A Study on the Directivity of Sound Radiation in Violin Playing

A violin’s communicative value is based on the sound it produces. This document aims to quantitatively describe the directivity of a violin’s acoustic radiation. Analysis of treatises from pedagogues as well as a review of past treatises will be used to inform the parameters of this study. Violinists often stand with their bridges facing the audience. Using an array of microphones, this study will use 18 violins to conduct an experiment to measure the directivity of a violin’s radiation in hopes of finding a data-driven direction to aim the violin in reference to an audience. Recital 1: Violin Sonata No. 3 in C minor, Op. 45 by Edvard Grieg Pulcinella: Suite Italienne by Igor Stravinsky Recital 2: Romance by Amy Beach Violin Concerto in E minor by Felix Mendelssohn Sonata No. 4 in E minor by Eugene Ysaye Recital 3: Concert for Violin, Piano and String Quartet by Ernest Chausson