Coghill String Instruments

Coghill String Instruments DOUGLAS COGHILL
• Tasmania-based luthier.
• Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra Tutti Viola.

I am coming to Melbourne (3rd-13th Sep) and Adelaide (14th-18th) to show instruments and bows that I have for sale. Incl...
01/09/2026

I am coming to Melbourne (3rd-13th Sep) and Adelaide (14th-18th) to show instruments and bows that I have for sale. Included, is my latest violin which I just finished in Italy. Message me if you would like to try bows or instruments.

I am coming to Melbourne and Adelaide to show bows and instruments. I have lots if great bows for sale including Emilio ...
01/09/2026

I am coming to Melbourne and Adelaide to show bows and instruments. I have lots if great bows for sale including Emilio Slaviero, Hill, Lotte, Bazin, Watson, Nurnberger plus more! Message me if you would like to try bows.

I started a second scroll today. Whilst varnishing my violin, Michael Stürzenhofecker and I have been working on 2 viola...
19/06/2026

I started a second scroll today. Whilst varnishing my violin, Michael Stürzenhofecker and I have been working on 2 violas. Both A. Guarneri model. I have been using a fantastic Amati scroll as inspiration.

This morning I successfully got the varnish to crackle. I'm very happy with the result.
11/06/2026

This morning I successfully got the varnish to crackle. I'm very happy with the result.

Story telling. Adding patina, taking some away. Adding and taking away and so on. Fun process.
09/06/2026

Story telling. Adding patina, taking some away. Adding and taking away and so on. Fun process.

Adding some patina before the next coat of varnish.
08/06/2026

Adding some patina before the next coat of varnish.

First two coats of colour varnish are on. With this violin, my intension is to create an antiqued look. It's certainly a...
08/06/2026

First two coats of colour varnish are on. With this violin, my intension is to create an antiqued look. It's certainly a fun job.

First coat of varnish is on. Unfortunately the part A of the ground system caused some reverse grain on the top (I proba...
07/06/2026

First coat of varnish is on. Unfortunately the part A of the ground system caused some reverse grain on the top (I probably should have done a second coat of gelatine as recommended before applying it). I am hoping that it looks less bad with more layers of varnish. The rest looks good.

Applying the ground. In this case we used Old Wood brown in two parts for the sake of time. More UVB treatment.
06/06/2026

Applying the ground. In this case we used Old Wood brown in two parts for the sake of time. More UVB treatment.

That past two days have been pretty insane. I've been Cremona, Bern and Zurich. I've seen 3 Strads and 2 del Gesù violin...
02/06/2026

That past two days have been pretty insane. I've been Cremona, Bern and Zurich. I've seen 3 Strads and 2 del Gesù violins plus other great instruments. It's been super helpful to play these instruments and also to inspect them. I enjoyed so much looking at varnish related details as well as things like purfling. In all these instruments there is great craftsmanship and care. What was also apparent to today was the human touch. It's difficult to put into words. We often treat these makers like gods but they were people who were very good at what they did.

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Hobart, TAS

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