A history of violin research

From the probable origins of the violin in the early 16th century there is a long history of experimentation; first, the empirical development of the violin by the makers themselves over more than 200 years to its height of excellence in the late 17th and 18th centuries; then the scientific investigations of its vibrational characteristics which have been done since the early 19th century. These have progressed in spurts of activity associated with technological innovations, particularly the developments of increasingly sensitive measuring equipment. This paper attempts to cover briefly the work of the early mathematicians as well as that of Savart, Helmholtz, and Rayleigh as related to the violin; then considers the research of the 20th century from the pre-electronic investigations of Raman, Miller, and Fuhr, through the spate of activity in violin research from 1930 to 1960 particularly in Germany, the USA, and Japan; and finally a brief overview of the many current developments associated with today’s electronic and optical technologies, along with the concept of the violin as a musical instrument involving research in fields as widely separated as psychoacoustics, musical composition and performance, materials research, vibration analysis, and violin making.