Vibrational de-damping is the process of artificially playing in acoustic musical instruments. Based on the original patent of Gerhard von Reumont this method provides a much more in-depth treatment than other devices commercially available.
We all know that instruments have to be played-in and this is true for all kind of acoustical instruments. The sounds of a new instrument is “edgy”, sometimes lacks immediate response. Even after invasive restoration the instrument might have changed and needs playing to “reopen”.
This is due to tensions in the structure introduced during assembly and setup but also, at a microscopic level, the fibers are somehow “clogged” especially in new instruments. This process takes time and for musicians this can be destabilizing: “How will my instrument develop?”. The idea of artificially “playing-in” musical instruments dates back at least to the mid 19th century. August J. Otto writes about it in his “Treatise on the Structure and Preservation of the Violin” in 1860, when he suggests to treat double stops all along the fingerboard with a special heavy bow for hours and weeks!
