Andrew Hooker Violins

• Violins

• Violas

• Cellos

• Bows

• Cases etc.

Trying Stringed Instruments

The expertise necessary to judge old violins and cellos largely rests with the people who sell them. This can make a visit to a violin shop an intimidating experience, and the potential for fraud is huge. In what other field would somebody pay so much without knowing the first thing about the subject? And is there another marketing area where help is so hard to find? Trying a new instrument should be a pleasure, not an ordeal. Judging tone is an unscientific business at the best of times, but there are a few commonsense rules which should make a purchase simpler and safer.

1. Ask for a pricelist before anything else. The instrument should be within the budget. Unscrupulous dealers tend to make their instruments' prices astonishingly close to their buyer's maximum figure.

2. Try not to consider the pricelist when actually trying the instrument - that way you will not be influenced by the prices, and you may find that you prefer something less expensive. Buy it because you like it.

3. Bring the instrument you're familiar with. There's no sense changing it unless you can find something better. Without it you can't make an immediate comparison.

4. Play with the bow that you're used to. A new bow and a new instrument will certainly cause confusion. Change them one at a time.

5. Bring your friends. They can listen from some distance away, and, if they are players, can give you the opportunity to do the same thing.

6. Don't be put off by accessories that can easily be altered - strings, chinrests, tailpieces and so on. It takes two minutes to change a chinrest.

7. Don't be afraid to ask how the price of the instrument was defined. Why (for example) is it £3,000 instead of £300?

8. Ask about repairs and damage, and look carefully for yourself, under a good light. Check what is guaranteed.

9. Always take your choice home for an extended trial. Show it to your teacher, and even to other dealers. You must expect a different dealer to belittle whatever you have, in an effort to sell something of their own stock. And that's fine: if you're shown something that you prefer for the same money, buy it.

10. Finally insist that you have a written "buy-back" guarantee. It maybe the only safeguard you have against buying a fake . . . and beware, no other field of the antique market is as faked as the old violin market.

About the market in violins, violas and cellos

How to try a stringed instrument

An instrument buyer's guide - more about trying instruments

Who made the instrument? About labels and attributions

Repairs and damage - what to look out for

About setting up instruments soundposts, strings &c.

About new instruments