Survival of the fittest, the loudest wins
What does a Stradivari or Amati violin, or a Fazioli, Bosendorfer or pre 1990 Hamburg Steinway grand piano have in common? It is the material of the soundboard.
The soundboard which can be considered as the hear of all these instruments is made from European spruce. To be more precise the spruce which is harvested in the Italian and German region close to the Alps.
Dunlop did a lot of research at the acoustic properties of musical instrument woods in the late 70’s and concluded what musical instrument makers knew for centuries. Nothing beats spruce in acoustic power and brightness and sustain in the harmonics.
He also concluded that the European spruce should be considered as the emperor of all spruces when we focus on power and brightness. A first violin player in an orchestra 200 years ago needed a violin with power, it was power that counts, survival of the fittest.
On the picture my 18" Avant Garde powerhouse with european spruce top "in the white"
