Kelly Sivy Violin, Elkin, North Carolina 2024

Kelly Sivy is an early-career violin-maker living between her home in Alaska, and North Carolina, where for the last 4 years, she has intensively studied under Master Violin-maker Joe Thrift, in classes and one-on-one artist apprenticeships, funded by the North Carolina Arts Council. Ms. Sivy’s interest in violin making started upon seeking a return to her earlier roots in craftsmanship, which had imprinted as a young woman while working alongside her father, a uniquely skilled toy-maker and commercial artist. Though she eventually strayed away from the artistic trades to court academics, multiple degrees and over a decade later, her work as a research ecologist, increasingly dependent on computing and analytics, became hollow. It was during this time that Ms. Sivy began playing fiddle, and while learning traditional Irish and Old-time repertoire, she also learned of her compulsive intrigue to understand and build this exquisite new tool. One of the aspects of violin making that Ms. Sivy has come to value most is the culture of methods passed down between individuals, within families, and across generations, that contributes towards centuries-long traditions. Ms. Sivy is proud to be part of a lineage of craftsmanship that includes Maestro Roger Hargave, a leading expert in classical Cremonese methods, who closely mentored Mr. Thrift, as he developed and refined his own making style. From this lineage, Ms. Sivy has trained in many aspects of Cremonese tradition – from cooking colophony varnish right down to the knots and blocks used to clamp the rub structure to the mold. Ms. Sivy is excited to be crafting legacy instruments that enable musicians in furthering their own expression. She returns home to Fairbanks, Alaska this spring to establish her permanent workshop nestled in the spruce-covered hills of the Far North.

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