Violin and cello (this catalog’s string offerings) live or die on setup — two physically identical instruments can play completely differently depending on bridge fit, soundpost placement, and string height, and the actual lutherie trade (schools like North Bennet Street Street run multi-year diploma programs in this exact craft) exists because these adjustments require real hand-tool skill, not just following a checklist.

This course covers the setup fundamentals every string technician needs: bridge fitting and placement, soundpost adjustment, string height and action, fine tuner and peg mechanics, basic crack and seam assessment, and bow rehairing basics. This is preparation for supervised lutherie training, not a substitute for it — a poorly executed soundpost or bridge adjustment can genuinely damage an instrument, and this course builds the judgment to know what’s safely within a technician’s scope versus what needs a specialist.