JAVS Spring 2026

Book Review

Book Review: All Strings Attached by Christina Ebersohl-Van Scyoc

Title: All Strings Attached Fretted and Multi-Stringed Bowed Instruments in the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic Eras by Lanson Wayne Wells

Published: January 7, 2025 Available for Purchase At:

All Strings Attached is a thoughtful, musician-centered exploration of the viola’s extended family—one that speaks directly to violists who have ever wondered where our instrument truly fits within the broader historical and expressive landscape of bowed strings. Rather than treating the viola da gamba, baryton, arpeggione, viola d’amore, and Hardanger fiddle as historical novelties, Wells presents them as living instruments with real artistic consequences. All Strings Attached reminds us that the viola did not evolve in isolation, but in constant dialogue with a rich network of kindred instruments.

What makes this book especially compelling is its sense of care. Wells writes not as a distant historian, but as a performer-scholar deeply invested in how history informs practice. The chapters—drawn from undergraduate research, graduate-level scholarship, and professional writing—share a clear and consistent purpose: to help performers understand why these instruments existed, how they were played, and what they can still teach us. This is scholarship that listens closely to performers, instruments, and the spaces in which they once spoke.

Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 42, No. 1, Spring 2026

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