A digital tool at the service of organology : validation of a photogrammetric approach

The morphology of today’s violin differs greatly from that of the first instruments of the late 16th century. Indeed, in order to meet the standards suggested by famous orchestras and conservatories, many ancient violins have been recut. It is important for musicologists and organologists to analyse the alterations they have undergone. Specialists agree that the instruments have been reshaped, but have difficulty to prove it rigorously. Moreover, the historical testimonies about this process are imprecise. It is therefore necessary to find an objective way to quantify violin geometry. Hence, we have developed an IT tool that allows to locate the minima and inflection points relatively well on a violin body and to identify the shape of its contour lines. These analyses enabled to differentiate an ancient recut violin from an ancient non recut violin. We have also established the correspondence between a photogrammetric approach and a CT scan approach.