Work In Progress

This viola is a commission from the Barratt Due conservatoire in Oslo. The staff of Barratt Due have strong links with Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester and have come across several of my small violas there, so decided that they would like one too. These small violas have been a regular feature of my work for many years now. They are loved by the children (and sometimes adults) who play them because they sound like real violas, but are also light, manageable and easy to play. I’ve had … [Read more...]

This cello is a commission from a player who heard one of my cellos that belongs to a former pupil, and decided to approach me with a view to commissioning an instrument. She was interested in a slightly smaller cello. I was able to show her a couple of models, and we settled on this one, which is an adaptation I made some years ago of a lovely small Andrea Guarneri. The original is quite wide and chunky, particularly in the upper bouts, so I narrowed it slightly to make it easier to get round. … [Read more...]

July 2017 This cello is a commission from a player in Suffolk who often works with the owner of another of my cellos. She tried his and also one of my more recent cellos before deciding to commission a cello from me. After some discussion, we decided that this model, quite similar to the cello of her friend but with a shorter body and string length, would be ideal for her. I'm using poplar for the back and ribs of the cello. Poplar, rather than the more commonly used maple, was used … [Read more...]

I've made these violas regularly over the years. I came up with the design as a way of making a manageable instrument with an excellent sound that would be slightly less expensive to make than a standard viola design, so ideal for younger players. Several institutions have asked me to make these violas for loan to their pupils including the junior department of the Royal Northern College of Music and Chetham's School of Music. A number of adults have also bought this model, finding it … [Read more...]

I'm making this viola for my rental scheme, and there is already a young player lined up for it, who is currently hiring a smaller viola from me. I have made these violas regularly over the years, and refined the design to make an instrument that is easy to play, light and which sounds really good – with a genuine viola quality of sound and a rich C string. The viola has a two-piece back of nicely figured maple which I've had in my stocks for some years. The front is of fine-grain, high … [Read more...]

  This viola is a commission from a player in London, a member of the London Lawyers' Symphony Orchestra who has some arthritis in his hand and therefore needs a really manageable instrument. We met a couple of times and I was able to show him violas of different sizes. This was the one that felt the most comfortable for him; it has a short string length and the body is compact, but there is no sacrifice in quality of sound. The viola model is based on a slightly larger Gasparo da … [Read more...]

I've been working on this design for several months. One of my customers contacted me to float the idea of a commission for a new model viola. She has one of my 15 inch two-cornered violas, which she is generally happy with, but felt that a new instrument with a few changes would suit her even better. She wanted an instrument even easier to get round, particularly to reach higher positions. Also she has a long neck and struggles constantly with finding the right chinrest and shoulder rest. My … [Read more...]

This viola is a commission from a player in Suffolk, who has seen and liked a viola of this model that belongs to a colleague. The model is actually based on a Paolo Maggini violin. Maggini worked in Brescia, northern Italy at the end of the 16th and early 17th century, and is known particularly for fine sounding violas. The violin belongs to Ian Belton of the Brodsky Quartet who kindly let me measure and photograph it. The violin is, as are a number of Maggini violins, oversized by modern … [Read more...]

This is currently a very popular model; its size makes it super-manageable for players with a restricted stretch, and it has a lovely sweet, warm sound with a rich and solid C string. It's a commission from a player who has a back problem which makes it all-but impossible to play her larger viola. We spent some time together trying violas of mine of different sizes and discussing all her concerns. We are both hopeful that this one will be just right. The viola is closely modelled on a … [Read more...]

This has been the most popular viola model recently; its rich and powerful sound belies its manageable size. The one I made at the end of 2017 generated two new orders, and this is the second, for a talented young player who has just started her studies at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Stuttgart. She has small hands and had searched for a long time to find a viola model which she could manage but which would be musically satisfying. The model is based on the … [Read more...]