[Stephen McElroy]

In article ,
"Arny Krueger" wrote:

wrote in message
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/03/sc...old-and-new-vi
olins-stradivarius-lags.html?_r=1&ref=science

snip

As the stories go it is said they have acutely trained ears for hearing
subtle variations in sound. Here is a test of violins and those who play
them that is also a test of that notion.

Another recent article:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/no...olinists-can%E
2%80%99t-tell-the-difference-between-stradivarius-violins-and-new-ones/

seems relevant:

"Violinists can't tell the difference between Stradivarius violins and new
ones
Antique Italian violins, such as those crafted by Antonio Stradivari or
Giuseppe Guarneri "del Gesu", can fetch millions of dollars. Many
violinists truly believe that these instruments are better than newly made
violins, and several scientists have tried to work out why. Some suspected
at the unusually dense wood, harvested from Alpine spruces that grew during
an Ice Age. Others pointed the finger at the varnish, or the chemicals that
Stradivari used to treat the wood.

"But Claudia Fritz (a scientist who studies instrument acoustics) and Joseph
Curtin (a violin-maker) may have discovered the real secret to a
Stradivarius's sound: nothing at all.

"The duo asked professional violinists to play new violins, and old ones by
Stradivari and Guarneri. They couldn't tell the difference between the two
groups. One of the new violins even emerged as the most commonly preferred
instrument.

Why does a second article referring to the first seem relevant? There's
no new information.

Stephen