56 Maker of Great Violins

Hundreds of violins are made every day. However, the finest and most sought-after violins were handcrafted by an Italian violin maker over 250 years ago. The craftsman’s name was Antonius Stradivarius, and any one of his violins is worth over $100,000 today.

Stradivarius, who was born in 1644, began his career as a violin maker’s apprentice. Working on his own by 1680, he became determined to make instruments that could reproduce tones as rich as those produced by the human voice. He tested several shapes and styles for his violins until he arrived at a design that pleased him. During his career he crafted over 1,100 violins. Those still in existence have become treasured possessions.

Unfortunately, the secret of the Stradivarius violin died with its maker. During his lifetime Stradivarius kept his notes safely hidden; even his two sons, who helped him in his workshop, did not know all the steps involved in each violin’s construction.

Through the years, many experts have offered possible explanations for the unique tone of a “Strad.” Some say it is the instrument’s shape and the harmony of its parts. Others suggest that the secret lies in the special properties of the wood, which Stradivarius obtained from native Italian trees that no longer exist. The most widely accepted supposition is that the exquisite tone of the violins is created by the varnish that the old master used to coat his instruments. Chemists have analyzed and reproduced, as closely as possible, the varnish, and its application has improved the sound of many violins. Still, no violin maker has been able to fully reproduce the tone of Stradivarius’s violins.

56 伟大小提琴的制作者

每天都有数百把小提琴被制作出来。然而，最精美、最抢手的小提琴是250多年前一位意大利小提琴制作师手工制作的。这位工匠名叫安东尼奥·斯特拉迪瓦里，如今他制作的任何一把小提琴都价值超过10万美元。

斯特拉迪瓦里出生于1644年，最初是一名小提琴制作师的学徒。到1680年，他开始独立工作，决心制作出能发出像人声一样丰富音色的乐器。他测试了小提琴的几种形状和风格，直到确定了一个令自己满意的设计。在他的职业生涯中，他制作了超过1100把小提琴。现存的那些已经成了珍贵的藏品。

不幸的是，斯特拉迪瓦里小提琴的秘密随其制作者一同逝去了。斯特拉迪瓦里在世时把自己的笔记妥善藏了起来；就连在作坊里帮他的两个儿子，也不知道每把小提琴制作过程中的所有步骤。

多年来，许多专家对“斯特拉迪瓦里琴”独特的音色提出了可能的解释。有人说秘诀在于乐器的形状及其各部件的协调性。另一些人认为秘密在于木材的特殊属性，斯特拉迪瓦里使用的是意大利本土现已灭绝的树木的木材。最广为接受的推测是，这些小提琴的精美音色是由这位老大师用来涂覆乐器的清漆造就的。化学家们已经尽可能地分析并复制了这种清漆，其应用也改善了许多小提琴的音质。不过，至今没有任何小提琴制作师能完全复刻出斯特拉迪瓦里小提琴的音色。