BENDING OVER FRONTWARD

The making of a bent-top viola da gamba

A photographic peek inside the workshop of
Simone Zopf
(Vienna and Hallstatt, Austria)

This depiction of a bass viola da gamba from around 1600 shows clearly that the top was not constructed from one single plank or two planks of wood, as is usual in traditional violin-making, but instead, from (probably) seven or eight strips of wood joined together.

Woods used in viol making	Varnish in preparation
Bending the five strips of wood for the top	Joining the five strips of wood of the top (very similar to the technique used for the construction of lutes)
The bent belly, as seen from above	The bent top, inside view

 

 

Floral design for the peg box and scroll

The finished decoration on the scroll

End of the fingerboard

End of the fingerboard

Instrument-making School Hallstatt

Setting up a new copy of the Michael Albanus viola da gamba built in the school

Simone Zopf und José Vázquez with two recent copies of the Michael Albanus viola da gamba The original is in the foreground!