Biochemist to analyze the Stradivarius sound

PROVO — Biochemist Joseph Nagyvary will blend the worlds of music and science in a presentation at Brigham Young University today.

He will present the scientific basis for the unique sound of a Stradivarius violin.

The lecture, called "Decoding the Stradivarius: The materials, the sound and the mystique," will be at 7 p.m. in Room W-40 of the Benson Building at BYU.

The presentation will be a joint venture between Utah Valley State College's chemistry department, BYU and the American Chemical Society.

Nagyvary, a professor emeritus at Texas A&M, has been studying Stradivarius violins for 30 years. In that time, he has concluded that the instrument's sound is a result of the chemical composition of the wood preservatives, glues, fillers and varnishes used in its construction, not the actual design of the violin itself.