Are 7/8 size violins rare?

April 17, 2009 at 01:32 PM ·

hello, can anyone elaborate on the definition of a 7/8 violin?  thanks.

April 17, 2009 at 02:10 PM ·

The full size violin pattern is too large for some people to play in-tune on; they have trouble reaching fingered octaves and what not because their hands are too small. The 7/8 is a slightly smaller violin than the 4/4 and alleviates the problem. I don't think they are uncommon, I have seen more of them in shops in the last few years...and I think my teacher plays one.

April 17, 2009 at 04:51 PM ·

I've come across a few as well over the years.  I don't think they're rare, but there's not a huge call for them either.  Most adults are fine with a 4/4.

One person I met with one had it because an elbow injury (I believe it was) limited her range of motion and the 7/8 was just easier on her.

April 17, 2009 at 08:29 PM ·

I play a 7/8ths size violin.  It is about 13 and 1/2 inches long rather than 14 inches.  The string length is 13 and 7/16ths, rather than 13 and 15/16ths.

The bouts are of course, proportionally smaller as well, though I have not measured them. 

I actually have two instruments this size.  Jay Haide makes one you can buy from Johnson Strings directly.  Mine is the l'ancienne model, and I really love it.

I play a 7/8th size because of an extremely short pinkie as a result of an accident.

Just a note - some so-called 7/8ths violins have slightly smaller than average bodies, but a strength length equal to that of a full-size instrument.  In that case, I see no benefit.

April 17, 2009 at 11:14 PM ·

My violin is a "compromise." It has the same body length as a regular 4/4 instrument (approx 14 inches) , but has a smaller body across, and correspondingly smaller upper and lower bouts. The scroll is also cut a tad smaller as well. I've never had a problem with the intervals in the hand, but with a somewhat shorter 4th finger playing up in the highest positions (especially on the G string) always drove me nuts. A summer of frustration with the Sibelius concerto prompted me to search for this solution...I was initially doubtful that a smaller instrument could possibly sound as good as my previous (strad pattern) instrument, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Despite it's size, it has a very warm and even sound that projects really well and I love playing it. I also installed titanium fittings on the chinrest to reduce the weight to practically nothing. :) Made in 2005 by Ran Dim from Bill Lee's workshop in Chicago, keep up the great work guys!

Quite amusingly, I play a 16" viola with no issues...must be the repertoire. :P

April 17, 2009 at 11:31 PM ·

I play a regular 4/4 violin. Owing to small hands, I made myself a 7/8 specifically for playing Paganini's work. The body is smaller, but the rib is higher to maintain air volume.

April 22, 2009 at 12:53 AM ·

Okay... thanks everyone for your answers :)

April 22, 2009 at 05:06 AM ·

April 23, 2009 at 12:47 PM ·

The fractional sizes of instruments are completely arbitrary and have nothing to do with the size relationship between one instrument and another. The so-called 7/8 violin is about 3% smaller than the so-called full-size violin, but as you go down the list through the 3/4, 1/2,etc., there is no consistent ratio of reduction whether you compare the percent of reduction to the previous violin in the series or to the standard violin. If a half-size violin were actually half the size of a standard violin, it would be smaller than a 1/16 violin.

I personally think it does no good to pick a single measurement for the violin as being the one and only correct length. There is a lot of historical evidence that the dimensions of violins were at one time based on the dimesnions of the player's hand. So you see violins that range from the large patterns of Maggini in the Brescian School, up to 368 mm body length, to the small-pattern instruments of the Amati, down to 346 mm. Which one of these is a "full-size" violin? They all are.