Book excerpt: “The Secrets of Violin Playing” is a classic guide to playing the violin, dealing with every aspect from care and maintenance of the instrument to mastering the basics and avoiding common problems. It contains a wealth of timeless information that will be of considerable utility to novice players, and it is not to be missed by collectors of vintage violin literature. Contents include: “The Purpose of the Work”, “Violin Players”, “The Trifler”, “The Showy Player”, “The Model Player”, “Holding the Violin”, “Chin-Rests (illustrated)”, “The Spoon, Double Ridge, Spohr, Adjustable Voigt's Shoulder, and New Vulcanite Chin-Rests”, “Their Advantages and Disadvantages Analysed and Explained”, etc. Many vintage books such as this are increasingly scarce and expensive. It is with this in mind that we are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially-commissioned new introduction on the history of the violin.