An American biochemist believes that he has solved the mystery of the magical sound of Stradivari violins. Joseph Nagyvary of the Texas A & M University, who has been working to reveal the secret of the precious instruments for thirty years, claims that according to his research, the wood preserving mixture used on the musical instruments produced by master violin makers like Stradivari and his rival Guarneri have influenced the mechanical and acoustic properties of the wood, conferring on the instruments a sound without equal.

Analyses of wood slivers have revealed a mixture of borax, fluorides, chromium and iron salts, which were applied to protect the wood from woodworm.