Dear readers, my apartment was burglarized on June 6, 2005. My viola, bow, case, accessories, and some music parts were stolen, in addition to other personal belongings. I have played this viola and bow as an amateur for nearly 20 years, and would very much like to have them returned. Thus, a detailed description that will aid in the identification and recovery of the instrument follows. These photos show the stolen viola and bow.
These items were stolen from a private residence in Lewisville, Texas, on June 6, 2005.
The two-piece back is maple with even, medium-wide figure. The varnish has alternate light and dark bands that fade slightly towards the edges. The neck has a much lighter varnish, and the scroll has a darker, medium brown varnish.
The spruce top has medium-fine grain spacing, and an even, medium orange varnish. However, there are some blemishes/scratches below the right f-hole. Both top and bottom have a dark inlaid purfling.
The viola is labeled inside with the maker's name and year of construction:
Tetsuo Matsuda
1985
Ebony fingerboard, tailpiece, and chinrest. The A string has a fine tuner. The instrument is further identifiable by the maker.
Round stick with dark varnish, stamped Horst Schicker. Ivory tip plate, silver winding, ebony frog with pearl eye overlay.
Brown oblong case with zippered pocket and blue velvet interior. Accessories include a Wolf shoulder rest, dampit, electronic metronome, rosin, Thomastik Dominant strings. Inside is a photograph of the owner and his instructor. The outside zippered pocket contains orchestral and solo music parts.
Steve Jasper / freon@texas.net
OR
Lewisville Police Department / 972-219-3620 / Case# 05-07149
During my school years, I played the viola. My teacher was Ramon Scavelli, a professional violist from the National Symphony Orchestra, who is the best teacher and mentor one could ever ask for. I played in the Montgomery County Youth Orchestra, the Maryland All-State Orchestra, the University of Maryland Symphonic Orchestra, and the semiprofessional Prince Georges Philharmonic. I took it seriously, the amateur music community in the D.C. area is great, and I enjoyed it.
Orchestral performance is like a team sport in several ways:
At the same time, a good performance of a classic work of music is a shared experience that can be a real rush, and especially so when on stage in front of an audience.
Right now, I am not playing regularly, but I hope to get involved and play again, because it has been quite rewarding. Every so often, I still break out the fiddle and play some etudes when I feel the need to express some creativity. It's a left brain - right brain balance thing. If you allow your brain to become unbalanced, you end up with one ear to your shoulder all the time, and that just doesn't seem right.
Last updated on Monday, 20-Jun-2005 20:40:51 CDT.
Copyright 2005, Steve Jasper. All rights reserved.