Science can tell us only so much about Stradivarius violins

[Tatiana Gordeeva]

A short article in Nature by one of the best science writers around, Philip Ball:

Behind paywall https://www.nature.com/articles/nature.2017.21954?code=eb068a54-72fe-490a-b125-5e6301bf9e35

But here for free https://www.nature.com/articles/nature.2017.21954
PDF: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature.2017.21954.pdf

Similar double-blind tests have been done on wines, audio cables, speakers, etc. with surprising (for most) results!

In our field one of the best sources is https://www.linkedin.com/in/floydtoole/ (Floyd E. Toole)'s excellent book Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms (2017 ed.). A must read! Eye and ear-opener



Ah, the power of Perception... I even have a track for that

Click to read more...

 

[Tatiana Gordeeva]

Point... and counterpoint:

The secret of the Stradivari violin confirmed

New research co-authored by a Texas A&M University scientist has confirmed that renowned violin maker Antonio Stradivari and others treated their instruments with chemicals that produced their unique sound, and several of these chemicals have been identified for the first time.

phys.org

And extra points...

Scientists are trying to uncover what makes Stradivarius violins special – but are they wasting their time?

Stradivarius violins are renowned for their supposedly superior sound when compared to other instruments. This has resulted in numerous studies hunting for a scientific reason for why Strads sound so good. A number of these studies have focused on the chemical composition of the wood in violins...

phys.org