Description and Background
Stroh violins are much louder than a standard wooden violin, and its directional projection of sound made it particularly useful in the early days of phonographic recording. As regular violins recorded poorly with the old acoustic-mechanical recording method, Stroh violins were common in recording studios, but became rarer after record companies switched to the new electric microphone recording technology in the second half of the 1920s. While the Stroh produces significantly more volume, it does this at the expense of tone, offering a sound that is harsher and more grating than a standard violin. On early records the Stroh violin can be recognized by its characteristically thin whining tone.
The Stroh violin was an expensive instrument: in 1911 it was offered by the London dealers Barnes & Mullins for nine guineas (£9.45, then equal to $37.80) or twelve guineas (£12.60 / $50.40) at a time when a reasonable factory violin could be had for two guineas. It was listed as being especially suitable for use in small theaters and music-halls. There was also a Stroh viola.
Read more about this topic: Stroh Violin
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