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Scroll (music)

 
Scroll (music)

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Scroll (music)



 
 
A scroll is the decoratively carved end of the neck of certain stringed instruments
String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones....
, mainly members of the violin family
Violin family

The Violin family of musical instruments was developed in Italy in the sixteenth century. The modern violin family consists of the violin, viola and cello, along with the double bass....
. The scroll is typically carved in the shape of a volute
Volute

A volute is a spiral scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order, found in the Capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite order column capitals....
 (a rolled-up spiral) according to a canonical pattern, although some violins are adorned with carved heads, human and animal.






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Doublebass Scroll
A scroll is the decoratively carved end of the neck of certain stringed instruments
String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones....
, mainly members of the violin family
Violin family

The Violin family of musical instruments was developed in Italy in the sixteenth century. The modern violin family consists of the violin, viola and cello, along with the double bass....
. The scroll is typically carved in the shape of a volute
Volute

A volute is a spiral scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order, found in the Capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite order column capitals....
 (a rolled-up spiral) according to a canonical pattern, although some violins are adorned with carved heads, human and animal. The quality of a scroll is one of the things used to judge the luthier
Luthier

A luthier is someone who makes or repairs stringed instruments. The word luthier comes from the French language word wikt:en:luth#French which is French for "lute"....
's skill. Instrument scrolls usually approximate a logarithmic spiral
Logarithmic spiral

A logarithmic spiral, equiangular spiral or growth spiral is a special kind of spiral curve which often appears in nature. The logarithmic spiral was first described by Ren? Descartes and later extensively investigated by Jakob Bernoulli, who called it Spira mirabilis, "the marvelous spiral"....
. Although many references assert that the instrument scroll closely follows the golden spiral
Golden spiral

In geometry, a golden spiral is a logarithmic spiral whose growth factor b is related to φ, the golden ratio. Specifically, a golden spiral gets wider by a factor of φ for every quarter turn it makes....
 (a specific form of the Logarithmic spiral
Logarithmic spiral

A logarithmic spiral, equiangular spiral or growth spiral is a special kind of spiral curve which often appears in nature. The logarithmic spiral was first described by Ren? Descartes and later extensively investigated by Jakob Bernoulli, who called it Spira mirabilis, "the marvelous spiral"....
) this assertion is demonstrably false.

Stainer Scroll
Below the scroll is a hollowed-out compartment (the pegbox
Pegbox

A pegbox is the part of certain String instrument musical instruments that houses the tuning pegs.See alsoHeadstock...
) through which the tuning pegs pass. The instrument's strings are wound around these pegs. The scroll and pegbox are almost always carved out of one piece of wood.