Note that, as is not uncommon with the DM, the article soon fails to distinguish between beef-gut and the much more common sheep-gut strings, so that may muddy the issue for some readers.
The banning of the fairly recently developed cow-gut strings is unlikely to affect folk musicians, because cow-gut is for a very specialist niche in classical music, but the situation will become much more serious if the besuited buffoons in Brussels start applying such directives to sheep-gut strings. Sheep-gut core strings are used by many musicians in all types of music, including folk, and the covered Eudoxa brand has been a bench mark for as long as most of us can remember.
I'm sorry, but I'm finding this really funny. For a start, it does look like the Italian government slipped up as regards the Italian dispensation.
Anyway, like you say, Trevor, sheep gut is by far the most commonly used.
The amusing thing is the way the right wing anti-EU press report these things - even more how the right wing gutter press differs from the less insane right wing press -
Daily Mail:
"Campaigners say that to catch mad cow disease, or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, from strings from an infected animal, you would need to swallow several yards of them."
The Telegraph:
"The craft is covered by the same strict controls on raw materials from cows, even though campaigners say that to catch Creutzfeldt – Jakob disease, (CJD) – the human form of bovine spongiform encephalopathy – from violin or cello strings from an infected animal you would need to eat several metres of them. "
No way the Daily Mail would stoop so low as to use metric measurements!
They haven't even started on what you might catch from animal hide glue. A fiddle is a highly dangerous item and obviously should be banned forthwith (not so dangerous as imported drum skins though - people actually have died from anthrax spores)
I would ask the EU how many musicians or others have been recorded as catching these diseases from these kinds of string.
But any figures they produce wouldn't be trustworthy. If there *were* any, they would probably be brought about by EU agents scurrying round great heaps and piles of snoring slumped musicians at festivals in the small hours and injecting them by the dozen with mad cow disease.
The result would be a wave of mad foaming accordionists. Strings players are smarter and would perk up and flee.
Time to get shot of them. I mean the EU, not the accordionists or strings players.
"Time to get shot of them. I mean the EU, not the accordionists or strings players."
It's amazing that people talk about the EU as "them" - some remote bureaucracy, of which Britain is just an unfortunate victim, tagged on by the misdeeds of past government.
I wonder how many people with this picture in their heads have any idea how many British civil servants work for the EU....
"Ha! EU bureauprats don't worry me.
My strings are made of unicorn gut."
Have there not been fairly recent EU moves to restrict equine products?
I reckon some of those unicorns are fed with steroids.
Ten years ago the EU tried to prevent animal products containing a potentially lethal disease from entering the food chain, by controlling processing of them. Inadvertently, this regulation was allowed to apply to products that were not intended for consumption. National governments could modify the rules to avoid the problem, but they haven't all done it. Individual companies could apply for this modification, but they haven't all done it.
Those mad bastards in Brussels are just drunk with power!!!
One can only be grateful for the right-wing anti-EU press protecting musicians from this vicious attack. And thanks Trevor for bringing this 'crackpot directive' to our attention.
Innocent Bystander - I would be surprised. It is much more fun to stir cow droppings than to apologise, and I read somewhere (was it Daily Mail?) that correcting one's mistakes is against journalist code of ethics.
On an Irish Trad site you're asking this? I wouldn't weep, especially if they abolished the Daily Fail with it. You could always rewrite "The Sea, The Sea" to say "Long may it roll between the E.U. and me..."
Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
The latest crackpot directive from Brussels is to ban cow-gut (beef-gut) strings for violins etc. This is the Daily Mail's take on it: (there are equivalent articles in the Daily Telegraph and elsewhere)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2066989/Bach-ing-mad-EU-ban-orchestras-using-cow-gut-strings.html
Note that, as is not uncommon with the DM, the article soon fails to distinguish between beef-gut and the much more common sheep-gut strings, so that may muddy the issue for some readers.
The banning of the fairly recently developed cow-gut strings is unlikely to affect folk musicians, because cow-gut is for a very specialist niche in classical music, but the situation will become much more serious if the besuited buffoons in Brussels start applying such directives to sheep-gut strings. Sheep-gut core strings are used by many musicians in all types of music, including folk, and the covered Eudoxa brand has been a bench mark for as long as most of us can remember.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
I'm sorry, but I'm finding this really funny. For a start, it does look like the Italian government slipped up as regards the Italian dispensation.
Anyway, like you say, Trevor, sheep gut is by far the most commonly used.
The amusing thing is the way the right wing anti-EU press report these things - even more how the right wing gutter press differs from the less insane right wing press -
Daily Mail:
"Campaigners say that to catch mad cow disease, or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, from strings from an infected animal, you would need to swallow several yards of them."
