Arkansas Blog

I don't quite understand why this is such news. My former neighbor in Fayetteville retired from Chicago Symphony and 35 years of teaching violin. When he settled in the Ozarks he once again took up repairing fine violins. His specialty required him to make his own tools and glues. He worked on several Stradivarius violins. He told me a few times that wood density was the big difference. He was one of two people West of the Mississippi who insurers would trust to identify and evaluate a Stradivarius. My old Italian friend is in his 90s today. He would say over and over they could not be duplicated because "you just cannot get wood like that today."

Wow, that is so far the biggest stretch of logic I have yet to see to include a climate change reference in an article about Stradivarius violins.

I think you missed the boat on this one bugeyed.

""Climate difference could explain part of it but treatment of the wood could be another explanation."

Do not confuse climate differences, climate change, and global warming. Three entirely different occurrences.

I read a few years back about companies that "mine" ancient logs off the bottom of the great lakes. Apparently they are well-preserved in the cold, low oxygen depths. They want the trees beacause virgin timber from the Great North Woods often grew very, very slowly. When you think about it, a tree growing in total shade under enormous trees would take many more years to grow to full size than one that grew in a sunnier environment. So, if it took twice as many years to get to 18" circumference the rings -the wood grain- would be much finer/closer together. Would this make the wood more dense? Is there a botanist in the house?

Off hand Amanita I say yes. I've done a wee bit of study using tree rings with my environmental friends.
During years of sustained growth, good rainfall and favorable temps tree rings are wider and the fibers less dense. I'm no botanist but I did stay in a Hindu owned motel once.

It's just an example on how insidious the global warming scare mongering message has become. Climate change, etc, has absolutely nothing to do with stradivarius violins and the writer had no business including it in the story.

It should be an interesting story about how modern science is used to back up what was already known. Stradivarius violins were built by highly gifted craftsmen from old growth wood that doesn't exist anymore because we cut all those trees down.

Old growth forests are at best carbon neutral. New growth forests absorb more carbon dioxide and create more oxygen. It don't know the term for that...carb friendly?

the only stretches of logic going on around here are by you, bugeyed. fact: the climate is different than 300 years ago. ergo: it could have something to do with it. that's it. no "insidious" plot. sheesh.