We collected a representative selection of store-bought shoulder rests so that the musicians could try out different kinds of shoulder rests one after another without time limit and before buying any. Students could browse through different options during fitting sessions, or take them home to try out and compare. Based on student needs, we added to the collection throughout the research.
Some of the shoulder rests that we had on hand to experiment with.
At every stage of the research, changes could be made easily as the students let go of cramped playing styles and gained insight into what they wanted from their equipment. The shoulder rest could also be better matched to the particular chin rest in use at the moment.
We took advantage of the designs of the shoulder rests by having all replacement and alternate parts in house, such as different length screw feet, etc. Further alterations were often made to the store-bought equipment by exchanging parts of different size rests, adding padding, and so on.
When a suitable shoulder rest could not be found, we constructed one from other materials.
>>Shoulder rest substitutes
