With our sale covering our full range* of classical instruments we thought we’d make our #WednesdayWisdom about caring for your bridge.
It doesn’t matter whether you play a Violin, Viola, Cello, or Double bass the position and care of the bridge is important to the tonal quality of your playing.
If your instrument is shipped frequently between gigs, or even just put into the hold, it is common practice to remove the bridge. If you are not confident about repositioning it, or don’t have an instrument tech on hand to do it for you, use a small piece of masking tape to mark where the feet are placed; ensuring the pieces are small enough to remain unobtusive once the bridge is back in place.
Leaving the strings fully, or over, tightened can lead to the top of the bridge warping (bending); particularly with the more delicate bridges on violins and violas. It might seem a pain but we recommend you loosen the strings slightly before returning the instrument to its case or leaving it on its stand for any length of time.
Our final tip is the most expensive :-O and involves the purchase of graphite. It’s worth investing in a good quality 2B or preferably a 4B pencil – really expensive, eh? Rub a little graphite in the grooves of your bridge and it will help keep the strings running smoothly as you tune your instrument.
*Excludes Catherwood, Dupont, Miller, Sanchis Carpio, and Sanchis Lopez instruments