Guarneri Chinrest Violin 4/4 in Boxwood, ZK-1597G
ZK-1597G
The plate reaches over the tailpiece, the clamp sits centrally over the bottom block and the dip lies to its left. A flat contact area, which keeps the head mobile in play. Boxwood in a light golden tone with the black Götz mark, the lightest of the three woods.
- The clamp sits over the bottom block, which reinforces the body from inside at this point; there it holds securely
- Hill type screws, gold plated
Technical data
| Model | Guarneri |
| Material | Boxwood |
| Fittings | Hill type screws |
| Instrument | Violin |
| Item number | ZK-1597G |
Features
- Contact points lined with Portuguese cork
- Height means the distance between the top and the plate. It depends on neck length and shoulder rest: those who set the instrument high get by with a flat chin rest, those who carry it lower need more height
- Higher models are usually heavier. In our experience a heavier chin rest makes the sound a little warmer and darker; a light one leaves it more open
Sound and physics
The chin rest sits on the lower bout of the violin and is clamped to the rib with a metal bracket. Its clamp grips over or beside the bottom block, the wooden block inside the body that holds the end pin and reinforces the rib at this point.
The resting chin creates a hold between shoulder and head, and the violin is carried almost entirely by this hold; the left hand supports it only slightly.
Acoustically, the chin rest adds a mass with its own damping to the edge of the body through a few contact points. It therefore mainly slows those natural vibrations of the body that move strongly at these contact points, and leaves free those that have a node (a point at rest) there.
The violin chin rests we have weighed come to between around 41 g and 80 g including screws, depending on model, wood and fittings. With closed screws the barrel sets the height above the rib; violin barrels come in 25, 27 and 29 mm, and most of our violin models take barrels up to 27 mm. With the Hill fitting, by contrast, the feet are firmly joined to the chin rest.
Boxwood is the lightest of the three woods we use for chin rests; rosewood and ebony are denser. On the violin Berber, which has the same shape in all three woods, the boxwood version with standard metal fittings weighs around 45 g, in rosewood around 49 g and in ebony around 56 g. With titanium fittings the boxwood Berber comes down to around 41 g.
Our boxwood is Buxus sempervirens. It is a light wood, light brown to deep orange, and the shade depends on the batch. It darkens with age and use, which is why newly made boxwood chin rests are lighter than older ones. The wood is sensitive to moisture, so we only work with thoroughly dried parts.
Guarneri, Stradivari and Schulze-Priska are mounted over the tailpiece. Together with the Varga, these shapes differ mainly in how deeply the dip is curved: of the four, the Stradivari has the deepest and most contoured plate, the Varga follows, the Guarneri is gently curved and the Schulze-Priska has no curvature. The deeper plate guides the chin more closely and so gives more control.
Measured on the violin: Stradivari ZK-306 in ebony 57 g, plate 6.1 × 12.3 cm, height 22 mm; Guarneri ZK-1598 in rosewood 73 g, plate 6.8 × 14.8 cm, height 21 mm; Schulze-Priska ZK-252 25 mm high.
With the Hill fitting, also called English style in our house, two independent single clamps hold the chin rest, without a connecting bridge. Each screw set consists of top part, barrel and lower part. We make Hill chin rests specifically with their Hill screws and cover the feet with cork; the feet are firmly joined to the chin rest, so the height stays fixed.
Hill screws are heavier than closed screws and more stable for it. The gold-plated Hill screws are made of brass, on individual models combined with steel, and are polished and electroplated with gold.
Our experience
Before we recommend a model, our first question is whether the chin prefers to rest beside the tailpiece or centrally over it. Our experience when tightening: a chin rest only needs to sit firmly enough to hold securely, because the rib beside the bottom block is more delicate than the spot directly over the block. If the chin rest touches the tailpiece, we solve it through the angle of the screws or with a slightly longer barrel.
We will try a darker re-staining on request, but the result rarely convinces us, because not all parts darken evenly.
On the violin, the Guarneri and Stradivari in ebony are among our best-selling standard models.
On the Guarneri with Hill fittings the feet stand further apart than on the closed version; we therefore give particular care to the fit against the arching of the instrument. We keep the top parts of the Hill screws as spare parts, in pairs.
When another model suits you better
Anyone looking for a deep black will find many of our models in stained ebony too, the densest of the three woods.
Anyone who prefers to rest the chin beside the tailpiece will find a flat, side-mounted shape in the Kaufmann or the Slim Style.
Anyone who wants titanium chooses a model with closed screws in the -T version, as we make titanium in the closed design only.
Frequently asked questions
What material belongs at the contact points?
Natural cork without coating, so that the chin rest does not slip and no metal touches the varnish; pressed cork is unsuitable because it crumbles over time.
Is boxwood subject to CITES?
No, boxwood (Buxus sempervirens) is not subject to CITES regulation; the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation confirmed this to us in 2016, and nothing has changed since.
Will my boxwood chin rest become darker?
Yes, boxwood darkens with age and use.
Which of these chin rests has the deepest dip?
The Stradivari, followed by the Varga; the Guarneri is more gently curved, and the Schulze-Priska has no curvature.
Can I raise a Hill chin rest?
The feet are firmly joined to the chin rest; unlike with closed screws, the height therefore cannot be changed through longer barrels.
Do you make Hill screws in titanium?
No, pure titanium cannot be brought into the Hill geometry; we offer titanium in the closed design only.
These texts hold decades of experience and a great deal of heart. They are protected by copyright, C.A. Götz jr. GmbH. Please ask us before any use. Thank you for your appreciation.
