Beethoven, Romberg & the Cello Concerto That Didn't Happen

By Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins
 and Miranda Crawford

Beethoven wrote a beautiful Concerto for Violin, a wonderful Triple Concerto for Violin, Cello, and Piano, nine great Symphonies, five superb Cello Sonatas, plus a bunch of Concertos for lots of other instruments. But we don't have a Beethoven Cello Concerto. Why?

Bernhard Romberg, the guy that nixed Beethoven's Cello Concerto

Wood or Carbon Bows- Which are Better?

By Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins
 & Martha McDermott

Recently, a Facebook friend asked a reasonably simple question, "Which are better, wood or carbon bows?" And the definitive, absolutely right answer is......

Pernambuco or Brazilwood, What's the difference?

If you're an avid fan of stringed instruments and their bows, you might have noticed two names for wood bows- Pernambuco and Brazilwood. So, what's the difference? The answer is- not much. In fact, they come from the same tree 'Pau Brasil' (Caesalpinia Echinata)

The Pau Brasil tree.

Want to Ruin or Lose an Instrument? Leave It In The Car!

By Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins


Recently, an instrument valued at $1,000,000 (yes, that's one million US dollars!) was stolen. Well, actually, I'm not sure you could say the instrument was stolen. The car that it was in was stolen. The instrument just happened to be a sweet bonus for the car thieves.

Dude, Where's My Car? And my violin????

Think it's reasonable to leave a $1,000,000 cello in the car while you go in to a store, restaurant, or a friend's house? Hmmmmm. If you had $1,000,000 in  cash- $20s, $50s, and $100s, would you leave it in the car? Of course not! So, why would anyone leave an instrument valued at that amount?

Bach's Six Suites. For Cello? Or Something Else?

'The King' Amati cello

image from The National Music Museum

By Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins
and  Martha McDermott

Bach's 'Six Suites' are the Holy Grail of Unaccompanied Pieces for Cello.  They have been transcribed for multiple instruments including violin and viola.

Cellists often sneer at violists who perform these works. However, historical evidence suggests that these violists might not be as far off as cellists might think. What if the works were really written for a type of viola and they've been transcribed for cello??? Oh, the horrors!