On Apr 25, 2005, at 4:30 PM, Christopher Smith wrote:
I just had an extended conversation with a violinist about mutes this weekend. Apparently there is quite a bit of importance attached to what the mute is made out of (most orchestra mutes in our area are hard rubber, but I heard wood and metal (!) mutes as well) and where it is attached (over the low strings, the high strings, or in the middle) and how far it is pushed down (farther dampens more.) Attaching it over the high strings was quite striking for high passages (over the staff) where it was remarkably velvety. That seems to be something that a conductor would have to ask for specifically, though, as it is considered to be fussy in the extreme.
The message seems to have been garbled here. Violin-family mutes are not attached to the strings at all: they are attached to the top of the *bridge*, and they function by increasing the mass of the bridge and thereby decreasing the efficiency w. wh. the string vibrations are transmitted to the body of the inst.
Eccentric outliers aside, there are two kinds of violin mute. The traditional mute is wood and is detached completely from the violin when not in use (it is kept in a breast pocket or on the music stand until needed). The other kind is the Roth-Sihon mute, invented in, I think, the 1940s; it consists of a rubber tube (rather like fishtank air hose) with three metal lugs inside it and a prong at each end. The prongs grab the outer strings behind the bridge (perhaps this is what is meant by a mute being "attached over the strings," but it has no effect on the sound), and the mute sits there when not in use. To apply the mute, you simply slide it up onto the bridge, where the lugs bear down on the bridge between the strings.
There is a metal version of the traditional mute, wh. is used as a practice mute in places such as hotel rooms where quiet must be maintained. I've never heard of it being used in music, but there's no reason it couldn't be.
There are pictures of both types of mute, and further discussion, in my book.
Andrew Stiller Kallisti Music Press http://home.netcom.com/~kallisti/
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