The other weekend, my husband gave me time without the kids to go to a string instrument shop by myself! We have three boys under 4. If you're a parent, you know why that sentence merited an exclamation point. I went in for a $3 adapter for the church sound system and came out wanting a $1200 viola, of course.
First I tried all the violins and a couple bows, curious to compare with my own setup. My world being scarce of other violinists, I have never played anything but my own. The $70 bow felt flabby compared to mine. The $180 bow worked just fine though.
Compared to my restored antique Suzuki, the other violins (from $400 to $1500 or so -- I was trying not to look at prices!) were louder but less sweet and complex in voice, for the most part. They had that French horn quality that is great in a French horn but not to my taste in a violin. I really love the G and D strings on mine, the A is OK, and I pretty much avoid playing on the E. There was one with an exceptionally sweet E string that got my attention. But no magic happened until I picked up a 16-inch viola. I thought the transition to different fingering would be awkward, but it wasn't. It was transcendental. Have you ever had a dream where you can effortlessly sing like an angel, fly like a bird, or swim like a fish? It was like that.
Now I am extra excited for my 3/4 viola/octave violin/chin cello to be finished.
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