Music – Instruments – Stringed
Patent
1981-01-14
1983-06-28
Franklin, Lawrence R.
Music
Instruments
Stringed
84280, G10G 500
Patent
active
043899161
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention refers to a support for string instruments belonging to the violin family which, when played upon, are kept in position between the jaw bone and the collar bone, suitably with the aid of an anatomically well shaped chin-rest with a suitable protuberance.
The need for an ergonomically designed violin support which can be adjusted to the player's body contour and length of neck, also usable with the larger viola and other instruments, is well known.
PRIOR ART
Violinists whose bodyshapes necessitate a support can often not find a really satisfying one. Some commercially available supports gradually cause injuries to the spinal column, its muscles and nerves due to their insufficence. Consequently, professionals, after long periods of working with more or less unsuitable modes of playing causing tensioned twisted necks and bent head-bearings, tend to be still more frequent cases for medical practitioners, orthopedes and neurologists all over the world.
Also, certain designs of supports have negative acoustic influences due to the vibration of the instrument created by their heaviness, unsuitable contact points with the instrument, e.g., springing hooks and/or strong rubber bands transmitting pressure upon the violin's "corpus" thus affecting an undesirable influence on the instrument's behaviour. Very often such known supports tend to fall off from the instrument.
Analysis of the anatomic functions when playing the violin as well as the mounting possibilities on the instrument have shown that only certain parts of the player's body as well as of the violin may be used to attach the support. By using said parts the left shoulder, arm and hand may be relieved from the burden of supporting the instrument in the playing position for the benefit of the physiologically complicated labor of playing. The violinist can thus be able to hold the instrument between the jawbone and the collarbone with an almost normal position of neck and head simultaneously, with minor disturbances affecting the vibrating instrument by attaching the support to its least vibrating spot with minimal contact surfaces.
THE INVENTION
The ergonomically designed violin support according to the invention is practical in use, may be bent to conform with the player's body, and adjusted to suit his neck as well as to the desired horizontal direction in relation to his body. Besides, its insignificant weight and slim dimensions permit it to be kept in the case close to the violin.
The basic idea of the invention will be described below with reference to the enclosed drawings which show a preferred embodiment of the support according to the invention. FIGS. 1a, b, c show the support mounted to the indicated instrument viewed from three positions with some details shown separately for the sake of clarity. The approximate location of the support on the human body is shown in FIG. 2 by an intersection (a) through the region of the shoulder blade, showing also the thorax and the collar bone, viewed from the side (b), from behind (c) and a view seen from behind-downwards (d).
The violin support in the Figs. consist of a bow member (1) bent mainly in a single curve to suit the contour of the human body, with a flat-oval cross-section (14), which with the instrument in playing position deviates at a suitable angle of about 45 degrees downwards from the indicated prolonged bottom-plane of the instrument, directed against the player where the bow shanks (32,42) straddles the player's chest and trapezoid muscle. The soft contoured rear shank-tip (9) rests at a point at the player's back (musculus trapezius) located between the 2nd and 4th vertebra and between the spinal column and the shoulder-blade. From this support-point the bow (1) almost contours the body to the collar bone (FIG. 2) against which the bow's projecting part (2), adjustable along the bow, rests, suitably covered with an elastic pad (12). This is the spot where the main load put on the chin-rest plus the load received from the center of gravity of t
REFERENCES:
patent: 560053 (1896-05-01), Strong
patent: 1199685 (1916-09-01), Gaylord
patent: 1431007 (1922-10-01), Kenne
patent: 2489101 (1949-11-01), Mills
Hampton: "Introduction to the Basic Mechanisms," U.S. Naval Institute, Annapolis, Md., p. 228, 1956.
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