(Technical Reference). A must for instrument owners, this guide provides illustrated step-by-step instructions for bow rehairing, repair and restoration of the violin, viola, cello and string bass. Features more than 100 richly detailed illustrations!

(String Letter Publishing). Here's the book that should have come with your violin! Written by a team of leading instrument makers, repairers and musicians, this is the one comprehensive guide to selecting, understanding, preserving and protecting any violin, from a modest fiddle to a priceless Stradivari. Richly illustrated with photographs and drawings, it covers topics including: selecting the proper instrument and bow, understanding common repairs, finding the right maker, guarding against theft, getting a good setup, protecting your violin, choosing a case, and more.

This book contains 41 chapters of detailed repair description, 125 photographs, 60 technical illustrations, & a pattern pocket with 18 patterns. Limited edition of 2000 numbered copies. A review in the international magazine THE STRAD begins, "This is an impressive looking & important book for violin makers. Produced by two of the world's leading practitioners of the craft of violin restoration, it sets out to describe the techniques used in their workshops & to make these techniques available to the violin maker who lacks easy access to training in restoration workshops." The bulletin of the Violin Society of America states, "This long-awaited text presents the art & science of violin repair in a manner so clear in its concept & so unambiguous in its language that it is as enjoyable to read as it is informative. This book should rapidly become a vital reference work for violin makers everywhere." Published & distributed by the authors, 627 North Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004.

The repair and restoration of violins has been an established craft ever since the first instrument was painstakingly assembled. Inevitably wear and tear and some excruciating accidents have made the study of stringed instrument repair a necessary element.

Are you a violin teacher, player, or parent of a new player? Would you like to know something about how violins work, and figure out what's wrong with them when they don't? Then this book is for you. I will walk you through the vocabulary you need to be able to talk knowledgeably with a luthier, teach you about maintenance, and provide you with tips to keep your instrument functioning well. Violins are great, but best when they work. If your violin needs help, start diagnosing what to do here.

The Art of Violin Making is the major work for the craftsman, bringing into one volume a summary of essential information for the violin maker and player, as well as providing a historical reference. This book is essential reading for the violin maker, repairer and historian, providing a unique record of the history, social background, lives and work of the great violin makers of the past, combined with a clear practical guide to making violins. It includes: "Part One: The Violin Makers," "Part Two: The Workshop, Tools and Materials," and "Part Three: Violin Construction."

(Unlocking the Masters). The life and music of Richard Strauss (1864-1949) span what was arguably the most turbulent period in human history, encompassing the Franco-Prussian War, the unification of Germany, and two world wars. He was one of the very last composers to have started his career in service to the old European aristocracy, but near the end of his life, the continent lay in shambles, and he faced financial ruin even as he remained Germany's greatest living composer. Virtually from the day they were written, Strauss's tone poems from the late nineteenth century works such as Don Juan , Till Eulenspiegel , Also Sprach Zarathustra , and Death and Transfiguration have been repertory standards. So have the operas Salome , Elektra , and Der Rosenkavalier . And yet a tremendous quantity of very good music, both early and late, has only recently come to the attention of musicians and music lovers alike. This "owner's manual," accompanied by full-length audio tracks, surveys all the major works with orchestra: symphonies, concertos, tone poems, operas, ballets, suites, and songs. Many of them will be new even to listeners familiar with the popular pieces, part of a vast legacy of immaculately crafted, beautiful music that deserves to be rediscovered and treasured.