English violet

What it means

The English violet is a largely obsolete string instrument whose sympathetic strings, running beneath the fingerboard and bridge, are set into vibration by the bowed melody strings. These additional strings are not bowed directly but vibrate sympathetically, giving the sound a shimmering, overtone-rich resonance.

Musical use

The instrument belongs to the family of sympathetic-string instruments of the Baroque, which existed in various forms during the 17th and 18th centuries and were meant to lend the string sound a particular, soft fullness. Like other instruments in this family, the English violet fell largely into disuse after the Baroque era and is today built and played only occasionally, within the context of historically informed performance practice.

The English violet should be distinguished from the better-known viola d'amore, with which it shares the principle of sympathetic strings but differs in construction and regional distribution. It differs fundamentally from ordinary string instruments without sympathetic strings, such as the standard viola, through its additional, sympathetically vibrating set of strings.

Performance practice

When playing an instrument with sympathetic strings such as the English violet, aim for a calm, even bow stroke, since abrupt movements tend to disturb rather than support the delicate sympathetic vibration of the resonance strings. Listen deliberately for the resonance that follows the actual note, produced by the sympathetically vibrating strings, and use it expressively by giving phrase endings room to decay.