About my violins

I would like to take this post to give a little background on my violins. I have named all three of them, and will refer to them by their names from now on, so it would probably be a good thing if you knew what they were.

Fez:
Fez is short for Foreign Exchange Student, and he is my VSO (I'll have a post on VSOs coming soon). I found Fez at my local luthier's shop, and for $100 (case included), I got a brand new Chinese manufactured, "hand crafted" violin. Fez lived at school for my freshman year of high school, and ever since then he has occupied the back corner of my room, but he'll be passed on to my brother to play next year. On Fez, I play Red Label strings, which are about as cheap as they come (around $20 a set).

Baby:
Baby is my middle quality violin made in America by my local luthier in 2009. She was brand new when I got her and I have loved her rich tone quality ever since. One of the best things about buying an instrument new is that it will only sound better with time, and her sound has definitely matured since I got her. Baby now lives at school full time, and comes home to visit on weekends and holidays. On Baby, I play Pirastro's Evah Pirazzi line.

Jimmy:
Jimmy is the best out of the three of my violins. He is also a relatively new instrument as far as violins are concerned. I believe he was made in 2006? Also a Chinese instrument. He has also grown into his sound wonderfully, and after two years of intense play, his sound is better than ever. This is the only one of my three instruments that was previously owned, and it makes me wonder about his previous life with whoever played him. Jimmy was purchased in Philadelphia, and when searching for a new violin, he (and the others I tested) had to be shipped to my house via various music stores across the region. He showed up in a case holding one other violin, and as soon as I opened it, he appealed to me right away. After a road trip to Philly, Jimmy was mine. On him, I play Obligato strings which I am forced to change about twice a year due to the frequency and intensity of my play.

(I'll have another post on string types and how they affect play later as well.)