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Premium ❘ FeatureRachel Barton Pine: ‘What we’re doing today is the history of tomorrow’
As she turns 50, the American violinist Rachel Barton Pine speaks to Ariane Todes about her unwavering enthusiasm for discovering, and communicating, the artistic integrity in everything she does
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Premium ❘ FeatureMusical service: String groups in the US military
Rita Fernandes hears from musicians in the United States Air Force, Army and Marine Corps and travels to Washington DC to discover the little-known world of string playing in the US military
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: violinist Fenella Humphreys and composer Adrian Sutton on a new violin concerto
Being diagnosed with an incurable cancer spurred on War Horse composer Adrian Sutton to write a new violin concerto for Fenella Humphreys. Michael White hears from both composer and soloist about recording the work
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Premium ❘ FeatureThe DIY approach: Self-taught string playing
Can you teach yourself the violin? Violinist, teacher and author Celia Cobb believed it to be impossible – until a new book made her re-evaluate some of her assumptions
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Premium ❘ FeatureThe Strad Calendar 2025: Canada’s crème de la crème
The Strad Calendar 2025 celebrates the work of the Canada Council for the Arts, which has been matching players with fine instruments for 40 years. Christian Lloyd takes a look at the collection’s highlights
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: Cellist Matthew Barley on recording Light Stories
Cellist Matthew Barley’s album Light Stories was inspired by a life-changing incident he experienced as a teenager. He tells Charlotte Gardner how he put together its deeply personal narrative and recorded it in his home studio
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Premium ❘ Feature50 years of the Takács Quartet
As the Takács Quartet celebrates its 50th birthday, its members talk to Pauline Harding about the ensemble’s legacy, the intangible ‘fifth spirit’ that has shaped its character even as its players have changed over the decades, and the importance of teaching and other projects and challenges
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Premium ❘ FeatureFrom the land of a hundred violins: Amedeo Simonazzi
The luthier Amedeo Simonazzi was born into a region with a strong native musical tradition – which is almost forgotten today. Stefano Pio reveals how his surroundings influenced his career
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Premium ❘ FeatureRégis Pasquier: the complete violinist
Now nearing his ninth decade, the great French violinist Régis Pasquier has enjoyed a dazzlingly varied 65-year career taking in everything from core repertoire to contemporary music to jazz. He shares some of his memories over tea in Paris with Jessica Duchen
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Premium ❘ FeatureCentre of attention: centring and alignment
Inspired by the work of the Cremonese masters, David Folland explains his method for finding the centre line of an old instrument
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Premium ❘ FeatureA unique pairing: the ‘Paderewski, Wendling’ violin
In the first of a two-part article, Balthazar Soulier examines an extraordinary violin that displays the hallmarks of both Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ and Domenico Montagnana
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Premium ❘ FeatureMother tongues: Global Suzuki Method
How can the Suzuki Method be relevant in places where children might never have heard of Twinkle? Peter Somerford speaks to teachers who have adapted their approach to cultures with their own strong musical traditions, or with differing expectations of parental involvement
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: Emily Sun on recording the Korngold and Kats-Chernin violin concertos
Australian violinist Emily Sun speaks to Jessica Duchen about channelling the golden-age tenor Caruso in her recording of Korngold’s filmic Violin Concerto, which she has paired with Elena Kats-Chernin’s own movie-inspired new work
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Premium ❘ FeatureViolinist Ray Chen: Making the connection
Global violinist Ray Chen’s mission is to connect people through music. He speaks to Amanda Holloway about his work both on and off the concert platform – through his Tonic practice app, his social media presence and his new album
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Premium ❘ FeatureShaping a century of music: Curtis Institute centenary
As it celebrates its 100th anniversary this autumn, the Philadelphia-based Curtis Institute retains its unique status as a centre not only for high-level training but for the education of the whole artist. Thomas May discovers the revered conservatoire’s rigorous standards and personalised approach
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Premium ❘ FeatureScandinavian Cello School: The road to Vienna
From rural Denmark to Vienna’s Musikverein, Rita Fernandes discovers the Scandinavian Cello School’s distinctive educational ethos while on tour with its cello octet
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Premium ❘ Feature100 years of cellist Christopher Bunting: ‘The truth of one’s nature has the last word’
British cellist Christopher Bunting brought an unwavering authenticity to his art as a performer, and as a renowned pedagogue he had the drive and generosity to help others achieve the same in their own playing. On the centenary of his birth, his daughter, violinist and teacher Philippa Bunting, considers his ...
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Premium ❘ FeatureWhere science meets art: Positioning the f-holes
Inspired by the work of the illustrious Cremonese masters, Alvin Thomas King presents a practical method for modern-day luthiers to position the f-holes on an instrument
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: composer Ailbhe McDonagh and violinist Lynda O’Connor on The Irish Four Seasons
Composer Ailbhe McDonagh and violinist Lynda O’Connor talk to Harry White about The Irish Four Seasons, a new work inspired by Vivaldi’s masterpiece, and their approach to recording it alongside its namesake
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Premium ❘ FeatureBass instinct: a new generation of double bass players
The Strad speaks to five double bassists who are helping to shape a multifaceted and forward-looking new generation of players