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I have 2 Violins
that I use most of the time. One was given to me by Tony
Martin, a fiddle maker and restorer who used to live in
London. He is now living back in Ireland near where he
grew up in Co. Mayo. It was in very bad condition when
he found it but he thought it might suit me. He pieced
it together and set it up and, sure enough, I really enjoyed
the sound it made and loved playing it. It's history is
in some doubt - so many people have given me so many conflicting
reports that I think it better to not even guess about
it here!. I have played on it for most of my adult life.
For nearly all of that time there has been a gradual shift
in the position of the neck. Every few years I have had
to have it repositioned, initially by Tony but in later
years Jeff Manthos in Portland Oregon has done most of
the work on it. This kind of repair can only be done so
often so in the late 90's John Dilworth of London said
he would make a new neck for it. He took off the old neck
(which was not the original) and made a new one for it.
The fiddle responded beautifully and it is a pleasure
to play once more. Thank you, John.
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The above is a violin I play
that was made by Jeff Manthos whom I mentioned in the
previous paragraph. Jeff made this violin in Portland,
Oregon in 1995 and it has a very strong, rich, clear
tone. It is very comfortable to play (which in itself
is fairly unusual for a new instrument) and I have used
it for numerous recordings and concert performances.
It is modeled after a Sanctus Seraphin of 1743. Seraphin
(1699-1758) is considered one of the finest makers from
Venice, having a distinctive style of his own. The violin
is slightly asymmetrical in shape in keeping with the
original instrument, and has been antiqued in appearance.
The pegs and fittings for this instrument
were made by Eric Meyer of Portland, Oregon.
The
bow that I have used for the last few years was made
by my younger brother Noel who has become a very fine
maker and winner of several prestigious awards. He began
his bow-making career in Portland, Oregon under the
tutelage of Robert Shallock (who also made a great bow
for me some years ago) and, after some years spent working
in Paris, France and Cremona, Italy, Noel now lives
in Westport, Co. Mayo in the West of Ireland.
Strings that I like to use are
Jargar Forte, Pirastro Tonica, Pirastro Synoxa Plus,
Pirastro Aricore and over the last year or two I have
been using 2 types of string made by D'Addario - Helicore
(Heavy Tension) and Zyex (Medium).
  
I use rosin made by Gustave
Bernadel.
For amplification purposes
I use an MBC-603 condenser microphone on a stand. I
also have a Kurmann Soundpost pick-up (manufactured
in Switzerland by Ronnie Arber Audiotechnik, Edisonstrasse
7, CH-4053 Basel) which I sometimes use in conjunction
with the microphone.
And I carry all this in a "Maurizio
Riboni" case from Cremona, Italy.
"Burke
is blessed with a silky touch on the bow that effortlessly
moves from one note to the next, creating an aural experience
unlike any other in Irish traditional music today."
-
Irish Echo
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