Wall Independent
Violin & Viola Set-up, Repair and
Restoration
Douglas
Wall
585-392-3478
Hours
by Appointment only
Email: dwall2
(at) Rochester.rr.com
(You know what I mean. To avoid email
harvesters)
Wall Independent specializes in violin
and viola set-up, repair, restoration, and sales. Hilton, NY is located near
the south shore of Lake Ontario, just northwest of Rochester, NY. We are about
a 25 minute drive from the center of Rochester. (How to find us) We are located a short
drive from the towns in western
My training includes
courses with Hans Nebel at the Massachusetts College
of Liberal Arts Violin Workshops. This includes both external and internal
repairs, proper set-up, and some restoration work.
In June of 2007,
I continued my education with a week of training in bow rehairing
and some other bow work with Lynn Armour Hannings at the University of New Hampshire, and a week of
varnish retouching
with Hans Nebel at MCLA.
My training continued in June of 2008,
with a week of neck resetting with Hans Nebel at
MCLA.
In June 2009, I
continued my education with another workshop at MCLA. It was a pleasure working
with master restorer Hans J. Nebel again. The topic
for this years workshop was
block replacement
and rib repair.
June 2010 found me back to MCLA for another week long workshop with Hans
J. Nebel. The topic for this year was “Advanced crack
repair and reinforcement”.
The 2011 workshop will be on neck grafting, fingerboards, and ebony
button crowns.
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LATEST
NEWS FROM WALL INDEPENDENT
04/11 This year’s workshop
at MCLA will be on neck grafting.
This involves replacing the neck between the body of the violin, and the pegbox. This allows us to keep the original pegbox and scroll, which are often part of the signature of
the maker.
10/10 I have several
very nice restored instruments for sale, and a very nice, new, Johannes Kohr violin for sale.
I’ll be continuing to work on a few others that are
in process.
Here’s an interesting article about Hans J. Nebel, my violin restoration teacher for the past five summers
at MCLA.
04/10 You can also
connect with me on Facebook. I’ve set up a discussion
area, where you can ask questions, or discuss a violin related topic.
11/09 I needed to get some “Bow Bags” to protect my client’s bows after rehairing. These are 1.5 mil poly bags, 2” wide, and about 34”long. To keep my cost down, I purchased a
large quantity of this material, and I’m offering the bags for sale to luthiers and shops. I’m making them up in bunches of ten,
and bags of 50 (five bunches of ten)
Prices: $3.00/10, $14.00/50. NYS sale tax applies
to New York sales. Shipping will be determined by quantity.
See my Shop page for more details. Click this link. Bow
Bags
09/09 I have just become an authorized dealer for the fine line of instruments
and accessories carried by the Howard
Core Company. Their line includes the Kohr instruments, and a wide variety of accessories including their own
line of cases, and the exceptional cases offered by GEWA and Negri.
06/09 I’ve just
returned from another workshop with master restorer, Hans J. Nebel. This years
topic was block replacement and rib repair. The instruments that I had along to
work on didn’t have any really tricky repairs (I just replaced blocks and
linings, and shortened ribs), but one of the interesting things in the class is
to see how other luthiers in the class are dealing
with repairs on their instruments. Master violin maker Sonja St. John was one
of the other attendees, and she did a masterful job of repairing a through hole
in a rib.
Master restorer Hans
J. Nebel putting a patch under
the upper block area in an instrument, prior to replacing
the block and
reattaching the ribs
04/09 I’m
offering an experimental bow head spline material to
my fellow luthiers. This is a Micarta
sheet, about 0.028” thick. It’s available for $3.00 (US) plus a stamped, self
addressed envelope, for a 3 inch by 6 inch sheet (enough for many bows!).
Contact me for further details. See “What’s in the Shop”.
01/09 Here’s
something that I’ll be evaluating. The Wrist Assistant™.
It’s to help students learn correct wrist posture.
Click on the picture for a link to Wristassistant.com.
I should have one in for evaluation
soon. If I get interest in this product, I’ll stock some for my local clients,
at a very reasonable price.
10/08 Latest
updates to the “Latest in the Shop” pages will be indexed, and show some updates
on projects.
07/08 We just
got back from a two week tour in Ireland with the Dady
Brothers. Had a great time! Saw lots, and heard some great music. Click here for details
Organ Trophy
(1724), St. Michan’s Church,
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I am pleased to be able to
offer the following lines of instruments and accessories to my clients:
The John Juzek™
line of new instruments.
