Cécile and Chris at Cardiff Violins, I just wanted to say thanks on behalf of my friend Sherlock Holmes for the violin he recently purchased from you. He would thank you himself; only, well Sherlock doesn’t really do that sort of thing. You were extremely patient with him, much more than he deserved, which I should also thank you for, as a lot of people find him ‘difficult’. Thought you handled the situation very well, especially when he insisted on deducing the history of each instrument he picked up, in addition to identifying the rosin dust from each bow that had previously been used! Anyway, sorry about that, he’s always like it and yes it does get annoying, but at least you don’t have to live with him.
I don’t know much about violins myself, but it looks like a lovely violin to me. The sound it makes when Sherlock plays it is beautiful, and the other evening he treated me to a rendition of Bach’s Partita No.1, which sounded particularly marvellous on it. He seems very pleased anyway, that is to say he hasn’t complained at all and tells me playing it helps him think, which believe me is high praise indeed.