The Largest but Playable Violin in the World

2017-07-06 String Instrument News

If you think that overly large musical instruments like the violin are only for display, then think again. This gigantic size violin made by twelve luthiers in Markneukirchen, Germany can be played not by Giants, but three men. Two men will work on the bows, and one person will apply pressure on the strings to play the notes. The size of this huge violin is seven times larger compared to the normal one, with the length of fourteen feet. Its bow is seventeen feet long.

Don’t judge the instrument by its size because it has perfectly consistent proportions which are very suitable for playing. The only difference is that its three octaves lower than the range of the traditional violin. With its 130 kg weight, no one can play this violin on their shoulder. So it has to be in an upright position to be played. It requires two men to guide the bows because the bow weighs 15 kg.

Ekkard Seid who is a Master Luthier in Markneukirchen leads the team composed 15 personnel. They are composed of craftsmen and luthiers who worked round the clock to finish the instrument until its last detail. Finally, for 1700 hours, the construction is complete. It was June 14, 2010, when they launched the instrument in public and set the world record of being the largest playable violin in the world in the Guinness Book of Records. The instrument was a bigger replica of the 1^st giant violin made in the late eighteen century by Johannes Georg Shcönfelder II.