rev:text
| - I play the violin by marriage. Granted, it would be much cooler to actually play the violin, but being married to a violinist is pretty special. Even though I don't physically play, I have accompanied my husband to violin shops around the country for rehairs and window shopping. From time to time, he gets envious of guitarists who take the stage with a rack of instruments, and he starts feeling as if he should own a rack of violins to prop up behind him. Well, not literally, but if you've ever been to Guitar Center and witnessed the people jamming out on guitars, then you have an idea of what our visit to a violin shop looks like, except there's a bow and Mozart involved.
I have plenty of experience to recognize a quality violin shop. The key ingredient is a passionate, knowledgeable owner, and Desert Strings has just that. It is easy to tell that Yanbing Chen loves the violin. As we approached the shop on my first visit, he had a table of violins, and he was playing. He was testing the sound of each. Every time my husband visits, he has him play several violins and asks for his feedback. The smile on his face and his jovial interaction with my husband proves his dedication to sourcing quality instruments. The shop prides itself on offering both contemporary and vintage instruments. He also owns Cleveland Violins, which probably allows him to source a wider selection of instruments.
Yanbing has also worked on my husband's violin, and the effort and skill resulted in a much improved instrument. Plus, the shop is very clean, modern and uncluttered, which I think is a good sign.
It is a wonderful shop for anything and everything related to strings. Hey, if my husband is happy, I am happy too.
|