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Sing the body electric: early amplified instruments

2025-10-31T09:46:00

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The 1920s saw a demand for louder, more resonant instruments, and resourceful violin makers rose to the challenge. Clifford Hall looks at some of the innovative solutions they came up with

In the late 19th century, the world was in thrall to the possibilities afforded by electricity. It had been, ever since Samuel Morse had sent his famous ‘What hath God wrought’ message on 24 May 1844, shrinking distances with instantaneous communication. But the symbolic weight of electricity extended beyond wires and circuits. It began to define a kind of modern human energy…

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