The fine line of
Eastman Strings instruments.
Fine Instruments
and cases from the Howard Core Company,
including Kohr
instruments, Core cases, GEWA and Negri cases.
Cadenza and K. Holtz bows from Eastman
Strings.
Kun™ Shoulder rests,
D’Addario bowed
strings.
As I am mostly a luthier,
and my shop is in my home, my stock of new instruments and cases is limited.
Please contact me if you’re interested in any of the instruments or cases from
my suppliers to discuss price and availability.
I’ll also be carrying some other
accessories such as rosin. I’ll continue to expand my offerings to fill the
needs of my clients. If you have something that you would like to get, or have me carry, contact me to see if I have it, or can get it for
you.
Thinking
of buying an inexpensive violin from an internet dealer? Click on the VSO link
below.
|
(Violin
Shaped Object) |
My philosophy:
Quality work at a reasonable price, and have the instrument back to the
player’s hands as soon as possible.
Wall Independent currently accepts cash or checks. New York State
sales pay NYS sales tax (Monroe County, 8%).
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Some of the services that I can provide are:
*Cleaning and
polishing
*Fingerboard planing
and replacement
*String
installation
*Peg fitting
and replacement
*Soundpost setting and
replacement
*Peg hole bushings
*Bridge adjustment and
replacement
*Internal repairs, including bassbar work
*Nut adjustment
and
replacement
*Varnish touch-up
*Crack and seam repairs *Neck resetting
*Bow
rehairing and minor repairs
I will work with you to determine how
much work needs to be done to bring your instrument into playable condition and
present you with an estimate for the work. My prices should be competitive to,
or lower than many other shops.
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So, you’ve got this old fiddle that you found in
the attic
What will it take to get
it into nice playing condition? That will depend on what repairs and
restorations need to be done. In the best cases, it might just need a good
cleaning and some new strings. Old “attic” violins in this condition are a
minority. Most will need at least some repairs and adjustment. Most commonly, I
see instruments with some open glue joints, worn out pegs, cracks, worn finger
boards, and poorly fitted bridges. In many cases, repairing cracks will require
opening up the body. In some cases, the cost of the repairs can exceed the
value of the instrument. In some cases, I can use slightly non-traditional
repairs to “salvage” these instruments at a slightly lower cost.
Let’s take a look at
some repairs.
Crack repair- This
instrument had extensive cracks in the belly. Part of this was caused by
extreme thinness in the lower part. This picture shows the cleating
that was necessary to repair the cracks. The linen patches in the thin areas
will prevent further cracking without excessively stiffening the area.
Pegbox
bushing- This is a fairly common repair. As the pegs are used, there is some
wear and enlargement of the holes. When it gets to the point where the holes
are too large to fit new pegs, bushings are in order. Shown here are spiral
bushings. These are very strong, and less intrusive than full bushings. These
are also used to help repair some pegbox cracks.
Bass bar replacement. –
Not commonly done, but in the picture shown, it was a necessary part of a crack
repair right at the bass bar.
Bridge
replacement- Necessary in the case of any neck angle change, or if the bridge
gets broken. Neck angles can shift as instruments age, or be the result of
repairs. Fingerboard replacement will also require a new bridge. Very
inexpensive instruments are often not set up well, and may reqiure bridge
replacement or adjustment.
BOWS
Yes, I can also do bow rehairing, and some
repairs such as tip and frog repairs. Below are before
and after pictures of a ca. 1897 bow that I’ve worked on. The pearl eyes and
slide on the frog were replaced, and a new grip was installed. The bow was also
rehaired.
The pernambuco used to make fine bows has
recently been declared an endangered species. There are only about 1200 trees
left! I support the efforts of the International Pernambuco
Conservation Initiative (IPCI). One dollar from each bow rehair
will be donated to help with efforts to plant trees in Brazil to insure that
future generations will be able to play with pernambuco
bows. Conservation efforts also include keeping old bows in playing condition. Old
bows that many would consider to be junk can be refurbished and turned into
decent student bows.
Click on the picture to link to the ICPI website.
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INSTRUMENT RENTALS:
I’m just starting to
carry a few instruments (violins and violas) for rentals. I’ll adjust the
number as time goes on to cover the demand. If you’d like to rent an
instrument, and I don’t have one, I can probably get one in about a week.
