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Check out the latest issue of The Strad for an interesting article by David Gusset delving into his geometric theory of violin design. He studied and measured early Cremonese instrument design for many years. The theorizes that the "golden proportions" of Cremonese instruments derive from simple yet elegant geometric relationships. From the article:
"About 30 years ago I began documenting important historic violins, violas and cellos by accurately measuring, tracing and drawing them to scale. I soon started to analyse my drawings using simple geometry, hoping to gain sufficient insight into the design concepts of the old masters to be able to apply them to my own new models. What I began to uncover was an elegant and practical system of design that was different from anything imagined by previous researchers. This system determined the shape and proportions of instruments and the positions of the soundholes. Rulers, measuring tapes and callipers proved to be superfluous; paper, pen, a straight edge and a pair of dividers became my primary tools for analysing the geometry of historic instruments."
Pretty cool ideas....
"About 30 years ago I began documenting important historic violins, violas and cellos by accurately measuring, tracing and drawing them to scale. I soon started to analyse my drawings using simple geometry, hoping to gain sufficient insight into the design concepts of the old masters to be able to apply them to my own new models. What I began to uncover was an elegant and practical system of design that was different from anything imagined by previous researchers. This system determined the shape and proportions of instruments and the positions of the soundholes. Rulers, measuring tapes and callipers proved to be superfluous; paper, pen, a straight edge and a pair of dividers became my primary tools for analysing the geometry of historic instruments."
Pretty cool ideas....
