Left: violin of Martin Karinkanta, copy of the model Vuillaume. Right: original violin J.B.Vuillaume

For the construction of the instruments mainly European maple is used for the back, the girdles-sash and the neck, fir pine European for the belly and ebony for the fingerboard. For the pegs, the chinrest and the tailpiece, the violinmakers prefer box wood to ebony, because their smaller weight benefits directly the sound of the instrument. The drying and settling of the wood is specially important. The wood is kept for years in the shop before its use. After an instrument has been built its finished parts can be exposed in the sun during six months to achieve the typical cinnamon shade of the wood.
The election of homemade varnishes in the old way is another of the distinctive touches of the Karinkanta. Using the best resins and natural oils, being worthwhile the extended period of having drying off since it gives as a result a termination that is safe with time. The varnishes that they use are a combination of classic formulas of the XVII and XVIII centuries and of their own investigations. One of the main functions of the varnish (besides the visual aspect), is to protect the wood, absorbing the effects of abrasion, humidity and any superficial damage.


The secret of the sound, the quality and the time of settling of the wood is fundamental, its thickness, the height of its sonority, the format, the varnishes that are used and the quality of the sow that the bow needs.