All Features articles
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: Richard Tognetti on recording Schoenberg, Vasks and Silvestrov with the Australian Chamber Orchestra
Violinist Richard Tognetti speaks to David Kettle about the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s latest album, which features music both new and familiar that is united by themes of remembrance and reflection
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Premium ❘ FeatureFinding the groove: Steve Reich at 90
How do string players make Steve Reich’s meticulously crafted music come alive? To celebrate the US composer’s 90th birthday, leading performers of his works share their insights with Pwyll ap Siôn
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Premium ❘ FeatureSterling Elliott: coming full circle
The American cellist speaks with Lauren Wesley-Smith about his journey as a musician, the formative influence of the Sphinx Organization and finding his own voice in the digital age
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Premium ❘ FeatureChop and change: 60 years of the chop technique
As the chop technique turns 60, Rita Fernandes tracks its evolution and the recent development of its notation in interviews with leading practitioners – as well as learning the technique herself
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Premium ❘ FeatureRatios and rulers: instrument geometry
How did the old Italian makers measure out their instrument patterns? David Beard reveals evidence showing that they made use of both ratios and the standard measurements used at the time
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Premium ❘ FeatureA Korean wave: Korean string playing
South Korea has become a powerhouse of string playing, producing soloists, orchestral leaders and chamber musicians who are making their mark worldwide. Peter Somerford explores the educational and cultural forces behind that success
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: Violinist Noah Bendix-Balgley on recording his Fidl-Fantazye klezmer concerto
Noah Bendix-Balgley, first concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic, speaks to Harry White about recording his self-penned klezmer concerto Fidl-Fantazye live on the Philharmonie stage
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Premium ❘ FeatureThe intersection of two rivers: the violin in China
How did a European instrument become part of China’s musical identity? Violinist Xin Jin charts more than three centuries of the violin’s development in Chinese culture, from its arrival with Western missionaries to the flourishing repertoire of today
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Premium ❘ Feature‘Love what you do’: Antje Weithaas
Violinist Antje Weithaas talks to Pauline Harding about her varied career in teaching, performance and, most recently, conducting, which is carrying her in new and exciting directions as she approaches her 60th birthday
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Premium ❘ FeatureThe Strad Calendar 2027: Norway’s pride and joy
The Strad Calendar 2027 features eleven Stradivari instruments, all taken from the collection of the Anders Sveaas Charitable Foundation. Christian Lloyd examines the treasures
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Premium ❘ FeatureAn overlooked wonder: Pietro Barbieri
Despite having made only a handful of instruments in his career, Pietro Barbieri proved to be one of Mantua’s most accomplished luthiers. Philip Kass and Andrea Zanrè look into his life and examine an instrument from 1826
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Premium ❘ FeatureIn the midst of transition: the French transitional period – part two
In the second of two articles on the French transitional period, Florent Boyer examines the development of the violin in Paris between 1790 and 1830 – and how Nicolas Lupot’s influence proved to be seismic
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Premium ❘ FeatureThe practice principle: how I practise
Musicians spend thousands of hours practising but the questions about how to do it most efficiently never go away. Four leading string players share their insights with David Kettle and reveal their individual, and sometimes surprising, approaches to practice
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Premium ❘ FeatureBeyond the breakthrough: young artists’ programmes
Today’s young artists’ schemes serve very different purposes. Hattie Butterworth explores how programmes ranging from mentoring academies to career trusts and performance platforms support string players at different stages of their early careers
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: violinist Théotime Langlois de Swarte on recording ‘Le Violon de Rameau’
Théotime Langlois de Swarte tells Harry White how Le Violon de Rameau, his new album with William Christie, restores the violin to the heart of the composer’s musical world
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Premium ❘ FeatureJuilliard Quartet at 80: lines of inquiry
As the Juilliard Quartet celebrates its 80th anniversary, its members speak to Thomas May about teaching, rehearsal‑room disagreement, new commissions and the essential questions that keep the ensemble’s tradition alive
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Premium ❘ Feature‘Let it happen’: Kató Havas’s teaching philosophies
Kató Havas’s teaching remains widely admired but is still often misunderstood. Clifford Hall revisits the debates around her methods to reveal a more nuanced picture of her legacy
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Premium ❘ FeatureBach Cello Suites: inspired by Bach’s feet
Could Bach’s experience as an organist have influenced his decision to write the Cello Suites? Markus Rathey examines the role that pedal technique may have had in the creation of these revolutionary works
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Premium ❘ FeatureMatthew Hardie: ‘The Scottish Stradivari’
Matthew Hardie, who died 200 years ago this year, was possibly Scotland’s most influential violin maker. To mark the anniversary, David Rattray tells the story of his life and examines a selection of his violas
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Premium ❘ FeatureSession Report: cellist Alban Gerhardt on recording the Dvořák and Elgar concertos
German cellist Alban Gerhardt tells Jessica Duchen about challenging entrenched performance habits and returning to the composers’ markings in his recordings of the Dvořák and Elgar concertos
