Wittner Isny Violin 4/4-3/4 & Viola

Non impatta minimamente sul suono, quindi raggiunge l’obbiettivo per cui è stata pensata e questo aspetto mi piace moltissimo. A livello costruttivo è di ottima fattura. Ci vuole circa una settimana per settare la posizione corretta (provata sia con una mentoniera con attacchi centrali che laterali), purtroppo anche stringendo forte le viti ha la tendenza a spostarsi lateralmente in modo impercettibile e a distanza di qualche giorno. Ci sono sicuramente alternative più comode ed ergonomiche come “cuscino” per morbidezza e forma però se settato tutto adeguatamente non crea problemi e può risultare abbastanza comoda. Attualmente la sto utilizzando solo sul violino e non l’ho provata sulla viola perché penso che lo strumento sia troppo grande e pesante per poter essere sorretto facilmente con questo tipo di spalliera, ho intenzione di provarla più avanti ugualmente anche se trovo che sia un pelo troppo piccola per la mia viola (possiedo una 42).

I wanted to try a shoulder rest after many years of playing without one.
The clamp fits nice (I added an extra layer of cork to prevent anything touching the back) and securely with a common screw chinrest (side mounted ones and centered ones).
I'd prefer the construction to be of some lightweight alloy but plastic does the job too.
The sound of my violin seems to be more open that with common shoulder rests (ex-Wolf user) and also it feels that it allows you to move the shoulder a bit better too.
Overall great buy, I'd suggest it any day to someone looking to try something different than a basic shoulder rest.
-2022

Update -2026
I have been using it on and off now and I have found that the stability is an issue. To get it stable you must lock it into a very specific orientation and position.
I liked the fact that you can move it around but it had the issue of touching the back of the instrument many times when trying to use it in a low height position (I don't like tall shoulder rests). I think my previous comment on its materials would be a solution, making it out of something more stable than plastic.
It's still a good concept but it definitely has a lot of room for improvement.

I used to have severe shoulder problems so that I had to stop playing after 10 minutes because my shoulder hurt so much. I decided to try using the Wittner Isny shoulder rest and not only did it improve my technique so I no longer have any problems but it also causes the violin to resonate more giving me a far better sound quality. It is seriously comfortable and I would never consider using an ordinary shoulder rest again.

I understand that some people are worried about how to set up the shoulder rest. But whilst it is a bit fiddly, I didn't have any problems with it. Although it did take me a while to find the right setting due to my shoulder problems. My shoulder position actually changed gradually to the proper place as the shoulder rest does not actually allow you to tense or raise your shoulder which is very beneficial as it helped me to lose my bad habits.

I would recommend this shoulder rest to any musician as it frees up your shoulder and gives you a better control over the rest of the instrument. I have recommended the shoulder rest to all my friends and whilst unlike me they did not have any shoulder problems they have all found it more comfortable and been surprised by the improvement in the sound quality. I hope this helps :-)

I bought this for my daughter, she had tried several different types, some good some not so good, however she is over the moon with the Wittner. It is constructed and fits in such a way that it does not detract the resonance of the Violin.
Her sound (Which was very good anyway) has taken on a new dimension

We found it easy to fit (Following the online video tutorial) and comfortable to use.

We cannot recommend this product highly enough.