Violin “playing-in”: disentangling physical change from player adaptation via physical measurements

It is a widespread belief among musicians that a violin’s sound “opens up” or improves through regular playing. However, physical evidence for this “playing-in” effect remains elusive. This study revisited the phenomenon by testing two hypotheses: (1) the instrument undergoes physical evolution, or (2) the player undergoes behavioral adaptation. We conducted a longitudinal study centered on a seldom-played test violin played daily by a professional soloist for six months, alongside two stored control violins and a control group of ten violinists (N = 10). All three violins had been rarely played prior to the experiment. Assessments performed at the beginning (“Before” phase) and end (“After” phase) of the period included input admittance measurements via laser vibrometry, standardized sound recordings, and acquisition of the soloist’s bowing gestures via motion capture. Results revealed no acoustical evolution in the played violin exceeding the environmental drift observed in the control instruments. Furthermore, kinematic analysis showed no significant drift in the soloist’s bowing strategy (bow position, velocity, contact point). These findings suggest that the “playing-in” phenomenon is driven neither by macroscopic physical changes in the instrument nor by a fundamental reorganization of the player’s technique.