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Violins maintenance
is important. If you want your musical instrument
to perform well, you should take good care of
it.
Here are some tips on violins maintenance:
-Violins are very fragile instruments, when they
are continuously exposed to temperature changes
and humidity, it will eventually break and fall
apart. Do not store your violin in extreme hot
or cold locations. The effects of humidity and
dryness on the stringed instruments are critical.
The ideal atmosphere for a violin is of course
precisely the one in which the instrument was
made, but it is a practical impossibility to keep
the instrument perfectly acclimatized. You can
avoid major damage to instruments by not placing
them too near radiators, or in sun-baked cars.
Try to avoid extremely sudden changes in humidity
and temperature. Try to store the instrument in
a room where the relative humidity is between
45-55%.
-Avoid putting too much rosin on the bow as it
will drip onto the violin and cause staining.
Cleaning the rosin off strings can also make a
striking difference to the sound, and should be
done regularly. Any kind of pure alcohol removes
rosin and dirt very well but care must be exercised
to prevent any alcohol from coming in contact
with the varnished parts of the violin.
-For the bow, the only real maintenance is regular
cleaning of the stick with a cloth, and re-hairing.
Other maintenance may include replacing the wire
lapping and leather grip, or lubricating the screw.
When the bow is not being used the hair must be
loosened in order to prevent the bow from becoming
"sprung" and the hair stretched. There
are now bows available made from fiberglass or
carbon composite which are less fragile.
-Strings may need replacement every two or three
months with frequent use. The higher strings require
replacement more frequently than the lower strings
– fortunately higher strings cost less. The violin
should be occasionally checked by a technician,
who will know if repairs need to be made.
-Polish is rarely needed, and when necessary,
only a commercial violin polish should be used.
Cleaning the violin with furniture polish and/or
water could damage the varnish and acoustics of
the violin (water could also cause the violin
seams to open).
Links
to Other Sources of Violins Maintenance:
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