Hey Phillipa,

my utter commiserations. am always sad to hear of bad things happening to instruments.

I'd go along with what others say though and do take it to a repairer with a good reputation and see what they say about fixing it. No it may not be quite the same instrument but you never can tell. I know of instruments reduced to small pieces that have still sounded lovely when patched & glued back together, even if they're not as pretty or valuable. and hey, it's the sound that counts. My own fiddle looks like its been through the wars in its time & even so I've never found one I like playing as much.

You can probably just take it along and leave it with them for a repair quote so you don't have to go through the trauma of handling it too much yourself.

Finally, yes it is perfectly normal to cry for a damaged instrument. It may be a collection of bits of wood & metal but making music involves your emotions so much that you are bound to feel strongly about your own instruments. It's a perfectly normal grieving process and you shouldn't feel worried about that.

Jess