The Telegraph:
"The craft is covered by the same strict controls on raw materials from cows, even though campaigners say that to catch Creutzfeldt – Jakob disease, (CJD) – the human form of bovine spongiform encephalopathy – from violin or cello strings from an infected animal you would need to eat several metres of them. "
No way the Daily Mail would stoop so low as to use metric measurements!
It will all come out in the wash.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
They haven't even started on what you might catch from animal hide glue. A fiddle is a highly dangerous item and obviously should be banned forthwith (not so dangerous as imported drum skins though - people actually have died from anthrax spores)
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by RichardB
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Also it seems beef gut is in production - for tennis racket strings. So something about this story doesn't smell right.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Jack Campin
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Bullocks.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by gam
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Yet another reason to ban the bodhran.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by SmashTheWindows
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Couldn't we ask Fidkid to stock up in his Shoppe and sell us, strings made out of Quorn?
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Rudall the time
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
I would ask the EU how many musicians or others have been recorded as catching these diseases from these kinds of string.
But any figures they produce wouldn't be trustworthy. If there *were* any, they would probably be brought about by EU agents scurrying round great heaps and piles of snoring slumped musicians at festivals in the small hours and injecting them by the dozen with mad cow disease.
The result would be a wave of mad foaming accordionists. Strings players are smarter and would perk up and flee.
Time to get shot of them. I mean the EU, not the accordionists or strings players.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by nicholas
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Ha! EU bureauprats don't worry me.
My strings are made of unicorn gut.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by skreech
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Gamut Music in the USA is a respected manufacturer of gut strings. This page on their website talks about their new range of strings made from beef gut.
http://gamutmusic.squarespace.com/news/new-beef-gut-strings.html
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Skreech, I do hope it's not a white unicorn.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
wonder how the guts of EU directors would work?
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by full measure
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
EU Directors don't work. They just make work for everyone else.
# Posted on November 28th 2011 by Ebor_fiddler
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
"Time to get shot of them. I mean the EU, not the accordionists or strings players."
It's amazing that people talk about the EU as "them" - some remote bureaucracy, of which Britain is just an unfortunate victim, tagged on by the misdeeds of past government.
I wonder how many people with this picture in their heads have any idea how many British civil servants work for the EU....
"Ha! EU bureauprats don't worry me.
My strings are made of unicorn gut."
Have there not been fairly recent EU moves to restrict equine products?
I reckon some of those unicorns are fed with steroids.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
So the actual story boils down to this:
Ten years ago the EU tried to prevent animal products containing a potentially lethal disease from entering the food chain, by controlling processing of them. Inadvertently, this regulation was allowed to apply to products that were not intended for consumption. National governments could modify the rules to avoid the problem, but they haven't all done it. Individual companies could apply for this modification, but they haven't all done it.
Those mad bastards in Brussels are just drunk with power!!!
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by E
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
This affects harp strings, too. All of my historical harps use natural gut. They're too expensive to eat.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Tracie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
One can only be grateful for the right-wing anti-EU press protecting musicians from this vicious attack. And thanks Trevor for bringing this 'crackpot directive' to our attention.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by E
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
And an extra special thank you from Händel and Bach for informing the people about these composers' threatened works.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
They won't do it. They haven't got the guts.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by johnmaca
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
"They haven't got the guts."
What are you in-sinew-ating?
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
It's alimentary my dear Watson.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by RichardB
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
It might entrail further investigation.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Wait until they roll out other instruments they have in testin.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Janek
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Alles ist gut.
# Posted on November 29th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Response from the European Commission here:
http://blogs.ec.europa.eu/ECintheUK/no-ban-on-cow-gut-violin-strings-and-no-massive-green-burden-for-uk-taxpayers/
I wonder if the DM & DT will print the letter? Sometimes they don't.
# Posted on November 30th 2011 by Innocent Bystander
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Like the name - "Mark English". Typical name for one of those European foreign bureaucrats.
Indeed - Alles ist gut.
# Posted on November 30th 2011 by Weejie
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
Innocent Bystander - I would be surprised. It is much more fun to stir cow droppings than to apologise, and I read somewhere (was it Daily Mail?) that correcting one's mistakes is against journalist code of ethics.
What's with the EU's plan to abolish Britain?
# Posted on November 30th 2011 by Janek
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
On an Irish Trad site you're asking this? I wouldn't weep, especially if they abolished the Daily Fail with it. You could always rewrite "The Sea, The Sea" to say "Long may it roll between the E.U. and me..."
# Posted on November 30th 2011 by Innocent Bystander
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
"Couldn't we ask Fidkid to stock up in his Shoppe and sell us, strings made out of Quorn?"
It's only a small website. I'm not sure there's that mushroom.
# Posted on November 30th 2011 by ethical blend
Re: Latest EU directive for bashing musicians
I know I know. I'm a fun guy.
# Posted on November 30th 2011 by ethical blend