Animal/human figurehead on classic violins?

[Chet Bishop]

I made some good progress Saturday, and got the corpus closed up. Tonight I set the neck on the lion-head viola...I will try to post some photos tomorrow. Right now the glue is still drying.

[Chet Bishop]

I promised I would post photos of the Lion-head viola progress: here are some photos of the way things ended up tonight: The color is due to a fresh coat of strong coffee...I had intended to take the pictures before I soaked the whole thing in coffee, but slipped a cog, there, somewhere, so this is what you get.


Front view Lion-head viola before varnishing



side view lion-head viola before varnishing



back view lion-head viola before varnishing



front view lion-head scroll



side-view lion-head scroll


You can tell I got my peg holes a little off-- I will have to move them, or my strings will definitely end up rubbing on the adjacent pegs.

I hope to be varnishing by this weekend. I will keep you posted.

[Jason Rodgers]

Nice work, as always, Chet. When it comes to these figureheads, do they add much weight? I suppose you'd ideally want them NOT to add much noticeable weight, but this lion looks chunkier than a scroll. Does that cause any appreciable change in playability or tone?

[Chet Bishop]

I am sure it is heavier...I hope it has a negligible effect on tone, playability, etc. Guess I could have made it smaller. Maybe next time.

Some violas have a cello-style head-- they are heavier, too, and the folks who don't like them usually cite that reason. Some people like the looks enough to endure the ounce or so of extra wood.

I trust someone will come along for whom the exra mass is not a problem. The instrument itself is quite light, and the pegbox very similar to a violin, in terms of size. It is a 16-1/2" viola, so probably whoever will want it will already be used to bigger instruments, and perhaps the weight will not bother them. (One can hope...)

[Jim McConkey]

Nice carving! And I love the coffee coloration, too. I might have to try that some time. How long did you soak it?

[Chet Bishop]

Just brushed it on heavy, but did not let it sit in puddles, where I could avoid it. I mixed a very strong half-cup of brewed coffee with enough instant coffee crystals to have made a very strong full cup (so the half-cup was about four times normal strength), and micro-waved it to make sure everything dissolved, then used a 1" brush and just soaked it all over. I tried to make sure it was pretty even, but is it possible it was not. I will sand lightly with very fine sandpaper or micromesh, to remove any fibers that stood up due to the soaking, but the raised summer grains are going to stay, mostly-- I prefer it that way.

If you wanted to do the same thing without raising the grain, there are ways to do that, too; just don't use water for your solvent. Alcohol is significantly better, if you don't want a raised grain, and turpentine is better still.

[Chet Bishop]

I made some progress...this is with three coats varnish:







I need to let it harden up a bit before I add more varnish, but I do intend to make it darker. This is just how it looks today.

[Jason Rodgers]

Ah, that just glows from within. Having seen Chet's instruments in person, his instrument finishes are great visually, as well as tactilely.

[Chet Bishop]

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Jason; the viola now has its final varnish, and is ready to begin final set-up. I will still have to complete the rubbing out of the varnish and the final adjustments of the instrument, but I expect to have it playing by Friday.
Here are some current photos:


Front of lion head viola with final varnish


Side of lion head viola with final varnish


Back of lion head viola with final varnish


Scroll of lion-head viola with final varnish


Side of lion head scroll with final varnish

I am sure there will be minor retouches to do after everything is complete, but this is pretty much what it is going to look like. I hope it plays well. Looks aren't everything.

[Chet Bishop]

The viola is done and I have been playing it. I will take the strings off tomorrow and retouch the varnish, shorten the tail-gut, , lower the strings a little at the bridge, etc. Then, when I put it all back together it will really be done. But it plays well, and has a big voice. I put Evah Pirazzi strings on it. Seems to be opening up a little, in just the few minutes I have spent playing it. Still sounds a little new, I guess...which is OK.

[Chet Bishop]

All Done!

As always, I am sure there are things I may do differently next time, particularly with the hand-carved lion-head, but, overall, I am satisfied with the results on this viola. It plays easily, has a big, deep voice, and is becoming more responsive day by day. Here are some photos:

Completed lion head viola, front view.


Side view Lion-head viola


Back view Lion-head viola


Treble-side Lion-head Scroll


Bass side Lion-head Scroll


Three-quarter view Lion-Head Scroll

The style is closely related to the Andrea Guarneri “Conte Vitale”, but has been changed significantly enough that it is simply my own design, hence the “Oliver” model designation. It definitely qualifies as a large viola, so only players who are comfortable with a big viola will like it, but, that being said, it is a relatively easy-playing viola, too.

I realize that lion-head scrolls are not terribly conventional, but I also remind myself that Jacob Stainer made a few lion-head instruments, and a whole bunch of German copyists followed his lead…still they are maybe one in a thousand. I changed one last thing and attempted a little more realism. Perhaps it will be difficult to sell; I don’t know. But it is one of the best violas I have made, and I trust someone will eventually see it as the one they have been waiting for.

[Mike Wilson]

Nice work!

[Chet Bishop]

Thanks, Mike.

I slumped for a week or so after completing the viola, but now am working again, hoping to have a five-string fiddle by mid-November.

Chet