By: Armance Quéro – Cellist –
Who ever wonders how these strings, on which we play for hours, are made? I would never have given it a thought, was it not for the presence of the Larsen Strings’ team last March at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. During our masterclass, Laurits Th. Larsen and his team shared their experience and knowledge with my five colleagues of the Classe d’Excellence de Gautier Capuçon and me.
Right after a very technical presentation, the content of which I cannot relay, we immediately began trying the strings on all our individual instruments.
Following a long time habit, and the present trend, I have always used three red strong for the A, D and G strings and a Wolfram C string. I believed this setup to be the best match for my Italian instrument, which is from the beginning of the 20th century and which has a clear sound but is not very powerful.
After listening to me, playing with my old strings, Mr. Larsen suggested that I try two Magnacore strings: the A and D strings. I trusted him with my instrument and he very carefully changed the two strings, using a pencil to apply a thin layer of graphite in the rill of the bridge and the upper-nut. Once mounted, and before I was allowed to play, the strings were rubbed with a cloth to stretch them; this process shortens the playing in time.
Of course, we all know that new strings always sound better. It is therefore difficult quickly to form an opinion of the new strings. However, it was clear that the Magnacore brought a different dimension to my instrument. The sound was “smoother”, rounder and richer. The same thing happened to the deep strings when I tried the Magnacore medium strings. Although I could immediately hear that the sound of the A string was more interesting, it took me some time to get used to it because I had to change the way I grabbed the string: more horizontally than vertically.
I want to use this experience as an opportunity to expend the capabilities of my instrument and thus continue my search for sound. At concerts, in the following weeks, I received several compliments from people who thought that my sound had changed and had become richer. For the moment, I have the feeling that the G and C strings lack power, and I will therefore soon try the Magnacore strong.
I will keep you informed of the results…
Read more about the Magnacore strings