Since 1983, William Atwood has combined an appreciation for classic violins and violas with his training as an Experimental High Energy Particle Physicist. Working in his dedicated shop in the mountains above Santa Cruz, California, Bill has produced more than 60 violins and violas now in the hands of San Francisco and Monterey Bay Area musicians. He has authored several articles and given many lectures on the physics of violins — how and why they sound as they do. In collaboration with Tom Croen of Walnut Creek, a synthesis of traditional expertise and modern understanding of violins is evolving. Mission Statement: — To make the best possible violins and violas in the classic Italian tradition, utilizing modern acoustical science. — To provide players with a knowledgeable and comfortable setting in which to explore and develop the sound potential of their instruments. — To participate in and contribute to the contemporary violin making community through articles, workshops, and conferences.

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	Mode Coupling: By carefully aligning the natural resonances of the violin, energy can be coupled from non-sound producing vibration modes into sound producing modes. A richer, fuller sounding instrument results. By holding the violin on nodal lines for a particular resonance and tapping at locations of anti-nodes, the pitch of the resonance may be determined.
	The resulting sound is recorded by the computer. A digital representation of the sound can then be displayed.
	Computer analysis reveals pitches of prominent vibrational modes. Modes pitches may be adjusted by "tuning" the finger board and the tail piece.
	Accoustical Signature: The violin is coupled to the computer with a transducer to input a swept sine wave signal. Simultaneously the computer records the loudness of the resulting sound as a function of the pitch.
	Red = shorter sound post; blue = longer sound post.	Analysis using the computer then reveals how the sound has changed due to various adjustments.

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Sales Philosophy My goal is to place instruments with clients who will truly love them. Finding the violin/viola that is right for you is a deeply personal and sometimes lengthy process. My tryout / purchase process minimizes the risk for my clients. Local Buyers For players within the local Monterey / San Francisco Bay areas, please contact me via e-mail or phone to make an appointment to come to my shop and audition the instruments. You are welcome to take instruments out on trial for a two-week period. I consider the next 3 months to be a "probationary period" during which time, if you have a change of heart, I will refund the entire purchase price less a $300 charge. Please note that while the instrument is in your possession you are financially responsible for it. Internet Sales (only within the USA) I am happy to ship instruments to potential buyers outside the local area. I will send you a contract via e-mail. After you sign it and return it along with a copy of a photo id (e.g. driver�s license or passport), I will send the instrument off to you for the trial period. You can return the signed contract by scanning it and sending it via e-mail. At the end of the two-week trial period you can either send the instrument back to me or send a check for the purchase price of the instrument. If you return the instrument I will reimburse you the shipping costs. If you decide to keep the instrument, the same probationary period mentioned under the section on Sales Philosophy applies. Please note that while the instrument is in your possession you are financially responsible for it. Guaranteed Value I have had good success re-building my former instruments. For this reason, I will re-purchase my instruments, depending on condition, for up to the original sale price. I will not return sales tax. If the instrument was purchased on consignment from a shop then my re-purchase is the net amount I received from the original sale. (Be aware consignments are typically 25%.) This is my guarantee to original purchasers that your instrument will retain value. Any version of this buy back that is not expressly discussed here is open to negotiation without guarantee. Wood I accumulated my "wood stash" from the late 1980's through 2000 - in all, about 200 sets. About 40% of the wood came from various tone wood dealers in Germany and Switzerland and 10% from US sources. This wood ranges in age from 20 - 40 years. In 2000, I acquired from the estate of Brad Taylor his entire wood stash. Taylor had studied violinmaking in Germany in 1950s, returning to the US in the mid-1960s. His wood was mostly Balkan maple and Bavarian spruce; today it is more than 60 years old. I recently inventoried my wood and am now selling about half of it. See the section on Tone Wood for Sale. Current Instruments for Sale I currently have 3 violins and 3 violas for sale. They are displayed in the following section. For each I describe the source of the wood used and the pattern on which the instrument was based. In addition I have endeavored to allow you to hear the sound by playing a scale and various clips of well-known pieces. Please forgive my playing and try to hear through it to the sound of the instrument.

	Violin, Opus 72, 2021 Re-build of Atwood Opus 15 - 1988 $3000. Recently acquired and re-built to bring up to current standards.
	Viola, 16 1/4", Opus 41, 1996 Back: Balkin Maple - Gotz, Germany - 1984. Top: Swiss Spruce - Jaun (Rougemonte) - prior to 1989. Pattern: Strad Viola Pattern (Tuscan-Medici). $3500. Previously-owned instrument.
	Viola, 16", Opus 66, 2018 Back: Big Leaf Quilted Maple - Bruce Harvey (Orcas Island) 1995. Top: Barvarian Spruce - Taylor (Germany) - prior to 1965. Pattern: Tom Croen Viola pattern - Andreas Amadi inspired. $10000. New instrument. This instrument is appearing in the 2019 Metzler Contemporary Violin & Bow Makers Exhibition in LA: YouTube: Opus 66 - Richard O'Neill
	Violin, Opus 58, 2001 Back: Balkan Maple - Taylor (Germany) - prior to 1965. Top: Bavarian Spruce - Kreutzer (Mittenwald) - 1989. Pattern: Guarneri model (David-Heifetz). $7500. New instrument, constructed in 2001 - varnished in 2014. Sound file credit: Stanley Wang. This instrument appeared in the 2018 Metzler Contemporary Violin & Bow Makers Exhibition in LA: YouTube: Opus 58 - Modern American Violins

Tone Wood for Sale I have many more backs and tops than is possible to use in the years remaining in my life. I have about 84 backs and 60 tops which I would like to sell. All of the wood is much over 20 years old - much over 60. A sample of the Backs for sale: These are Balkan maple.

Sources: Taylor Estate (Balkan) Gotz (Nurnburg) SVS (Balkan) Battenkill Kruetzer (Mittenwald) Sandner (Bubbenroit)

A sample of the Tops for sale: These are spruce from Bavaria, Italy and the Bernese Oberland (Swiss).

Sources: Taylor Estate (Balkan) Jaun (Swiss) Rivolta (Italy) Kruetzer (Mittenwald) Sandner (Bubbenroit)

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William Atwood 2300 Smith Grade Bonny Doon, CA 95060 {831} 458-2569 Email to violinmaker@atwoodsviolins.com Other articles and links

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