Ergonomic Violas
The viola receives an ergonomic rethink—and weary players give a sigh of relief
The Mastertone Viola by Dalton Potter
Don Ehrlich is used to hearing viola jokes. His admittedly wacky-looking instrument has been called “Viola de Gumby,” and violinist Isaac Stern said that it looked like it had been left out in the sun too long. But for Ehrlich, former assistant principal of the San Francisco Symphony, his ergonomic viola, a Rivinus, is no laughing matter.
“For me, it’s been a lifesaver,” Ehrlich says. “Before this viola, I had a series of injuries to the left side, and they’ve all cleared up.”
In response to players like Ehrlich, some violin makers are taking the traditional viola and turning it into something more playable. They argue that as the viola repertoire has become increasingly virtuosic, the instrument must evolve, too.
Losing Weight
Michigan-based violin maker Joseph Curtin calls his redesigned viola the Evia, a shortened version of “experimental viola.” With sloped shoulders and gamba-like corners, the instrument is about a third lighter than its conventional equivalent.
“As soon as you start looking, there are all sorts of possibilities,” he says of lightening the instrument. Instead of using ebony, a dense and heavy wood, the fingerboard is made from mahogany with a harder veneer on top. The back uses another lightweight wood—willow—and a lighter scroll and fittings. A reduced-mass bridge (see related story) reduces weight, too.
“If one reduces the overall mass of the bridge, it has an ‘un-muting’ effect on the sound,” Curtin says. “That works well on viola, especially for projection.”
Stretching the Body
Trying to play virtuosic repertoire on a large, traditional viola, violin maker David Rivinus says, is like trying to win the Tour de France on a traditional steel frame bicycle. Oregon-based Rivinus initially put ergonomics before acoustics, resulting in a radical redesign of the viola. The most well-known of his instruments is the unique Pellegrina, designed to shift the air chamber into places that won’t interfere with playability.
But there were smaller changes, too.
Like Curtin, Rivinus has made the fingerboard lighter, using phenolic resin instead of ...
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