Dark Side...

I'm a traditionally trained violin maker who has strayed to the dark side... 5-string fiddles! Though they are frowned on in many circles, I like to think of them as belonging to an older tradition, the viol consort! I love them for their rich, dark tonal resonance and extended melodic range.  There are some special considerations involved in building 5's - all five strings have to work and it still has to be small enough to be comfortable to play for long periods. I find that it helps to have a slightly longer string length and so I base my model on the dimensions of a long pattern Strad. I find it difficult to reach the C string with full standard string spacing so I slightly reduce the spacing at both bridge and nut, this keeps the C string within a manageable reach, makes string crossing a little easier and suddenly 5ths double-stops are accessible for smaller hands! I install planetary pegs so it's easier to keep all of those strings in tune and keep the peg box length from getting too unwieldy. ​