** Instruments, Bows, and Accessories For Sale
and Rent **
Click above to see the instruments and accessories that we have
available.
USED/ VINTAGE
INSTRUMENTS AND BOWS:
My interest in repair
and restoration leads me to seek out instruments to work on for my own
collection, to play, and to restore for resale to a new owner. I would be interested
to hear of any old instruments or bows for sale. Condition is, of course, along
with the quality of the instrument or bow, a major factor in its value, either
bought or sold.
The
instrument on the right is a Fiddl-ette ca. 1930.
This unusual instrument was sold by the Gamble Hinged Music Co..
It was originally created by Edwin H. Bergh and Carl Wheeler Mott as
an inexpensive student instrument. It was only produced in limited numbers for
a very few years, and sold in the Illinois and Wisconsin areas. (from my
personal collection) Click on the picture for an
enlarged view
Find out more about the
Fiddl-ette at http://www.vandercook.edu/archives/collections/hvbergh.htm
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In order to show the
type of repair/restoration work that I’m doing, I’ve set up a page so that you
can see some of my current and past projects.
Check here often to see what’s new.
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Wall Independent is pleased to be an authorized dealer for Eastman
Strings, Metropolitan Music, Howard Core, GEWA and Negri
cases, and D’Addario Strings.
Because
of my low overhead, I can order these instruments and accessories for my
clients at a considerable discount from the list price. I will also do a
complete check on each instrument before I release it from my shop. I can also
custom outfit many of these instruments with your choice of strings, pegs, tailpiece and chinrest.
For example, If you see a Juzek,
Eastman Strings, or Howard Core instrument that you like, but would prefer
Dominant strings and Rosewood fittings, I can probably do that for you at a
reasonable cost. Contact me for details
You can see the entire line of Juzek instruments
at:
You can see the entire line of Eastman
Strings instruments and bows at:
Here’s a link to the fine
instruments, cases, and accessories offered by the Howard Core Company:
Wall Independent is also a dealer for D’Addario products
I’ll be keeping a stock of bowed strings to
support my repair and restoration business and to sell to my local clients.
I’ll be stocking :
(Current prices are listed.
Prices may need to be adjusted, depending on my costs.)
Prelude violin strings (steel core) $18.00 (violin)
Pro-Arte violin
strings (Perlon core) $28.00 (violin)
Helicore violin and viola strings (multi-strand steel
core) $38.00 (violin 4/4)
I’ve used the Zyex strings on several instrument, with very nice
results. I’ll be using these strings for a lot of my restorations.
$40.00 (violin 4/4)
I’ll be offering other D’Addario products (on a
special order basis) to my clients, at a substantial discount from the list
price. Contact me for details.
I’ll also be keeping Thomastik-Infeld
Dominant strings in stock, $42.00 (violin
4/4, med).
I
can order most other strings on a special order basis, usually at very
competitive prices. Turn around time for special orders,
is usually 3-4 days. Contact me for a price quote and availability.
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Wall Independent also does
custom woodworking, custom assemblies, and consulting.
I also have experience in other fields. My original
career was as a chemist, with 34 years at Eastman Kodak. I’ve also done some
nice furniture, that
you can see by clicking on the kink below. My experience with Townsend
Associates has included responsibility for some innovative mounting designs for
some of the artwork, and the associated LED lighting. Quite a few of the pieces
that I’ve worked on can be seen at the Milon Townsend
link below. .
Please contact us for further information.
Here’s a link to some other interesting stuff in our
world.
Check out Michael’s Guitar Page!
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Visit some of
our interesting neighbors and friends at their websites:
The
Dady Brothers. Great musicians and friends! 
www.dadybros.com
Fine
Glass Art from Milon Townsend at: 
http://www.milontownsend.com
More
great Glass Art from Sabra Richards at: 
http://web.mac.com/sabrarichards
Some
great quilts and fabric art from Anne Fischer at: 
http://annemfischer.com/index.html
Bernunzio’s Uptown Music: 
http://bernunzio.com/
We
don’t do guitars. Stutzmans is great for that: 
http://www.stutzmansguitarcenter.com/
Violin
and viola instruction in 
http://www.greecestrings.com/
A
comprehensive listing of violin shops around the world: 
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Here’s a link to some other interesting stuff in our
world.
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St.
Cecilia
Patron Saint of Musicians
and Luthiers
“sub titulo Sancta Caecilia”