The Rise of the Chinrest and Shoulder Rest: Their Influence on Violin Performance Practice

• Published in: Revue belge de musicologie 2019-01, Vol.73, p.47-72
• Main Author: Cnop, Ann
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0771-6788; 2034-1938

Chinrests, shoulder rests, and other tools for increasing instrument stability gradually became commonplace among late nineteenth and early twentieth century violinists and suggests that the use of these tools led to changes in left hand technique. These changes likely had a direct impact on the execution of typical nineteenth century style elements such as portamento. It is only through practice-based research that the postures and practices reported in historical documents can be tested for their effect on technique and, in turn, technique’s potential interpretive and rhetorical consequences. This approach might serve as a corrective for the present state of affairs in which historical documentation is not always considered. Some violinists stubbornly use a chin-off position for music from the early nineteenth century while others use the chinrest for the same repertoire, perhaps out of habit or convenience. Practice based research is therefore a necessary step for coming to an informed perspective on how nineteenth-century violinists played and for using that perspective in the interpretation of works historically associated with particular violinists or schools of the period.