Our email is don@DonRickertDesign.com and phone number is (706) 400-1481. You can also use the "Contact" link on this page.

The new Tenor Viola XR is a really powerful octave violin with an extra-large body OR a viola with extended range afforded by an additional low string. It has a 16-inch viola body, which is structurally optimized for its five octave strings. The width at the nut is a full 30mm – a full 6mm spacing between strings!

This is one of the most versatile instruments we have ever designed. Depending on how it is tuned, it is either:

• A 5-string viola with an additional F (or G) string at the low end. This gives the adventurous violist up to 7 more notes on the LOW end. The standard extended viola tuning is F2/G2, C3, G3, D4, A4 (just like a 4-string viola with an extra lower string).
• A viola-sized octave violin with an additional A (or B) string at the top end. This gives the adventurous violinist or fiddler the range of an octave violin PLUS up to 7 additional easy-to-access notes on the TOP end. For many, this is a dream come true. The longer playable string length is more than compensated for by the extra string on the treble side.

Regardless of whether one is a violist, violinist or fiddler, the number of potential tuning alternatives is mind-blowing. See the table below for some of the possibilities.

The instrument is fit with the revolutionary Wittner Fine-Tune™ tuners.

Note: The pictures show a Realist Copperhead pickup installed. If you want one of these, or another pickup, there is an additional cost.

We have one of these in stock that is ready to ship.

Let us know if you wish to add a pickup.