Don Rickert Lutherie Travel Baritone (Octave) Violin

ATTENTION!: You most likely got to this page via a search engine rather than visiting the Adventurous Muse Storefront. This is a custom-made instrument, available ONLY at our new store, Don Rickert Musical Instruments (www.RickertMusicalInstruments.com).

View additional photos of the Don Rickert Lutherie Octave Travel Violin.

The Neil Gow 22XL Travel Violin and Adventurer IId Travel Violin by Don Rickert Lutherie are perfect for producing rich and astoundingly powerful sound when strung and tuned like a fiddle or violin. If strung with fat octave strings (an octave lower than a violin), both of these wonderful instruments would be just as weak-sounding as a regular violin that some misguided optimistic soul simply strung with octave strings (a disappointing fact learned by those who try to turn their conventional fiddles into an octave fiddles).

Several years ago Darol Anger suggested that we make a baritone pochette. With the goal of developing a plausible octave travel violin, we had to figure a way to increase the internal air space substantially!...even though we have discovered ways to either circumvent or push the limits of the laws of physics with our travel / backpacker violins and fiddles, there is a finite limit to how far you can go in producing superior sound from an instrument that is theoretically too small.

We figured that we needed at least 30+ more cubic inches of internal air space for a decent-sounding octave backpacker fiddle. So, the new Don Rickert Lutherie Octave Travel Violin has approximately 35 cubic inches more internal air space than either the Neil Gow 22XL Travel Violin or the Adventurer IId. The body has essentially the same profile as the Neil Gow 22XL (i.e. plan view), which is approximately 14” long and just over 3.25” wide. The side views show how we increased the air space in the sound box.

Needless to say, the new Don Rickert Lutherie Octave Travel Violin needed a different type of case. We engineered the instrument so that it fits into either of our new square cases.

• BW Sports Square Case for Travel and Backpacker Violins
• Clear Creek Square Case for Travel and Backpacker Violins

Availability is scheduled for late June 2011

See:

• Tatooed Fiddles by Don Rickert Design (article)
• Tattooing, Inkwork, Rosing (product listing)