A King, a Tsar, a Marquis and a Messiah have one thing in common; they all had violin cases custom made for them. From the mundane to the magnificent, violin cases span the centuries and reflect the cultural values and aspirations of the times and societies that produced and used them. In this pioneering book devoted to violin cases, Dr Wood reveals the diversity of craft skills that have gone into their production and how these have evolved over the last four centuries.

Doomed from the beginning Marly walks alone. A rich boy, a fence, a pimp, an arms dealer, a host of grifters, and a crazed West Coast P.I. are all involved in the theft which threatens to bring war between the strongest crime family in town and another with a price on her head. When a sniper begins cleaning up loose ends, it’s a race against time. he Coldest Case Come to Chicago’s Hottest P.I. Marly Jackson. Tasked by her ex-lover Finn with finding a rare violin, the case explodes. From back-alley deals in the slums to the halls of academia, it seems everyone wants a piece of the violin, and everyone is willing to kill to get it As the mystery stretches back further and further into the past Marly must find not only the violin, but its secrets. But when dead bodies begin piling up and the players go to ground it’s down to the wire. When revenge, passion, greed, and cold-blooded betrayal dance deadly around her, can Marly stay alive long enough to get to the truth and discover what is real and what is smoke and mirrors in The Violin Case?

Excerpt from The History of the Violin: And Other Instruments Played on With the Bow From the Remotest Times to the Present, Also, an Account of the Principal Makers, English and Foreign, With Numerous Illustrations Having for many years past been in the habit of making collections respecting (among many other things) violins and instruments played on with the bow, we have ventured to lay the result of our labours before such portion of society as may feel an interest in the subject; and, as the taste for music has of late years so much increased, we may hope this may not be a small portion. Our work should strictly have been called, "Collections towards the History of the Violin," as we ourselves have not only been obliged to omit many things connected with this history, to avoid making the book too bulky and too expensive, but are fully aware that there must be many facts connected with it with which we have not been fortunate enough to meet. We may observe here, that what we have omitted, would only have been additional illustrations, or evidences in support of what we have already stated in the work, and we should be well pleased if any one competent to the task, and with better opportunity and leisure than we have had, would undertake the History in a more enlarged and important shape. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from The History of the Violin: And Other Instruments Played on With the Bow From the Remotest Times to the Present, Also, an Account of the Principal Makers, English and Foreign, With Numerous Illustrations We have stated nothing without authority, though we have not in every instance given it, it seeming scarcely necessary, as all the important ones are given, and we shall be happy on application to supply the particulars of any others in our possession. The index will refer to several, but this is itself only intended to enable the reader to find the principal subjects, as many perhaps as may be requisite, but is by no means presented as a. Complete index. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Traces the history of the instrument, from its first appearance in the mid-sixteenth century to its modern use by artists, writers, and Hollywood and discusses how the affordable, portable instrument can be used to play Beethoven, jazz, and indie rock.

*A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK* 'Utterly enthralling - a beautifully-written voyage of discovery that takes us deep into the heart of music-making' Deborah Moggach From the moment she hears Lev's violin for the first time, Helena Attlee is captivated. She is told that it is an Italian instrument, named after its former Russian owner. Eager to discover all she can about its ancestry and the stories contained within its delicate wooden body, she sets out for Cremona, birthplace of the Italian violin. This is the beginning of a beguiling journey whose end she could never have anticipated. Making its way from dusty workshops, through Alpine forests, cool Venetian churches, glittering Florentine courts, and far-flung Russian flea markets, Lev's Violin takes us from the heart of Italian culture to its very furthest reaches. Its story of luthiers and scientists, princes and orphans, musicians, composers, travellers and raconteurs swells to a poignant meditation on the power of objects, stories and music to shape individual lives and to craft entire cultures.

"A rapturous, witty, and passionate memoir ... Violin Dreams is not only the story of a man becoming an artist, it’s a history of twentieth-century music.” -- John Guare, Tony Award-winning playwright Arnold Steinhardt, for more than forty years an international soloist and the first violinist of the Guarneri String Quartet, brings warmth, wit, and fascinating insider details to the story of his lifelong obsession with the violin, that most seductive and stunningly beautiful instrument. His story is rich with vivid scenes: the terror inflicted by his early violin teachers, the sensual pleasure involved in the pursuit of the perfect violin, the charged atmosphere of high-level competitions. Steinhardt describes Bach’s Chaconne as the holy grail for the solo violin, and he illuminates, from the perspective of an ardent owner of a great Storioni violin, the history and mysteries of the renowned Italian violinmakers. Violin Dreams includes a remarkable CD recording of Steinhardt performing Bach’s Partita in D Minor as a young violinist forty years ago and playing the same piece especially for this book. A conversation between the author and Alan Alda on the differences between the two performances is included in the liner notes.

Readers may also appreciate an earlier work by the same author devoted to 'The Art & History of Violin Cases'. Like the boxes described in Messengers in Time and Echoes from the Past, violin cases have been traditionally made of wood, have a public exterior and a more private interior and are designed to house precious objects. The Art & History of Violin Cases follows the development of violin cases from the 17th century through to the present and even includes examples made by the greatest of all violin makers, Antonio Stradivari.

A town built on a landfill. A community in need of hope. A girl with a dream. A man with a vision. An ingenious idea.