Internet Cello Society

	The violoncello is an instrument that has many variations and

predecessors. There were many master makers of the violoncello. This

paper will discuss the evolution of instruments leading up to the

violoncello, now accepted to be called the cello. The violoncello has

been in existence for a long time but it is not the first instrument of

its type.

	The  many parts of the violoncello can be divided into three

categories.  First, are the exterior parts, second,  are the interior

parts, and third, the fittings. There are more fittings than any other

group of parts. 

	The first exterior part is the top, the table,  the belly or  plate. It

is constructed of two pieces of pine or spruce. It is graded in

thickness from 3/16  of an inch to 9/64 of an inch. Next, are the sides

of the violoncello which are also called ribs. They are six pieces of

maple glued to the top and back of the violoncello. They stretch on each

side one from the top to the waist, one on the waist and one from the

waist to the bottom. The purfling is a triple line of dyed wood along

the outer edge of the top and back of the violoncello. The purfling fits

into a groove and serves two purposes. It prevents cracking of the wood

and it is also decorative. The button is another exterior part. It

strengthens the joint between the neck and the back and is sometimes

outlined in ebony. There are holes on each side of the violoncello top

on the waist (middle). These  holes allow sound to escape from the

interior of the violoncello. They are called  F holes. This is because

the shape of the hole  looks like the letter F. (Cowling, The Cello, p.

18-19) 

	 The Second category of parts are the fittings, or the objects that are

placed on the outside of the violoncello. First is the bridge which is

made of maple and is not glued but held down by the strings. It is set

between the notches of the  F holes and has notches on the top of it for

the strings. It is custom fitted for the particular violoncello it is

going to be placed on so that it fits the contour of the top. The

tailpiece is made of ebony, and the lower ends of the strings are

attached to it. The tailpiece is held in place by the tail gut which

wraps around the plug and attaches to the bottom of the tailpiece. The

plug is inserted into a hole at the bottom of the violoncello. The plug

serves as a place to insert the end pin and to wrap the tail gut. The

end pin is inserted into the plug and its length is adjustable. The end

pin rests on the floor and holds the violoncello up for the player. Some

end pins are removable and some slide into the violoncello.  The neck,

peg box and scroll are on the top of the violoncello, they are made from

one piece of wood. The finger board is made of ebony and is glued to the

neck and provides a surface on which to press  the strings with your

fingers to vary their length and change the note. The pegs are made of

ebony or rosewood and are fitted into the peg box. The strings are

wrapped around the pegs and turning the peg can either raise or lower

the pitch of the string. The nut is made of ebony and glued to the top

of the finger board. It has notches in it for the strings and spaces the

strings evenly. The four strings are C, the lowest, G, D, and A, the

highest. D and A were originally made of gut and G and C were made of

wound gut. These are sometimes replaced by steel or aluminum wound gut

which does have as beautiful of a sound. (Cowling, The Cello, p. 18-19)

	The third category of violoncello parts is the interior. The lining is

twelve strips of pine that are glued to the edge of the sides and

provide a surface on which to glue the top and back. The sound post is a

small cylindrical piece of spruce or pine that fits between the top and

back without glue. It is in front of the left foot of the bridge and its

function is to transfer sound from the top to the back. (Cowling, The

Cello, p. 20-21)

	The two main instrument families that preceded the violoncello were the

viola de braccio and the viola de gamba. In the 1300's, the viols (the

viola de gambas and viola de braccios) replaced the vielle as a the main

bowed instrument in Europe. In the 18th century, violins replaced the

viols because of their larger sound. All viola de gambas were held

vertically between the legs hence the name "viola de gamba" or leg viol.

A set of viola de gambas consists of six viols: two basses, two tenors

and two trebles. The bass viola de gamba was the only instrument in the

viola de gamba family with good solo capability but little music

survives because it was mainly used in bass accompaniment. Compared to

violins, viola de gambas have: sloped rounded shoulders, flatter backs,

thinner strings, six strings, flatter bridges, outward curving bows,

also and most importantly a fretted finger board. The fretted

fingerboard is important because it makes the instrument easier to play.

