New Scientist
Image: Cross Duck
Stradivarius violins enjoy an almost mythical status today – and perhaps they did from the moment they first left Antonio Stradivari’s workshop. An analysis of violin body shape confirms that many renowned 17th- and 18th-century violin makers, or luthiers, built instruments inspired by Stradivari’s design.
Computer software has made it easier for evolutionary biologists to study how organisms evolve new shapes over time. Daniel Chitwood, a biologist at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St Louis, Missouri, and an enthusiastic viola player, wondered whether the software could also give an insight into how violin shape evolved.
He used software to analyse the outlines of 7000 violins – built by the most respected luthiers of the last 400 years – from photographs. Given that the fine details of violin shape probably have little impact on the tonal quality of the instrument, says Chitwood, the analysis could have revealed a great deal of subtle variation.
In reality, though, the instruments clustered neatly into four groups, each containing one of the great luthiers of the 17th century: Giovanni Paolo Maggini, Nicola Amati, Jacob Stainer – and Stradivari. Of the four, Stradivari inspired the most later luthiers, many working in the decades following his death in 1737. Read more on newscientist.com…
