Don Rickert Musical Instruments

Brief Descriptions for Various Alternative Violin Family Instruments

Introduction This post provides brief descriptions of the various alternative and extended range violin family instruments made by D. Rickert Musical Instruments. The descriptions include the normal tuning for each instrument, as well as links to other reference material about each instrument. There are two related posts: Alternative Violin Family Instruments: What Are They For? Alternative Violin Family Instruments: Relative Sizes and Shapes of Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Baritone Range Instruments Travel / Backpacker Violin... Read more →

Alternative Violin Family Instruments: Relative Sizes and Shapes of Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Baritone Range Instruments

This article, which includes a photo essay, is about the different “form factors” of various “alternative” or “non-standard” violin family instruments, all of which are made by Don Rickert Musical Instruments. With a few exceptions, the images in the photo essay part of this post are of actual instruments made in the workshop of Don Rickert Musical Instruments, located in Hiawassee, Georgia, USA by the hands of me (Donald Rickert). The exceptions are as follow:... Read more →

Alternative Violin Family Instruments: What Are They For?

Related Articles: Alternative Violin Family Instruments: Relative Sizes and Shapes of Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Baritone Range Instruments Brief Descriptions for Various Alternative Violin Family Instruments In this context, “Alternative” or “Non-Standard” bowed string instruments refer to the following: Violin Variants 5-string Violins: See 5-String Violins and Fiddles Travel / Backpacker Violins: See Travel and Backpacker Fiddles (and Violas) Octave Violins (aka Tenor Violins): See Octave Violins, 5-string Violas and Octave Violas Travel / Backpacker... Read more →

Chin Cellos (Octave Violas) AND Tenor Violas are Back!

Full disclosure: I LOVE violas, especially those that are tuned like a cello (chin cello or octave viola) or like an octave violin (tenor viola). It will be of interest to anyone who currently has, or is considering acquiring, a lower-pitched viola. The Chin Cello fad Do you remember the “chin cello” fad just a few years ago. As far as I have been able to surmise, this pretty much revolved around the apparently successful... Read more →

Alternative Violas for Non-Conformists Who Play Non-Orchestral Music

Introduction If you want to do anything with a viola, such as use it to play anything other than classical orchestral music, good luck finding a luthier who has ANY clue about what you are talking about. There are a few of us, but not many. If you are a member of the growing sub-culture of alternatively-tuned viola players, or even standard violas used for playing Old-Time, Bluegrass, Celtic, Jazz or Rock, you know what... Read more →

Octave Violins, Tenor Violas and Related Instruments from Donald Rickert

Note: This is an update to an earlier article entitled, Octave Violins, Octave Violas and Hybrids from Don Rickert Musical Instruments. With a current introduction of several new Octave Violins underway, this post is a good resource for one wanting some details on what octave violins and similar instruments (e.g. tenor violas) are, where they originated, and what they are good for. At the end of this UPDATE post there are a number of video... Read more →

Octave Violin or Violoncello da Spalla?

Update Intro: This is an update to an earlier article entitled, Do You Really Need a Violoncello da Spalla? Since publication of the original post, much has changed with respect to the instrument alternatives, including cost and variety. For example, I have rolled back prices to 2021 level on the popular Violoncello da Spalla Standard Model. See: Violoncellos da Spalla by Donald Rickert (Update Feb. 2024). We are now once again offering a decent factory-made... Read more →

What Makes the Difference Between Pretty Good and Great Acoustic Stringed Instruments? (Revised 6-2023)

This article is an update to a similar article published about a year earlier. If you really care to see the original article, see: What Makes the Difference Between Pretty Good and Great Acoustic Stringed Instruments? If you wish to discuss anything covered in this article, see Don Rickert on Linktree: https://linktr.ee/donrickert. This link gets you to ALL of my detailed contact information, my websites and social media. Introduction Before I start, what are the... Read more →

What is Tap Tuning and Why Does it Matter?

Tap-tuning is an art (grounded in science) that is shrouded in mystery. While some luthiers tap-tune only by ear, computer-assisted tap tuning allows the luthier to actually see a computer-generated frequency spectrum graph when muting a specific spot on the plate (e.g., top or back). Computer-assisted tap tuning has only been possible for a few decades. Until very recently, it was too expensive for most luthiers, as the software required used to cost hundreds to... Read more →

Donald Rickert is In the March/April 2023 Issue of Strings Magazine

I (Don Rickert) am in the March/April issue of Strings Magazine! I am honored to have been one of several experts interviewed for the article, A Pocket Full of Sound, by Karen Peterson in the March/April 2023 issue of Strings Magazine (No. 311, March/April 2023). I wish I could share the entire article here, but I am pretty sure that that would be a copyright violation. That being said, I feel pretty good about how... Read more →