Hutchins Violin Octet and New Violin Family

The violin octet is a family of eight bowed stringed instruments developed during the 20th century, primarily under the direction of American luthier Carleen Hutchins. Each instrument in the family is based directly on the traditional violin and shares its fundamental acoustical properties, with the overarching goal of producing a richer, more homogeneous sound across an expanded register. Unlike standard modern stringed instruments, the primary body resonance of each violin octet instrument is tuned to a pitch near its two middle open strings, yielding a more balanced and clear sonic profile.

History and Development

The concept of the violin octet was proposed by composer Henry Brant in 1957. Working closely with physicists and musicians, Carleen Hutchins and the New Violin Family Association developed the instruments over subsequent decades, with the first complete octet finished in 1967. The project aimed to address perceived acoustic imbalances in the standard string quartet family (violin, viola, cello, and double bass), creating a continuous range of instruments scaled systematically across acoustic frequencies.

Instruments of the Octet

The violin octet comprises eight distinct sizes, spanning from high treble registers down to deep contrabass registers:

• Treble violin
• Soprano violin
• Mezzo violin
• Alto violin
• Tenor violin
• Baritone violin
• Small bass violin
• Contrabass violin

While the small bass and contrabass violins were originally designed to be tuned in fifths, many bassists found the required shifting impractical. Consequently, the New Violin Family Association documented alternative tunings in fourths for these larger instruments, while other ensembles have retained the original fifths tuning.

Bows and Performance Practice

Carleen Hutchins did not design specialized bows specifically for the instruments of the violin octet. Consequently, performers typically utilize a variety of standard violin, viola, cello, and double-bass bows to achieve the desired response for each unique instrument size.

Performing Ensembles

Specialized groups perform and record using the instruments of the violin octet. These include the Hutchins Consort, based in San Diego, California, which plays on instruments crafted by Carleen Hutchins. A subset known as the Hutchins Consort Quartet utilizes the soprano, tenor, baritone, and contrabass violins. Additionally, ensembles such as the Albert Consort in Ithaca, New York, and the New Violin Family Orchestra utilize instruments constructed by luthier Robert Spear.

Alternative and Traditional Roles

Instruments from the violin octet can be integrated into standard musical settings rather than solely performing repertoire written exclusively for the full octet. For instance, a traditional string quartet can be substituted with an ensemble consisting of two mezzo violins, one alto violin, and one baritone violin. Notably, cellist Yo-Yo Ma used an alto violin from the New Violin Family to perform and record Béla Bartók's Viola Concerto.