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Ever felt like none of the shoulderrests available suit your needs? So did Fred in Southern California, but instead of continuing his search, he decided to do something about it.
Intelligent and well-spoken, in recent years Fred has moved his focus from MMA (multiple martial arts) fighting to playing violin and fiddle. We found out in the course of this interview that his favorite audience happens to be just a bit unusual. He still keeps busy with snowboarding, wakeboarding and other extreme sports as well as diverse artistic pursuits. If Hollywood was looking for the next great action adventure hero story, they should talk to Fred. The only question would be whether it might be better to have his character played by Bruce Willis or Steven Seagal.
Recently he also has been exercising his abilities as an inventor and turned his attention to solving the long-standing problem of violin shoulder rests that are simply neither ergonomic nor aesthetically pleasing. Even if you don't mind buckling a crude looking piece of plastic or metal to a musical instrument worth hundreds to thousands of dollars, the problem is that poorly designed shoulder rests can…
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"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Hmmm.. I find the idea rather interesting. Reminds me a bit (in principle, at least), of the Bonmusica adjustable rest insofar as to kind of rest a little sideways over the collar bone. Obviously has little use for me as I am, seeing as how I play with the endbutton tucked under my armpit, essentially.... but if I had hands-free stability with little effort and the ability to adjust at a moment's notice going another way, I'd probably do it.
It mentions on the site that you're among the first to try it. So what did you think of it?
On a side note, do you have any opinions on any of the alternative means of support out there like the Happynex sling (which is apparently nothing more than a Lycra scarf?), NS Design's "Hook", Viostrap, etc.?
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Well to answer your question, most of you know that I don't really use a shoulder-rest. However I've had students that absolutely need them, no doubt about it. There are probably just as many or more pros that use them than there are that do not.
What is good about this shoulder-rest is that it is secure, strong and beautiful. If you have a long neck or the kind of physique that requires that stability you might love this rest.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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I just got back into town at 1am this morning (In the past four weeks I've visited TX, NYC, & HI) and finally got to see the interview that Daniel wrote above.
Daniel, I very much appreciate your time, expertise, & effort in writing this. You know I'm embarrassed to have someone (other than my family of course) spend their valuable time on me and especially when it's as complimentary as this, but I dearly appreciate it; my family very much enjoyed reading it too.
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Mine should be here any day now! 
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I spoke too soon. It was sittin' in the mailbox. I have to say, it's pretty amazing. NOW my violin is complete. It truly is exactly what I was hoping it would be. Thanks Fred!
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I just got The Slipper! I have to say it's as amazing as "they" say it is. It is obviously well crafted and a lot of time was spent on every aspect of it. It is amazingly strong, comfortable, and beautiful. It compliments a violin much better than a $30 plastic rest. I broke my neck and this is the only shoulder rest that allows me to play the violin without straining my neck at all. The fact that I can now play with no pain and have the violin sit in the same spot consistently is amazing! I love it! I'm going to show it to my local shop sometime this week. Maybe they'll be interested in picking it up! It's a work of art just like my violin. A must have!!! Thanks a million Fred! Between this and my new carbon bow I almost feel like a real violinist...
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Thank you Matt!!! I really appreciate the accolades. Makes me feel great to know that it improves your violin/fiddle experience as much as it does.
And my son Nick is very proud of the fact that he made every part of yours; I produced the first dozen because he had to fill the orders in a timely manner; yours was the first 100% his.
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Yeeeeeeeee Haaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!
Sounds like you are doing well to have sold 13 already. Congratulations.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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ftufc said
Thank you Matt!!! I really appreciate the accolades. Makes me feel great to know that it improves your violin/fiddle experience as much as it does.And my son Nick is very proud of the fact that he made every part of yours; I produced the first dozen because he had to fill the orders in a timely manner; yours was the first 100% his.
Congratulations!!!
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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Thank you Toni 
Thanks Pierre for all your help with this! Btw, Matt is the third person to buy it and use it who has prior neck injury that has stated clearly that The Slipper is virtually the solution to their pain.
Oddly, my teacher has a new student, a 22 yr old woman, who has such severe neck [spinal cord] damage, that after about 5 minutes of play, she is in excruciating pain, but she is dying to learn violin. The Slipper alleviates that pain for several more minutes and allows her to extend her play from 5 minutes to 20 minutes comfortably, but I'm going to work on a custom-fit rest for her in hopes of alleviating all pain while she plays. It's going to be a tedious process of discovery but I'll let you know how it turns out.
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That's awesome Fred! You and your son are great people. You obviously care more about getting people happy with their violin playing that you are making money. Obviously the latter is nice, but you don't dwell on it and it's nice to see that you just want people to be happy. I have to say, no neck pain at all today. I love it!
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