How to Deal With Unidentified Violin Strings

!±8± How to Deal With Unidentified Violin Strings

Many of us have quite a large collection of unidentified violin strings. Stored loose and outside of their packaging, these collections often include used, new, and perhaps even damaged strings -- saved, of course, for that special emergency when one "pops" and we don't have anything else with which to replace it. But once it becomes "unidentified," figuring out whether a string is an A, D, E, or G --let alone the brand or set it came from-- can become very difficult.

Every manufacturer individually labels its strings using a system of "color codes" for the windings at both the peg and tail ends. Usually, within any given set, the same color or color combination is used at one end (identifying the set) and a different color is used for each of the E, A, D, and G at the other end. Sometimes, there is an extra band of a different color, usually at the peg end, that further classifies the gauge as either light, medium, or heavy. For instance, a Pirastro Oliv light gauge D has a white and green striped pattern at the tail end, a red winding at the peg end, and an added pink band at the peg end to indicate the light gauge. As you can imagine, given the large number of different sets and gauges, there are many possible color combinations.

Although there are color code identification tables available on the internet, these are often difficult to use and are sometimes even misleading. But because they can be useful when you know at least the brand and set of your unidentified string -- for instance you are certain that it is from a set of Pirastro Obligatos but you are unsure whether it is an E, A, D, or G -- you may occasionally be able to use an identification chart to save yourself a trip to a violin shop.

Why can relying on identification charts be dangerous? These charts depend on our ability to judge color, which is an inherently subjective process. To make matters worse, many manufacturers use similar colors and similar color combinations, yielding a variety of strings that look similar to each other. Suppose that you have concluded that your unidentified string has a blue peg end and a yellow ball end. But are you sure that those colors aren't actually blue and gold, or light blue and yellow, or light blue and gold? Which do you choose when you need to determine whether that peg end color is red, dark red, light red, rose, dark orange, or fire-engine red?

What about differentiating the A from the E from the D from the G based on thickness? Certainly, it is usually the case that thinner strings are higher in pitch and thicker ones are lower in pitch. However -- and this is a big however -- since manufacturers use several different metals as windings (not only between sets but also within them), it is sometimes the case that a higher string may actually be thicker than a lower one. In particular, depending on the metals used as windings, a D may be thicker than a G -- both within and across sets. Similarly, a "wound" E might appear thicker than an A. Or, a high tension A from one set might appear thicker than a light tension D from another set.

Thus, (and especially if you mix and match sets), you cannot always determine whether you have an A, D, G, or E, based solely on thickness.

So why does all of this matter? What is wrong with putting on the wrong string? Suppose you put a G on the D peg. Since it appeared to be thicker (due to the type of metal used in the winding), you were convinced that the D must in fact be the G. But a G string is not built to be tuned all the way up to the D a fifth above. The resulting extra tension could cause the bridge to collapse and possibly break. Worse, the force of the bridge striking the top of the violin could cause a crack in the top of the instrument, most likely over the sound post. This crack, called a sound post crack, is bad both for the sound of your violin and also for its value.

Therefore, I highly recommend against putting any unidentified strings on your violin. And, even if you think you are able to identify them using a chart or internet tool, there are, in my opinion, too many different color combinations that look very similar for you to ever be certain you have made a correct identification.

In sum, prevention is probably the best cure. Consider keeping each new string securely in its labeled packet prior to installation. If you keep the packaging, you can put used strings back inside their labeled packets for storage. If you no longer have the packaging, you can use tied-on labels.

Or, take your collection to a violin shop, where they should be able to help identify the entire batch.

A few other remarks on installing strings: It is best to install them one at a time. If you are replacing an entire set, it is a good idea to examine the bridge before and after installing each string to make sure it is still straight. It is probably not a good idea to tune strings above their proper pitch in order to stretch them. Because strings go through a breaking-in period where they will need to be re-tuned frequently, attempting to stretch them puts added tension on your instrument that could potentially damage it.