JAVS Spring 2011

M ODERN M AKERS S EARCHING FOR S LEEPERS IN C INCINNATI

An attendee samples instruments during the 38th International Viola Congress (photo courtesy of Dwight Pounds)

by Eric Chapman

Among the many options for par ticipants was the opportunity to examine and play hundreds of violas and bows on exhibit from makers and dealers across the country. Such a setting almost always provides an important per spective on both the market spec trum and possible equipment options for your playing career. As one never knows when or where the “ideal” viola will appear, a dis play of such quality usually inspires a casual, if not serious search. The setting can also be an economical way to search, as it avoids shipping costs and certain insurance risk.

Filtering through perhaps one hundred violas is like working as a tone judge at the Violin Society of America’s international violin making competitions. There, the tone judges have three or four days to evaluate up to two hun dred instruments and decide which instruments are eliminated and which will receive a Gold Medal or Certificate of Merit. A search requires a very concen trated focus on the final goal—the right instrument with the right sound and response, the right size and string length, and the right price. Two conditions are then

The Cincinnati Viola Congress— a memorable event in the annals of the American Viola Society and the International Viola Congress—offered a tasty smor gasbord of program options and events. Solo recitals and two Gala Concerts inspired all, and master classes abounded. The Friday evening banquet offered a culi nary delight in the historic Hall of Mirrors in the Hilton Netherland Plaza Hotel listed on the National Historic Register. Elegance was everywhere.

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