. I got my beautiful violin on eBay, but it was early days for eBay and I lucked out. I also bought a couple clunkers, too. For instance, one violin arrived and had been painted with polyurethane. This rendered the instrument completely unusable. It sounds like a plastic violin. The polyurethane keeps the violin from vibrating.
Do not buy a violin that is being mass-sold for a very cheap price, such as $25 or $50. Chances are these are junk. This includes people on eBay who have eBay stores whose violins are all the same. I don't recommend anyone buy a violin on eBay anymore unless you have some help from a knowledgeable friend.
If you do want to try buying an instrument on eBay, please have someone who knows about violins sitting next to you. Or at least send the links to the auctions you are interested in to your friend and listen to what he or she has to say.
SHINY does not equal GOOD. In fact, it generally equals poor sound, as there is so much finish gooped on that it hinders the ability of the violin to vibrate. Vibrations mean music! No vibrations, no music!
So do check garage sales, classified ads, pawn shops, ask friends if they have a violin they aren't using, go to music stores and check out the used violins, and compare them to the new violins. If you are lucky enough to have a music store that has lots of violins, by all means go there. You would be doubly lucky if there were a violin maker in your town, or nearby. By all means go see what she/he has to offer.
Look at each violin and check for cracks, open spaces in seams. Check the back, the front, under the chinrest. Look at the edges and make sure the top and back are glued on all the way and not coming apart.
Hold the violin's scroll up to your nose, face up, and look down the neck. Is it straight? That is, does it bend to the left or right? If so, that's not good.
Look at the label! See where it was made and how old it is. I prefer violins from Germany, England, France, and the USA. There are some very nice older student violins from Czechoslovakia as well.
Choose a couple to try out. Have someone PLAY each violin (if you don't know how to play yet) and listen, calmly, and see if you like the sound. Do you? Can you hear a difference between several different violins? Remember, you have to live with this sound for a long time. You need to love the sound. Tip: have your friend play the same song on all the violins, and make sure he/she plays something that uses all the strings.
If the violin you find doesn't have all its pieces and parts, such as strings, bridge, sound post, and even pegs, do not panic. It isn't "broken." It just needs some TLC and someone to put it all back together. If it looks interesting and you like it, go ahead and get it fixed by a reputable violin repair person. It will cost money to do this, so be sure you want to pursue it. The repair person can tell you whether he/she thinks it is worth fixing, too. Cracks can be repaired, depending on how bad they are, so don't let that stop you. A hole, however, is not fixable so don't bother with anything damaged that badly.
In fact it is a good idea to bring along someone who knows more about violins when you go shopping. This can be a big help. Second best is taking the violin to someone, such as a violin teacher or repair person, who can evaluate the instrument. I do this for my students.
Good luck, and may you make a handsome find of an instrument!