Five Strings

I’ve been a fan of 5 string violins for a long while. The first time I picked up a Violectra 5 string electric instrument six or so years ago I knew I wanted one. The idea of having the range of both a violin and a viola in one handy package was captivating. I wasn’t especially enamoured with the Violectra itself, it was very heavy, the weight distribution felt all wrong to me, and it was a true electric in that it had no natural resonance. I finally got my dream when I bought my Bridge Lyra violin in October of 2009, although I didn’t really start using it until I joined We Sell Seashells in January 2010. The Bridge is a lovely instrument with a hollow carbon-fibre body that feels like a ‘proper’ violin when you play it, and it sounds lovely – even through a large PA system.

Late last year I also bought an acoustic 5 stringed instrument. I was initial sceptical about the idea of an acoustic violin with a C string. It’s well-known that violas are too small for their pitch range, so surely a violin-sized instrument with that range would never work ?

Well, it does.

The violin I got is a deep 5 stringed violin from Violarama in York and it’s a really amazing instrument. It’s violin sized from nut to chinrest but nearly as deep as a viola. It sounds quite like a viola at the bottom end, with a deep nasal resonance, and like a violin at the top end, with a sweet E string sound that makes my (considerably more expensive) four string violin sound like a shouty teenager. I took it to my violin teacher this morning and she was totally stunned by how good an instrument it was – as viola and violin – especially for it’s very reasonable price.

It’s first outing was in Hazel’s Lullaby, which is now on my “Things People Do” album, and I will be playing it live in Colchester and probably many other places too!

* I’d like to add that I have no connection with any of these companies apart from being a satisfied customer of both Bridge and Violarama.