THE BORIS BELKIN BOW  

 This week, if you allow me , I want to make an exception to the rule. I will not talk about curves, sound, mechanic, but I will deal with a particular bow, or better, three to be more precise. 

The Boris Belkin bow

It all started last year, more or less in this season. As you may know, the most desired thing by any manufacturer is the good material, and this applies especially to the bow. Pernambuco is a very special tree that grows only in a part of Brazil, it grows very slowly, and as you might imagine,it has been cut for centuries, and only a few years ago there were some initiatives, proposed and supported by bowmakers aimed to increase reforestation.

Good-quality Pernambuco is becoming rarer and more expensive. That is why when a friend of us, a bowmaker, has informed us that the family of Bechini, an Italian bow now disappeared some years ago ,was going to sell the wood they had inherited, Maestro Navea Vera and me started to rub hands exchanging sly glances of understanding.

The day after the phone call we were in the workshop of the bowmaker who was charged with the sale, and we found ourselves in front of about two hundred sticks. We spent the whole day measuring, evaluating and looking at the wood, and eventually we came out with only twenty five sticks.

Why do I tell you this story?
Because, beyond being a selected wood matured as a stick for over thirty years, therefore completely stiff and stable, among those twenty-five there were three whose levels was extremely high. Thanks to Maestro Navea Vera's  skill and experience they have been converted into three violin bows, they are not only superlative, but impossible.

Before putting them on sale I tested them in extreme and critical situations over the limit of unthinkable. I gave these bows to some violists and cellists, compared with their D.T. Navea Vera ones and the results exceeded my expectations. Twice the sound on the cello, and three times on the viola. Neither me nor Maestro Navea Vera could believe our ears.

The only thing that can make a craftsman happier than this, is to have the chance to sell them to someone who is able to fully appreciate his work, but this doesn't so often, unfortunately. And this aspect as well was full of pleasant surprises.
The first of the three has been bought a young musician of great talent, of whom we will hear soon , but for the moment being, he wishes to remain anonymous.

The second one was bought by M° Klaidi Sahatci, now shoulders the Teatro alla Scala, and winner of several international contest as "shoulder" and with it he owns two D.T. Navea Vera's bow. And here we arrive to the post title, because with our great joy, the third of these bow has the honor of being played by M° Boris Belkin.

I was introduced to M° Belkin by late March last year. In those days he was in San Remo for a concert, and through a mutual friend who plays since years with a D.T.Navea Vera's bow, M° Olessandr Semchuk, to whom I express my thanks, had the opportunity to get acquainted with our work.

After a brief telephone conversation, we set an appointment for that evening. At that moment I had only a silver mounted violin bow, and I thought that for such a name it would not have been enough; but I was wrong. It was so enthusiastically impressed that not only he wanted it at once but he also wanted to buy the last one of the series of the three, trusting my evaluation , as it was not yet ready.

As you may understand the bow I am speaking about is the one in the picture, and when it was finally finished, I went to Liege to deliver it personally to the Maestro.

When I reached M° Belkin home I felt very nervous. This bow already stole me many hours of sleep as it was very particular. The winding you see is indeed a real novelty. It is carried out in eighteen-karat gold ribbon and discolored turtle . You got it properly, I really mean discolored.
Except in rare cases a turtle is usually dark brown, and Maestro Navea Vera believed to have discovered a way to make it transparent, he believed !!!

Golden  winding and discolored turtle
The problem was that the experiment was successful once but it refused to succeeded twice. In addition I had already started to advertise this particular technique of bleaching, so it was absolutely essential for the name of the workshop, that the turtle could became transparent. We spent February, March and April, to find a way, almost making shamanic rituals to succeed, and eventually, as evidenced by the photos we did, but obviously I will not tell you how. Try to guess and send me a solution!

Particular
Aside winding, I knew I would have to face hard fights , and I was not wrong. During the comparison there were some other bows together with our own, such as a Maire, a magnificent Pajeot owned by the maestro, and one of the best ancient working bow I've ever seen in my career, probably a Persoit dating back to 1820, practically a never used one.

The Maire, was probably the most used one , so it was in the worst position, while Persoit, and Pajeot had a good sound level , and a beautiful timbre. Our bow, had the triple of volume and definition, accompanied by an unmistakable mechanical, as M° Belkin enthusiastically remarked.

This is what he says about us:

"I would like to praise Daniel Navea Vera and Paolo Sarri's art of bow making. The fine choice of wood and the master craftsmanship of the stick produce an incredibly well balanced and flexible bow. It is a great pleasure to play with such a bow as it produces wonderful sound. A must for a solo career! "

It seemed as he liked it !

Violin bow "The Belkin Bow" in gold, ivory and turtle

Stick: round in orange color, with two stamps, one under the winding and the other on the left side.

Frog: African ivory, eighteen karat gold, heart-shaped mother of pearl slide , no eye, and with full golden button.

Winding: eighteen-carat gold and discolored turtle

Weight: 63.5 g (The heavy weight of the bow derives from ivory and gold, much heavier than ebony and silver)

We can affirm that we are very happy of the wonderful success, and to give you the idea of what kind of bow it is, I just say that while he was playing it, I asked M° Belkin to guess its weight. He replied 59/60 g!

Thanks for your patience and see you soon !

Paolo