The history of
bowed string
musical instrument in Europe goes back to the 9th century with the
lira (or lūrā, Greek: λύρα) of the
Byzantine Empire, a bowed instrument (held upright). The
Persian geographer
Ibn Khurradadhbih (d. 911) of the 9th century, was the first to cite the bowed
Byzantine lira as a typical instrument of the Byzantines and equivalent to the
rabāb used in the Islamic Empires of that time
[1]. The
Byzantine lira spread through Europe westward and in the 11th and 12th centuries European writers use the terms
fiddle and
lira interchangeably when referring to bowed instruments (Encyclopedia Britannica. 2009). In the meantime
rabāb was introduced to the Western Europe possibly through the
Iberian Peninsula and both bowed instruments spread widely throughout Europe giving birth to various European bowed instruments.
Over the centuries that followed, Europe continued to have two distinct types of bowed instruments: one, relatively square-shaped, held in the arms, known with the Italian term
lira da braccio (meaning viol for the arm) family; the other, with sloping shoulders and held between the knees, known with the Italian term
lira da gamba (or viola da gamba, meaning viol for the leg) group
[2]. During the
Renaissance the gambas, were important and elegant instruments; they eventually lost ground to the louder (and originally less aristocratic) lira da braccio family of the modern
violin.
The violin first emerged in northern
Italy in the early
16th century especially from the Brescia area. Many archive documents testify that from 1585-95 Brescia was the cradle of a magnificent school of string players and makers, all called with the title of "maestro" of all the different sort of strings instruments of the Renaissance: viola da gamba (viols), violone, lyra, lyrone, violetta and viola da brazzo. So you can find "maestro delle viole" or "maestro delle lire" and later, at least from 1558, "maestro di far violini" that is master of violin making. From 1530 the word violin appear in brescian documents and spread all around north of Italy. While no instruments from the first decades of the century survive, there are several representations in paintings; some of the early instruments have only three strings and were of the violetta type. Most likely the first makers of violins borrowed from three different types of current instruments: the
rebec, in use since the
10th century (itself derived from the
Arab rebab), the
Viola da Braccio (or Renaissance Fiddle), and the
lira da braccio. The earliest explicit description of the instrument, including its tuning, was in the Epitome musical by Jambe de Fer, published in
Lyon in
1556. By this time the violin had already begun to spread throughout Europe.
For the fact that documents shows that the Brescia school started half a century before Cremona, is debated if the first real violin was built by
Andrea Amati, one of the famous
luthiers, or lute-builders, in the first half of the
16th century by order of the
Medici family[
citation needed], who had asked for an instrument that could be used by street-musicians, but with the quality of a
lute, which was a very popular instrument among the nobles in that time. Andrea was very probably a lute maker that was astonished of the brescian market of violins around 1550-60, and decided in that years to change trade. Adocument of 1636 (a letter to the secretary of Monteverdi) testify that the violin market was dominated by brescian until that time and Cremona was growing because all the brescain masters were killed by the 1630 plague. The violin has four strings usually tuned in
fifths to E, A, D and G, from highest to lowest. Andrea Amati decided to use the technique of applying a mould to build the instrument by very precise measurements. In addition to that, he made the instrument body slightly vaulted. The violin immediately became very popular, both among street-musicians and the nobility, which is illustrated by the fact that
Charles IX of France commissioned an extensive range of string instruments in the second half of the
16th century.
[3]The oldest confirmed surviving violin, dated inside, is the "Charles IX" by Andrea Amati, made in
Cremona in
1564. The
Metropolitan Museum of Art has an Amati violin that may be even older, possibly dating to 1558 but the date is very doubtful.
[4] One of the best violin in the world is the renaissance carved, painted and gilted violin by
Gasparo da Salò (1574 c.)owned first by
Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria and from 1841 by
Ole Bull one of the most outstanding virtuoso of the world, that used it for the astonishing power and beauty of the sound, in hundred of thousands of concert together with a Guarneri del Gesù. Perhaps the most famous, and certainly the most pristine is the "Le Messie" (also known as the 'Salabue') made by
Antonio Stradivari in
1716, and never used. It is now located in the
Ashmolean Museum of Oxford. The most famous violin makers, called
luthiers, between the early 16th century and the 18th century included
