PHYSICAL AND MECHANICAL

CHARACTERIZATION OF ANCIENT
WOODEN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS FOR
THEIR CONSERVATION

Marco Fioravanti, Giacomo Goli,

Paola Mazzanti,Gabriele Rossi Rognoni, Nicola Sodini

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Ancient wooden musical instruments conservation
priorities

Instrument must be used

Musical instruments closed up

in display cases are destined
to de-hydrated and die. It’s the
heat and sweat that the
musician emanates, in fact,
that nurtures them and keeps
them alive.
(Lorin Maazel) Cannone violin (A.Guarnieri del Gesu
1743) in its exhibition box

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Severe limitation to
the use

Instruments by continual
use are apt to become
weary. They may even
virtually be killed. Give
them rests. We fell it a duty
to urge more strongly that
fine instruments should not
be brought to premature
death by ceaseless use.

(W.Henry, Arthur F., Alfred E. Hill)

Peter Sheppard Skaerved, playing the
Cannone in Genoa city (October 17, 2007)

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Instruments ageing and wood
ageing

(P.Navi 2007)

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 The sound box is subjected to:

climatic variations the exhibition and performance rooms

are usually at different conditions

mechanical stresses the tuning up produces compression

and tension stresses

Harris

Compression Tension

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Time dependent behaviour of
wood
Normal Spruce Resonance wood (Spruce)

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 the acquisition of a deeper knowledge on mechano-sorption
mechanism and relaxation behaviour of wood added to the study
of how moisture content variations influence the instruments
conservation represent the main aims of the whole research

particularly
this presentation is centred on the analysis of:
•climatic conditions variations;
•tuning up forces;
•deformation due to the tuning;

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Monitoring of weight variations

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Climatic parameters and weight
Monitoraggio Cannone Marzo-Maggio 2006

432 60
PESO
T BASSA
UR% ALTA
50 T ALTA
431,5
UR% BASSA

40

T (C°) - UR%
431
Peso (g)

30

430,5

20

430
10

429,5 0

00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
0. 0. 0. 0. 0. 0. 0. 0. 0. 0.
6 6 6 06 6 06 6 06 06 6
/0 /0 /0 / /0 5/ /0 / 6/ /0
/3 /3 /4 /4 /4 3/ /5 /5 2/ /6
14 24 3 13 23 13 23 12

Data

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Recovering after a performance
66 0,1

64 0,08

62 0,06

60 0,04

58 0,02

56 0

54 -0,02

52 -0,04

.35 .15 .55 .35 .15 .55 .35 .15 .55 .35 .15 .55 .35 .15 .55
22 0 1 3 5 6 8 10 11 13 15 16 18 20 21
UR% Teca Var PESO

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 the violin

The chin rest equipped by a wireless board to measure T and RH inside the violin: the
miniaturized probe is set inside the end botton

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 Climatic conditions variations measured
inside the violin

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Concert monitoring
62,0 30,0

61,0

60,0
29,0
Staccata sonda
59,0

58,0

57,0 28,0 Inizio

Interrompe
56,0
Accorda
55,0 RH sens
27,0
RH amb
54,0 Paganini Paganini Paganini
Riprende Bach Bach T °C sens
Bach Capr. 13 Capr. 14 Capr. 9
53,0 Paganini X 2 temp amb
26,0
52,0 Riprende
Violino al mento Interrompe Interrompe Riprende
51,0
Bach Riprende Riprende
50,0 Riprende 25,0
Riprende Riprende Interrompe
Interrompe
49,0 Allontana violino Interrompe
Interrompe Fine concerto
48,0 Inizio concerto
24,0
47,0

46,0

45,0 23,0
17.00.02

17.01.37

17.03.12

17.04.47

17.08.44

17.11.28

17.13.14

17.15.07

17.17.00

17.18.47

17.20.39

17.22.27

17.24.14

17.26.01

17.27.48

17.29.35

17.31.22

17.33.09

17.35.02

17.36.54

17.38.47

17.40.34

17.42.33

17.44.20

17.46.18

17.48.05

17.49.52

17.51.39

17.53.32

17.55.19

17.57.17

17.59.04
5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601
R
e
s
u Concert environment and violin conditions
l
t
s

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

R
e
s
Climatic conditions and weight variations
u
l
t
s

Time to regain the equilibrium weight:

1 week

Reached weight after the concert: 432,12

Equilibrium weight before the concert: 433,10

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

R

Climatic conditions and weight variations

e
s
u
l
t
s

Time to regain the equilibrium weight:

1 week

1 g of water absorbed

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Tuning forces
T The equipped bridge
e
s mounted on the violin
t
s

A load cell that reproduce the

shape of a bridge

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R
e
s
u
l
Tuning forces
t
s

Bassbar side Soundpost side

The Fine tuning The violin is tuned up

X
tuning
starting

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 Tuning up and playing Bassbar side X
Soundpost side
forces

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R
e
s
u X
l Bassbar side Soundpost side
t
s

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 X
R
e
s Steel and other material strings
u
l
t
s
Bassbar side

Soundpost side

The loss of forces is lower for steel strings

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601
 measurement of deformation

T
e
s
t
s

The software and hardware device to

measure the deformation by optical
interferometer tecnique

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

R

Deformations
e
s
u
l
t
s

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

R
e
s
u
l
t
s

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

R
e
s
u
l
t
s

5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601

 Conclusions
• The first part of the research lays the basis to deepen the
knowledge on the visco-elastic and mechano sorptive behaviour of
the wooden ancient musical instruments;
• the weight variations measured after the concert clearly shows
that the studied instruments required about a week to recover the
previous state (before the concert );
•During the concert the presence of the player produces Hygro-
thermal variation, that affect the RH value inside the chamber and
moisture diffusion inside the wood;
• the shown deformations give indication about the mechanical
behaviour of the instrument and give information on the possible
long time loading deformations.
5-7 November 2008 – Braga – COST IE0601