You Can Be Anything › All careers › Trades & Skilled Labor
Luthier
Builds and repairs stringed instruments — guitars, violins, cellos — shaping tone through craftsmanship.
Did you know?
The 'Lady Blunt' Stradivarius sold for $15.9 million in 2011, yet in blind tests top violinists often can't tell a Strad from a fine new violin.
How subjects help
- Physics: Carve a violin top thinner in places to change how it vibrates and sounds.
- Mathematics: Place frets at exact distances so every note on a guitar plays in tune.
- Chemistry: Mix varnishes and glues that protect the wood without dulling its tone.
- Art & Design: Shape the curves, scrolls and inlays that make each instrument a work of art.
A famous name
Antonio Stradivari: Italian luthier whose violins and cellos from around 1700 are still prized by top musicians.
Try it yourself: Build a rubber-band instrument
- Stretch the rubber bands around the open box, gently, keeping them away from your face.
- Pluck each band. Which gives the highest note, the thin one or the thick one?
- Slide a pencil under the bands like a bridge. What happens to the sound when a band is tighter or shorter?
- Make up a short tune for a happy moment, then one for a calm moment. What did you change?
Luthiers shape instruments so they sound just right, and musicians and music therapists choose sounds and rhythms to change how a moment feels.
Also try: Which material stops sound best?.
Known for it in
Italy, Spain, Germany, USA, Japan