Viola Strings: Obligato X Larsen

January 5, 2016 at 03:25 PM · You will be the best judge of that.

:^)

Experimenting with As on a viola is like trying out Es on a violin--you gotta try different stuff and see what you like.

LArsens are certainly a high quality, and widely enjoyed choice. I loved mine, but have recently been dabbling with synthetic core As instead of steel core. It seems the lower tension feels like it opens up all of my strings better.

January 5, 2016 at 03:50 PM · I tried Obligatos as a set and with a Larsen A. I've also tried lots of other As, both as part of sets and in combination with other strings. I've never found any A that comes close to the Larsen and Larsens seem to work together with any other string. Still, as Seraphim says, it's what works for your particular instrument.

January 5, 2016 at 04:10 PM · I recently restrung my 16 inch viola with Evah Pirazzi Gold, which were much too harsh on it. So, sinc I'd had such good results with Pirastro Permanent strings on two Strad model cellos, I tried viola Permanents - all 4 strings. They are my new favorites.

Years ago I had a regraduated German viola, that I was told was probably a Schuster - and a set of Spirocores were really good on it - but no good on the viola I now play. Back in those days (almost 40 years ago, Thomastik Dominants were a pretty good choice for both instruments - with maybe some dickering with the A and C strings).

Andy

January 5, 2016 at 05:01 PM · Thank you for your replies, I was wondering how long might the Larsen A last (without losing much sound quality/breaking)

January 5, 2016 at 05:21 PM · I don't know how long Larsens last, for the simple reason that I've never been able to figure out when a string had passed its prime. I change my strings twice a year (I play about an hour a day). My teacher, who plays with one of the big London orchestras and also has a busy life in chamber music, also uses a Larsen A and changes his strings less often than I do. (I think he thinks I got funny ideas about changing strings frequently from reading too much on the internet.)

To reply to Andrew: I'm glad you've found soulmates in Permanents; I tried the A, following advice on this forum, and was underwhelmed--but instruments differ and personal tastes differ, too.

January 5, 2016 at 06:13 PM · Might I ask, A M Karlsson, how often does your teacher change his strings?

January 5, 2016 at 09:03 PM · Anyone have any information on how long the Larsen A will last?

January 5, 2016 at 10:58 PM · I use Obligatos, but with the Eudoxa-Aricore (synthetic) A: sweet and singing to the end of the fingerboard, but it needs a longer, lighter bow stroke than the lower strings. (I like my A to sound like a string, not like a trumpet!)

I keep the Obligato A (wound steel) in reserve though. I fing it sweeter than the Larsen on my vioola.

January 6, 2016 at 01:41 PM · I'm afraid, Alexei, I don't know how often my teacher changes his strings--I don't think he keeps much track of it. Sounds unbelievable, I know, but he's one of these people wbo thinks it's the player and his/her technique that matters, not equipment. If I had his technique, I might be tempted to feel the same.

January 11, 2016 at 10:37 PM · I've been playing with Larsen A strings on my viola for about a year and a half, after feeling that the typical steel-core A strings (Obligato) were too bright and metallic sounding, and synthetic core A strings just weren't responding properly (Evah, Warchal). I went with the Larsen A and really liked it. Then I switched violas (from a 16-7/8 Honeycutt to a 16-3/8 Yoshikai) and kept the Larsen A. Beautiful sounding string - very clear and responsive, without harshness. The only downside for me, on the smaller viola, was that the Larsen A stuck out a bit against the other strings in terms of volume. Then I noticed that Larsen makes a "soft" variant (I had been using the "medium". So I ordered one and just love it on my current viola! Same clear sound but a little easier on the left hand and perfect blend with the other strings. By the way, the Larsen "medium" A strings last a long time. Not sure about the "soft" version yet but I would be surprised if they last as long - it is just a thinner string under slightly less tension.