Best fiddle strings for tuning down to B

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hpinson
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Re: Best fiddle strings for tuning down to B

Post by hpinson »

I wanted to add that tuning up and down a lot is not particularly good for older violins. The strain on the neck can unseat the neck from the block or even snap a neck of a violin that was designed for gut strings. This would apply to tuning down but moreso tuning back up. Synthetic core strings - Nylon, Perlon, or Silk core strings (G, D, A) and like Dominants place less tension on the neck than do steel core stings like Supersensitive Red Label, D'Addario Helicore or Prim. I'd be inclined to use synthetic core strings if you do a lot of this, or dedicate a violin to the different tuning.
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Re: Best fiddle strings for tuning down to B

Post by highland-piper »

MTGuru wrote:I do wonder about the transposing bit, though.

On the instruments I play where I can transpose and play more or less freely in any key (e.g. guitar, Boehm winds, English concertina), playing tunes in "off" keys turns them into a weird sort of transposition exercise that feels very different from normal, though it may be fun in its own way.
I can't transpose, even with paper and time, but I saw this girl play a gig with my wife. The girl played cello. She read treble cleff upside down and transposed it (from a flat key to a sharp one) simultaneously. It was pretty crazy.
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Re: Best fiddle strings for tuning down to B

Post by NicoMoreno »

@Benhall - the other reason to tune to match the pipes is that calling them "B" or "C" pipes is a matter of convenience. My own flat set is not at B relative to A440, but quite a bit flat of that.

My wife has a second fiddle tuned to match, and that's really the best thing to do. Just think of it like Baroque tuning... A no longer equals 440, but rather something like A=360.
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