Cello based on G B Ruggieri |
return to work in progress October 2007 I've made this cello model quite a few times over the years, since its owner, David Strange, currently head of strings at the Royal Academy of Music, kindly let me measure it up. It's quite a rare cello - G B Ruggieri died relatively young, and there are more instruments in existence made by his father, Francesco. The family was interesting in being amongst the first to make cellos of the size which was later standardised by Stradivari. The model of this cello is fairly wide, which helps to give it a warm, rich sound with a strong and powerful C string.
November 2007
December 2007
February 2008
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I've
started, as I often do, by carving the scroll. The original cello
has a later, replacement head, so I am using as a model a head from a
Francesco Ruggieri cello. It's an elegant, strong shape. The
head is carved from a solid block of maple.
I've
chosen a lovely piece of maple for the back - it's very slow-grown with
fine grain lines, an attractive regular figure and little birdseye-type
knots. There is a lot of wood to remove before the arching emerges
from the large block of wood, and the bulk of it is take off with
a large gouge.
The
ribs are made from strips of maple which match the back, planed down to
1.5mm thick. They are bent with steam and heat to fit round a
mould.
Having
finished the ribs, I've finalised the outlines of the back and front and
planed the arching of the back close to its final shape. This is a
stage I particularly enjoy; after a long time working with a rather
shapeless lump of wood, the cello sheds its "puppy fat" and
the elegant curves of the arching emerge gracefully from the shavings.
The
next stage is to inlay the purfling in the back and the front. I
cut a channel all round the edges, then bend and trim the purfling
strips to fit before gluing them in to place.
I've
had a break from working on the cello in the form of a trip to
France to buy some wood. I paid a visit to my favourite woodyard
which is in the Jura region, not far from the Swiss border. I've
stocked up on over 20 viola backs and several sets of cello wood, all of
lovely quality - light, slow-grown and beautiful wood. So now it's
back to work again on the new cello. The purfling inlaid, I've
finished the arching of the back and front. It's quite high for
this model of cello, which I like - there's lots of character in the
shape.
Now
that the arching is finished, it's time to hollow out the back and
front. The bulk of the wood is removed with a large gouge, which
is quite slow work, but it is satisfying to feel the wood almost come to
life as it becomes thinner and more vibrant, and the information I pick
up about the way the wood responds to the gouge helps me to decide on
the final thickness.
Having
satisfactorily finished the thicknessing, I've cut the f-holes in the
front.
I've
now finished the inside of the rib structure; reducing the blocks and
linings to their final shape, and glued the ribs to the back. This
is another of my favourite stages of making the cello - it's lovely to
see the instrument beginning to come together, and to feel light and
vibrant in my hands.
The
cello is now ready to glue together - I've fitted and shaped the bass
bar inside the front, and finished off the
inside of the back and ribs, including gluing in my label.
Once
the body of the cello was together, I fitted the neck. It's a
tricky job, to get it aligned correctly in the cello and fitting at the
right angle. That done, I've shaped it carefully so that it will
feel comfortable in the player's hand.
And,
at last, just before Christmas, the cello is finished "in the
white". Every time I get to this stage with making a cello, I
feel an enormous high, but also a sense of sadness, as the work that has
been my daily preoccupation for more than two months now moves into the
slower varnishing stage.
The
cello is now finished. The varnishing process is complex - first
the cello is stained a warm golden colour, then sealed to protect the
wood and to stop the coloured varnish sinking into the grain of the
wood. Finally, the cello had two coats of golden-brown oil
varnish. Once the varnish had hardened,
I was able to set up the cello, using high-quality handmade fittings and
a carefully cut bridge. It's sounding well - even, powerful,
focussed and resonant.