A chinrest is a shaped piece of wood (or plastic) attached to the body of a

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

or a

viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

to aid in the positioning of the player's jaw or chin on the instrument. The chinrest may be made of

ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when ...

rosewood Rosewood refers to any of a number of richly hued timbers, often brownish with darker veining, but found in many different hues. True rosewoods All genuine rosewoods belong to the genus ''Dalbergia''. The pre-eminent rosewood appreciated ...

boxwood ''Buxus'' is a genus of about seventy species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood. The boxes are native to western and southern Europe, southwest, southern and eastern Asia, Africa, Madagascar, northernmost South ...

, or

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adapta ...

History

The chinrest was invented by

Louis Spohr Louis Spohr (, 5 April 178422 October 1859), baptized Ludewig Spohr, later often in the modern German form of the name Ludwig, was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Highly regarded during his lifetime, Spohr composed ten symphonies, t ...

in the early 19th century, about 1820. Historically, this has been explained as a response to increasingly difficult repertoire which demanded freer left hand techniques than had previously been used; however, Spohr intended his small block attached to the bout to protect the tailpiece, which he reportedly broke with his vigorous playing. However, after being promoted by prominent violinists of the day, such as

Pierre Baillot Pierre Marie François de Sales Baillot (1 October 1771 – 15 September 1842) was a French violinist and composer born in Passy. He studied the violin under Giovanni Battista Viotti and taught at the Conservatoire de Paris together with Pierre R ...

and

Giovanni Battista Viotti Giovanni Battista Viotti (12 May 1755 – 3 March 1824) was an Italian violinist whose virtuosity was famed and whose work as a composer featured a prominent violin and an appealing lyrical tunefulness. He was also a director of French and Italia ...

, it gained quick acceptance among most violists & violinists and is today considered a standard part of the viola and violin.

Chinrest attachment

The chinrest is attached to the instrument by one or two metal clamps that hook over the edge of the back. One or two turnbuckles or machine screws provide slight clamping tension to hold the chinrest in place. In most cases, two screws are joined by a metal bar that conforms to the back edge of the instrument, whereas "Hill-style" clamps are used in a pair, each clamp having its own foot and its own screw, with no bar joining them. The clamps and the chinrest itself are usually padded with

cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hog ...

, or

felt Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood ...

where they contact the instrument to minimize damage to the wood. For side-mount chinrests, the clamp is placed on the bass side of the instrument; center-mount rests are placed so that the chinrest straddles the

tailpiece A tailpiece is a component on many stringed musical instruments that anchors one end of the strings, usually opposite the end with the tuning mechanism (the scroll, headstock, peghead, etc.). Function and construction The tailpiece anchors t ...

. The latter may be considered a safer installation, as the clamps get support from the bottom block, and there is less chance that overtightening will cause damage. A special pin wrench may be used for easy adjustment of the clamp tension without damaging the rib of the violin. The clamps of some modern chinrests are adjusted with a

Torx Torx (pronounced ) is a trademark for a type of screw drive characterized by a 6-point star-shaped pattern, developed in 1967, Bernard F. Reiland, "Coupling arrangement and tools for same", filed 1967-03-21 by Camcar Textron. A popular generic ...

or small Phillips screwdriver, or with a

hex key Hex keys of various sizes Socket head screws of various sizes A hex key (also, hex wrench, Allen key and Allen wrench) is a simple driver for bolts or screws that have heads with ''internal'' hexagonal recesses (sockets). Hex keys are form ...

Types

Spohr's original design called for a small block of wood to be centered over the tailpiece, but soon evolved. Today, there are at least 50 different types of chinrests available. One of the most popular type of chinrest is the "

Guarneri The Guarneri (, , ), often referred to in the Latinized form Guarnerius, is the family name of a group of distinguished luthiers from Cremona in Italy in the 17th and 18th centuries, whose standing is considered comparable to those of the Amati an ...

" type, whose attachment is centered over the

with the cup for the chin to the left of the tailpiece. Some players prefer a chinrest with the cup centered over the tailpiece. The " Flesch" chinrest is of this type. As described in the preceding section, some chinrests attach to the left of the end button. Chinrests are available in different heights and shapes. Violin and viola pedagogue

Susan Kempter Susan Kempter is an American violin teacher and prominent Suzuki teacher trainer who specializes in applying interdisciplinary research to music pedagogy. She is an active promoter of teaching students to play musical instruments with both physical ...

advocates having a

luthier A luthier ( ; AmE also ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. The word "luthier" is originally French and comes from the French word for lute. The term was originally used for makers o ...

customize the chinrest by shaping it to fit the player's jaw properly and either raising or reducing the height until it fits the player's neck height as well.

Other considerations

The chinrest should be placed so it does not touch or buzz against the tailpiece or belly of the instrument. Pressure from the chinrest against the player's skin can result in a common irritation known as "

fiddler's neck Fiddler's neck is an occupational disease that affects violin and viola players. It is a cutaneous condition usually characterized by redness, thickening, and inflammation on the left side of the neck below the angle of the jaw where the instrume ...

" or "plague". It can also be caused by bacteria or fungus living on the wood or by an allergic reaction to the metals used in the chinrest. Some players prefer to use a

cloth Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

, such as a

handkerchief A handkerchief (; also called a hankie or, historically, a handkercher or a ) is a form of a kerchief or bandanna, typically a hemmed square of thin fabric which can be carried in the pocket or handbag for personal hygiene purposes such as wi ...

, to cover the chinrest, to avoid this irritation and make playing more comfortable. Several types of padded fabric slipcovers are also commercially available. They may not only cover the chinrest cup, but also extend to provide a barrier between the metal clamp hardware and the skin—beneficial if the hardware is plated with

nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow to ...

and the player is

allergic Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, refer a number of conditions caused by the hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include hay fever, food allergies, atopic der ...

to the metal. Hypo-allergenic chinrests (with plastic or titanium fittings) are also available. Vociferous debate may be elicited in some circles by suggesting that a violin sounds better without a chinrest, or that better technique and posture is developed without it. The chinrest did not significantly increase the playability of the violin. It has been suggested that Paganini played without a chinrest, and there is significant evidence to suggest; he played mostly on a short-necked violin more akin to the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

instrument, and used gut strings, and is always depicted in his famous posture—that is further suggestion he isn't using a chinrest. A few professionals today also eschew the use of a chinrest on their modern instruments.

External links

Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht Faculty of Music experimental study on high chinrests

References