Concerts Galore! November has been such Fun! December promises to be just as good. Royal Northern Sinfonia, Maltings Berwick, 2nd Nov The programme opened with the RNS wind section playing Amy Beach ‘Pastorale’, Grazyna Bacewicz ‘Wind Quintet’ and Leos Janacek ‘Mladi’. Loved the programme choices! Then they handed over to…
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Time and time again this question is asked of me. My answer is always the same. Let me look after the cleaning for you. By this I mean the inevitable hand perspiration and dirt that really can make an instrument look grubby. Also, players sometimes don’t realise how much sweating,…
If you’re local to the North East I’m sure you’ll already know ‘The Sage Gateshead’ has been renamed and rebranded ‘The Glasshouse International Centre for Music’. The Glasshouse International Centre for Music New adjoining buildings will create a whole complex to be named ‘The Sage’, so the charity running the…
The products I use in restoration are pretty specialized. From aged wood to fungi! Here’s a little insight. Wood Matching This can mean using wood (see picture above) that I have stored for many years that has darkened in colour and is age appropriate to the instrument I am working…
I want to share with you a few photos of a violin I worked on recently. It is a Matthew Hardie & Son, made in Edinburgh. The date has been written over so the exact date on the label is indistinguishable but by 1824 the business was being advertised as…
I am currently working on a research project in my spare(!) time. I’m trying to find out as much as I can about a specific violin maker who lived in Berwick upon Tweed in the 19th Century. In his day he was one of the best! I started this journey…
What colour is my sitting room carpet again? Time spent away from the bench this month has had me preparing for a tool sale that our Trustees will run for our charity www.rabtrust.org. These are all specialist tools donated to us from retired or sadly deceased makers/restorers. They and their…
When violins were first made in the early 17th century, they were simpler than they are today. They had necks nailed into place that were not designed to be removed. The nails were handmade and substantial so the neck stock had to be large to accommodate the nail. Some of…
When players visit me to have their instrument assessed there are a few areas that I pay great attention to. In fact, there is a list in my head of all the boxes I need to tick. The check list starts with ‘are any seams unglued?’ and goes all the…
With the start of 2023 quite a few players have been getting in touch with instruments that they have not shown anyone for years. This is very exciting as it allows me an opportunity to share with them the history and story of their instrument. Some players know very little…