Scala Vilagio F.H. Gasparo da Salo Viola
Viola
- Handmade in Germany by master violin maker Florian Hertzsch
- Top made of Alpine spruce
- Back, sides and scroll made of flamed maple
- Ebony fingerboard
- Boxwood fittings
- Antique oil varnish, made with amber by the luthier according to an Italian formula
- Thin layer of varnish for freely vibrating wood
- Traces of wear and tear modelled on old Italian violins
- Final sound adjustment carried out via bridge and sound post
- Back length: 392 mm / 15.5"
- Bridge position: 209 mm
- Neck length: 139 mm
- Scale: 351 mm
- Strings: Thomastik Dominant
- Includes certificate and Jakob Winter viola case 51015 VIBE
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Available since March 2024
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Item number 588345
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Sales Unit 1 piece(s)
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Size 15,5"
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Flamed Back Yes
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Fingerboard Ebony
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Including Case Yes
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Including Bow No
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Model, Style G. da Salo - 1580
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Top Spruce
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Back and Sides Maple
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Neck & Head Maple
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Tailpiece Boxwood
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Chin Rest Boxwood
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Tuning Pegs Boxwood
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A viola with a past
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Gasparo da Salò had an almost unparalleled influence on Baroque luthiery: At once a musician, a craftsman, and an innovator, his life's work was celebrated even in his lifetime. The Scala Vilagio F.H. Gasparo da Salò Viola is a testament to his influence – a replica that reproduces in every detail one of his earlier violas, from the year 1580. Although da Salò and the Brescian School he founded were principally famous for their violins, a viola like this is perhaps an even better example of his musical philosophy: The goal was always to achieve a powerful, dark tone, with a deep, projecting resonance. The instrument produces this rich colouration despite its astonishing lightness and playability, factors which are primarily the result of its 15.5" scale length – short for a viola, even for the time. More important for the tone are, instead, the generous curvature of the top and the long, wide F-holes.
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Well-researched, well-tuned
In creating his Scala Vilagio F.H. Gasparo da Salò Viola, the master violinmaker Florian Hertzsch (this is what the F.H. in the instrument's name stands for) took pains to use historically authentic woods. The top is made of well-seasoned Alpine spruce, with the rest of the body made from very distinctively quilted maple, one of da Salò's trademarks. The fittings are made of boxwood, a hardwood that was also used in the region around Brescia before tropical ebony became commonplace. This viola is thus a mixture of tradition and modernity – the tonewoods were specially selected to give a precise acoustic response, being tested beforehand to ensure their resonance with certain frequencies, as well as their robustness.
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Delightful playability
Before the dimensions of the orchestral strings as we know them today were codified and standardised, master craftsmen like da Salò in particular experimented with form – curvature, bout width, scale length – to achieve the desired tone: In this case, direct, warm, almost earthy. One result of this freeness was the 1580 original model for this replica, a small, broad, and yet harmoniously proportioned viola. As such, it's especially well suited both to smaller violists and to violinists who occasionally dabble in the alto clef. This accessible playability is underlined by the ebony fingerboard: Although it is quite unlikely that solid ebony would have been used in this way in 1580, it is typical for instruments of this kind (and in fact demonstrably so for this historically well-documented piece) to have had parts such as this replaced and modernised over the centuries.
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About Scala Vilagio
Scala Vilagio is a Thomann-exclusive brand that offers-high quality bowed string instruments, as well as professional accessories. The products are made exclusively from sustainably grown European woods that have been naturally dried over a long period of time. The instruments are precisely built by master violin makers according to the same traditional methods as their most legendary forebears: Besides Stradivarius and Guarneri del Gesù, the range also includes instruments by other grandmasters such as Nicolò Amati and Giovanni Paolo Maggini. Each one has a unique tonal palette, giving modern players a chance to own a piece of musical history. Scala Vilagio's extensive range originates with numerous expert craftspeople, based in Franconia, the Carpathians, and Czechia (among other places), and who build each instrument by hand in the tradition of the old masters.
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Hands-on history
This viola was made with the most exacting adherence to historical methods, but it is anything but a museum exhibit. In his Bavarian workshop, Florian Hertzsch makes musical instruments for musicmaking, combining a love for authentic techniques with hi-tech acoustic analysis. This approach is further reflected in the accessories that come with the Scala Vilagio F.H. Gasparo da Salò Viola, from the Thomastik strings – hand-wound in Vienna – to the robust Jakob Winter case, with its removable backpack straps. An experienced musician looking to treat themselves to an instrument like this will usually own a number of bows already, but of course Scala Vilagio also offer a number of suitable bows with a variety of fittings and finishes.
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Scala Vilagio Acoustic Violas at a glance
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