the violin maker

a timeless craft: prelude

In a world of computers and AI, consumerism and waste, it is easy to lose sight of the tangible, natural world around us and our intimate connections with it. In contrast to the materialism and frenetic pace of our modern age, this project considers the skills and craftsmanship of a tradition that goes back over 500 years and explores, at a gentle pace, the ingenuity and dexterity of the human mind and its ability to craft something extraordinarily beautiful, directly from the natural resources around us. The project explores the work of one particular violinmaker whose workshop and studio have flourished in the heart of Suffolk for over 35 years. It looks at his skills and techniques as the raw materials of different trees are transformed into an instrument of exquisite beauty and quality. It also touches on the work of a violinmaker in Venice, Riccardo Guaraldi, whose own workshop is visually remarkably similar to the one in Suffolk, with the same tools, processes and raw materials, the same quiet atmosphere of focussed concentration, and the same intoxicating aromas of wood, oil and glue.