A Bit About My Lowendall Fiddle

My fiddle is a trade violin from around the turn of the 19th century. It's got a Lowendall label inside and from what I understand from various articles circulating on the Internet, these violins were available via mail order from the Sears Roebuck catalog. Luthiers and collectors give these violins various rankings as apparently quality varied instrument to instrument.

Myself, I am quite pleased with it. It is a very sweet sounding fiddle yet very robust. Although it is setup with an alloy tail piece with fine tuners to accommodate numerous changes in tunings, I do have a few carryovers from my classical days. I love my Guarneri chinrest and I still swear by my Kun shoulder rest. Plus, I'm hooked on synthetic strings (girlie fingers, I guess) so I've got "Louie" strung up with Pirastro Tonicas.

My bows are nothing special, but seem to suit me fine. One is an old unmarked Pernambucco round bow with a decided curve to the left in it that probably shouldn't be there and with hair about as unmanageable as mine. The other is a newer Brazilwood octagonal bow that is straight as an arrow and neat as a pin, hence lacking the character of my other one. They both see quite a bit of action depending upon my mood.