MV18/ 90A Circa 1920s 1/2 size Maidstone violin.

Two-piece  back  of medium curl flame maple, with matching ribs. Plain maple neck and scroll. Fine-grained spruce front. Ebony fingerboard, pegs and chinrest. Set up with Ultra Wittner tailpiece with fine adjusters, new bridge and soundpost.

Length of back: 31.7cms.  Stop length: 17.7cms  String length: 29.1cms.

The Maidstone Movement was an initiative that set out to improve musical education. In 1898, Murdoch & Co. started importing good quality student violins from Schönbach and Graslitz on the Bohemian-German border and from Czechoslovakia. By 1909, over 400,000 children had hired an instrument and benefitted from violin lessons and a good musical education in their schools as part of the Maidstone Movement.

Murdoch & Co. were also responsible for producing and selling the associated material which formed the curriculum. The impact this had on lower-income families giving them access had a significant impact on English musical culture.