Robert Spates is the Principal violinist in the Vox Ama Deus Orchestra. In addition to live concerts around the world, he is fluent in a variety of musical styles and is heard constantly on radio, TV, and in film scores, notably in documentaries for National Geographic and the Discovery Channel. You can even hear him playing jazz violin on the Weather Channel!

Q: What are the major differences between a baroque violin and its modern relatives?

A: Most violins are called "modern", no matter when they were originally built. This is because around 1750 instruments were made louder to for the larger audiences that started attending public concerts. Violins (even the prized old Stradivari’s and Guarneri’s) had their necks chopped off and replaced with longer pieces of wood to make the strings tighter and brighter. The insides were modified to make more sound, and metal strings were added to give a more penetrating quality that could reach even the cheapest seats in the back row. Unmodified old fiddles are very rare.

The old fashioned baroque violins were designed to be played in more intimate settings. Their strings were much less tense and lower in pitch. Strings on baroque instruments are made of "catgut" which is actually a variety of sheep intestine like that used in sausage casings (no actual cats were harmed in this production).

These days, the easiest way to spot a baroque violin is the absence of a chinrest, which is a little wooden piece used to hold a modern violin with one's jaw. The other thing to look for is the pointy baroque bows that curve outward like an archery bow. ( continued on page 2... )