This is because when the player's finger is placed between a fret, the

note played is the fret closest to the player's finger towards the

bottom of the violoncello's note. Some other instruments in the viola de

gamba family were a smaller treble, a double base, the division viol,

the lyre viol, and the boryton viol. Another variation is the viola

d'amore which has an extra set of strings under the bowed strings which

sound along with the bowed strings. The viola de braccio family is the

actual predecessor to the current day violin family (violin, viola,

violoncello and bass). All viola de braccios were held on the player's

arm unlike the violoncello and bass of the modern day violin family. The

viola de braccio has bulging, round shoulders, a rounded and full sound,

four thick strings, an unfretted finger board and shallow sides. The

building and playing of viols reached a high point during the 17th

century. Some English composers  of viol music of that time period were

William Byrd, Orlando Gibbons, John Jenkins and John Coperario. (Grolier

Electronic Encyclopedia, 1994)

	There were many makers of the violoncello. They mainly lived in Italy.

The first known maker of the violoncello was Andrea Amati who lived from

1511 to 1581 in Cremona, Italy. People believe that he made only six

violoncellos, two of which are in the United States of America. About

the Amati violoncello in the United States of America which is circa

1569, Cowling states her opinion in The Cello, that, "The neck and

scroll is too heavy looking as so a bit ugly ... The body is in

remarkably good condition, but the original varnish has some color added

over it. It is an undecorated violoncello." (28) The  other violoncello

made by Amati  that is in the United States of America is called "The

King." It is one of the most famous violoncellos. The violoncello has

paintings of the arms, devices and mottoes of Charles IX, the king of

France. This violoncello, because of its decorations is believed to be

one of the thirty-eight violoncellos ordered for Charles IX. On the

center of the back can be seen the crown over the remaining outline of

the coat of arms. The physical characteristics of this violoncello are

not much different from the modern day violoncello. This allows us to

conclude that violoncellos have not changed much since then. (Cowling,

The Cello, pg. 28) 

	For two hundred years the Amati family made some of the finest

violoncellos in the world. Andrea Amati's sons were as follows: Antonio

(1540-?), and Girolamo I (1561-1630) who bore Nicolo (1596-1684) who

bore Girolamo II (1649-1740).  The sons of Andrea Amati, used the

designs made by their father. The two of them worked together and

labeled their violoncellos jointly, possibly even after Antonio's death.

Nicolo was the best instrument maker of the Amati family. He also taught

some of the other great masters of instrument making. Some of Nicolo's

students became famous makers on their own. They were his son Girolamo

II, Antonio Stradivari, Andrea Guarneri and G. B. Rogeri. (Cowling, The

Cello, page 34) 

	Antonio Stradivari was  by far the greatest maker of violoncellos and

violins. He lived from 1644 to 1737. The knowledge that he was a student

of Nicolo Amati comes from a label in a violin that he says he is a

pupil of Nicolo. (Cowling, The Cello, page 34) 

	There were many variants on the violoncello. One variation of the

violoncello is the violoncello piccolo which is a small violoncello with

four or five strings tuned G, D, A, E or C, G, D, A, E. The violoncello

alto means a small violin and is most likely a synonym for violoncello

piccolo. The violoncello tenor was invented in 1922 by E. Spraenger and

was made double the dimensions of a violin. The arpeggione is somewhat

like a cousin of the violoncello but because its body is cornerless it

looks like a guitar. It has even been called the guitar violoncello. The

harmoni cello had five strings and ten metal strings which run

underneath but over another finger board. It is not known how this is

possible. One other variant is the porta cello. It is a light

violoncello with retractable knee supports, a narrow slightly rounded

box body and a standard finger board. It was only recommended for

schools because it had great faults. For example, the top was so weak

that the sound post could break through it. While not a variation in

design but rather in how the violoncello was held is the violoncello da

spalla. Spalla means shoulder in Italian. When violoncellos were used in

marching bands, the instrument was held against the shoulder by a strap

that fit through a plug that went in the back of the violoncello.

(Cowling, The Cello, page 42) 

	Some changes in the bows have also occurred over the years. In Joseph

Roda's book Bows for Musical Instruments of the Violin Family nearly 600

bow makers are mentioned. The earliest bow was a straight stick with

horse hair. The bow changed from a straight stick to an inward curved

bow much like our modern bow some time before 1747. Fran�ois Tourte was

a French bow maker. He may have been the first to curve the stick by

heating it rather than cutting it. He also made a movable frog, the part

of the bow at which the hair is attached and the player grips. (Cowling,

The Cello, page 66) 

	In conclusion, the violoncello is an instrument with a very interesting

and large background. There were many instruments that evolved into the

modern day violoncello. There may not be any new evolutions or variation

from the violoncello because they are mainly mass produced. Today, not

many violoncellos are made by one person or a small

family.         



                          



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