For a few months now I have been grinding away trying to learn to play the Allemande from Bach’s Partita #2 for solo violin.  I suppose it is one of the easiest pieces in the set but I am certainly challeneged and extended trying to learn it.   I seem to have a habit of trying to learn pieces that are a bit beyond my capability to play well, and quite honestly I usually don’t get them to a refined enough position where I can claim to play them well.  I …

Dmitry Badiarov is a violin maker and violinist.  He Lectures part time at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and teaches violin making at Daikanyama School of Music, Tokyo.  He is a fascinating convergence of violin making, teaching and professional playing.   It must be quite exhilarating to play music for people on an instrument that you took from a log to a work of art.    Dmitry says, “On one hand, I am devoted to the highest level of craftsmanship, on the other, I do not consider it the purpose: …