Design, Production, Sample Chapters
Design and Production
The book is set in 10.5 pt Minion. A contemporary typeface designed by Robert Slimbach, Minion is inspired by old style typefaces of the late Renaissance, a period of beautiful and highly readable type designs. It is a warm, well balanced face that combines classic tradition with modern functional elegance.
The large, 8.5 x 11 inch page format leaves generous room for the 1000 photographs and 300 technical drawings. The bindings are sewn and cased for durability and to ensure the volumes open flat for ease of consultation. The boards are covered with a high quality, tightly woven rayon cloth.
In keeping with the conservation-minded principles governing the project, all materials and suppliers are Forest Stewardship Council certified. The book is printed with vegetable oil-based and alcohol-free inks on high quality, archival, 100% recycled paper that is ancient-forest friendly and processed chlorine-free.
See On Press for photos of the book being produced and for additional information on the printer and paper.
Sample Chapters
These two sample chapters will provide a better idea of the book’s format and the breadth of its content from theoretical reflection to technical application:
- Reversibility: A Fragile Concept
- by Robert L. Barclay
- Replacing a Pearl Eye in the Frog: An Improved Method Using Hydrochloric Acid
- by David Hawthorne
Robert L. Barclay (b. 1946, London, England) received a Certificate in Science Laboratory Technology from the City and Guilds of London Institute (1968). In 1975 he graduated from the University of Toronto with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts, and in 1999 he earned an interdisciplinary PhD at the Open University in England. He joined the Canadian Conservation Institute as a conservator in 1975, specializing in the care and preservation of wooden objects, historical and technical artifacts, and musical instruments; he retired as senior conservator in 2007. He has taught and lectured extensively in Canada and abroad on the care and preservation of museum objects, and has given courses on the care of collections in several African countries. Since his retirement he has taught courses at the International Trumpet-making Workshops in the US and Germany. Robert L. Barclay is editor of The Care of Historic Musical Instruments (Ottawa: CCI; London: MGC, 1997) and published The Preservation and Use of Historic Musical Instruments (London: Earthscan/James & James, 2004). His numerous awards include the Nicolas Bessaraboff Prize of the American Musical Instrument Society for The Art of the Trumpetmaker (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992), the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal for services to conservation and the care of collections (2002), the Anthony Baines Memorial Prize of the Galpin Society (2003), and the Christopher Monk Award from the Historic Brass Society (2006) for contributions to organology.
David Hawthorne grew up playing the violin and began making instruments from an early age. He studied bow making under William Salchow and Stéphane Thomachot. For six years, he worked at Reuning & Sons Violins in Boston as head of the bow department, specializing in fine restoration. David Hawthorne holds degrees in music from the Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory in Boston. One of his violin bows received a Certificate of Merit at the 2002 Violin Society of America competition.