1 mins
BRIDGING THE DECADES
The design of an instrument’s bridge is nowadays pretty much standardised – but it wasn’t always so. Leafing through the classified pages of The Strad ’s archives reveals a number of intriguing patterns, materials and indeed scientific justifications. The 1920s in particular seem to have been a boom time for innovative bridge makers, with several weird and wonderful examples making their debuts in the pages of the magazine.
Reading through the advertisements, one can sense a general theme in the manufacturers’ claims: ‘Your violin will sound like a Strad’; ‘a tone equal to that of a Strad’; and ‘imparting a Strad tone’, whatever that might be. One bridge features two different kinds of wood, another seems to double the thickness of the normal wood, while the ‘Chemical’ violin bridge claims not to be made of wood at all. As for the ‘four-footed’ bridge, one including ‘air cushions’ and the ‘self-adjusting’ example (‘a serious invention’ in the maker’s words), it’s interesting to imagine how they might have fared in the 21st century. Any readers who might still own one of these bridges (or any other unusual examples) are welcome to share their photos and experiences with The Strad by emailing thestrad@thestrad.com
December 1908
February 1909
May 1913
January 1922
March 1922
May 1923
November 1923
April 1922
June 1923
April 1964