JAVS Spring 2025

Featured Article

Viola Fit: Critical Characteristics to Consider on an Instrument by Luiz Barrionuevo

Dimensions and measurements other than the viola’s size are not generally discussed among viola players, even though they significantly impact playability and comfort. Most viola players prioritize the instrument’s tone, overlooking crucial dimensions and measurements such as the string length, the upper, middle, and lower bout dimensions and shapes, the C-bout shape, the rib height, the neck dimension, and the instrument’s weight. These sometimes-neglected features of the most non standard violin-family instrument can substantially affect playability and, consequently, the player’s performance and health, and are essential in determining whether an instrument ergonomically suits the violist. Moreover, the notion that “bigger is better” still permeates the minds of some viola players and luthiers alike and is commonly associated with the outdated concept that the viola should have the largest possible acoustic box to produce a darker and deeper sound. 1 A good example of how viola players perceive the matter can be found in the Journal of the American Viola Society article by viola professor and former AVS president Christine Rutledge regarding the Fourteenth International Competition for Luthiers at the Violin Society of America´s 2000 Convention in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky: Both winning violas were not overly large, either. In fact, very few violas in the competition were large. This must be some indication that makers are building smaller violas to keep up with the increasing demand due to concern over physical injury. The smaller sizes of violas didn´t seem to make any difference to me at all about their ability to have a rich, warm, and projecting tone. And this surprised me! 2

the violin-family with the most variety in size, models, shapes, and overall measurements. The primary reason is that the viola was conceived as two different instruments: a smaller alto (or contralto) and a larger tenor . These instruments were used to double voices in the Renaissance’s four or five-part writing music. 3 From the middle 1500s to today, the viola repertoire and playing standards have evolved substantially, especially during the second half of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In the book Playing the Viola: Conversations with William Primrose , Primrose exposes his concerns about playability on large tenor violas, stating. … if I understand it correctly, the older and larger violas were often employed in doubling voices, and not for virtuoso performance. I doubt very much that the violist of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries moved much beyond third position. Now we are using the viola as a virtuoso instrument and scampering all over the finger-board. Hence our problems are compounded considerably. 4 which viola measurements, shapes, and dimensions fundamentally impact performance, comfort, and the overall player’s health. This study invites viola players to consider a more comprehensive approach regarding the impact of the various viola measurements and dimensions on playability. By analyzing the critical viola measures and dimensions such as the string length, upper, middle, and lower bout dimensions and shapes, the C-bout and corners, the rib height and arching, the neck dimension, and the instrument’s weight, this study aims to inform violists of how these features interact with each individual differently. Additionally, the complexities involving playability on the non-standard viola led me to explore and understand

Part of the problem relies on the viola never being standardized, and it is undoubtedly the instrument from

Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 41, No. 1, Spring 2025

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