Written by Stefan Aune of Fein Violins
The baroque period lasted from approximately 1600 to 1750, and is famous for names such as Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi. These world-renowned composers were defined in part by the venues in which their music was played. Musical performance during the baroque period occurred primarily at court in front of royalty, or in churches. As a result, the auditory demands placed on baroque instruments were lesser than they are today - instruments didn't need to be as loud, or project as far as they do now. During the mid to late 1700's, as western music transitioned from the baroque to the classical period, public musical performance outside of the church or court was on the rise. Public orchestras were becoming popular, and the spaces in which music was performed proliferated and grew larger, both in terms of audience as well as sheer physical size. As a result, the technical specifications of musical instruments went through an adjustment period, and it was this transition that gave rise to the modern stringed instruments we use today.
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Bach played the organ in church most Sundays |
Modern violinists needed to play louder, as the venues in which they performed were growing larger and getting packed with audiences. Thanks to the development of the
modern bow by Francois Tourte and others, string players were able to use their bows to greater effect, but violin makers needed to match these improved bows with louder, more playable violins. Additionally,
the steady inflation of concert pitch, which rose gradually through the baroque and classical periods, necessitated modifications to stringed instruments that could accommodate the higher string tensions.
Italian violinist Giovanni Batista Viotti deserves a great deal of credit for the change to modern instruments. He played, quite successfully, on a Stradivarius with many of the following modifications, helping spur the change to modern instrument construction.