All Historical articles – Page 8
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FocusIn focus: the 1686 'Helvetica' Stradivari
In this article from the December 2015 issue, David Bonsey takes a look at a violin from early in its maker’s career, but already a few steps along a crucial design evolution
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Video
Experimental 1872 cello played by Raphaël Pidoux
In this video from the Musée de la musique at the Philharmonie de Paris, Raphaël Pidoux plays an experimental cello made by luthier Thomas Zach in 1872. The piece is the Humoreske op.11 no.2 by David Popper, the cellist who showcased this very instrument at the Vienna World’s Fair ...
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Focus
In focus: cello by Giovanni Grancino, 1693
In this article from the January 2006 issue of The Strad, Ed Keohane studies a cello which had just been sold at Sotheby’s for nearly £210,000. Photographs by Richard Valencia
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Focus
The Strad poster: the 1741 ‘Vieuxtemps’ Guarneri
Additional measurements including weights and densities of the top and back plates
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Focus
In focus: The ‘Carrodus’ Guarneri ‘del Gesù’
In this article from the April 2007 issue, John Dilworth takes a close look at a violin made when ‘del Gesù’ was at his most imaginative and creative
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News
New record set for G.B. Guadagnini at London auction
The ‘Sinzheimer’ violin pushes past $2m mark in Tarisio auction, breaking previous record for maker set in 2016
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Gallery
In focus: violin by G.B. Rogeri
In this article from the October 2009 issue, Philip Kass untangles Rogeri, Rugeri and the last Amati in taking a closer look at a late 17th-century violin by the first
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Focus
Maxim Vengerov: Me and my Strads
In conversation with Sota Nakazawa, Russian virtuoso Maxim Vengerov explains his love for Stradivari instruments, and his long relationship with them
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Video
Rolf Lislevand plays a Stradivarius guitar
Norwegian early music specialist Rolf Lislevand plays the 1679 ‘Sabionari’ Stradivari, the only guitar by the maker which is currently playable. The piece is a Tarantela by Spanish Baroque composer Santiago de Murcia. Read: The ‘Sabionari’ Stradivarius guitar, 1679 [gallery]
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Gallery
The ‘Sabionari’ Stradivarius guitar, 1679
Of the five or six Stradivari guitars still extant, it is also, thanks to a recent restoration, the only one that is currently playable. Violinmaker Gregg Alf takes a closer look [click + to zoom]
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Focus
From the archive: Violin by Santo Serafin c.1740
In the January 2013 issue, John Dilworth examined this fine example of the great Venetian crafstman’s work [click + to zoom in]
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Video
Clarissa Bevilacqua plays Bach on the 1669 'Clisbee' Stradivarius
Seventeen-year-old violinist Clarissa Bevilacqua performs the Andante from Bach’s Sonata no.2 on the 1669 ‘Clisbee’ Stradivari from the collection of the Museo del Violino, Cremona. Clarissa Bevilaqua’s biography: She started playing the violin at age five, and debuted at the Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago in front of ten ...
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Focus
From the archive: a 1717 Brescian cello by Pietro Giacomo Rogeri
Marked forever by Paganini and nearly lost in the snow by Piatti, this 1717 cello by Pietro Giacomo Rogeri has had a colourful history. Article by John Dilworth from the July 2009 issue
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News
Gallery: X-raying a Strad case
Dimitri Musafia shares what is likely the first X-ray of a case from the Stradivari workshop
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Video
Rob Landes tries out a titanium violin
In this video, violinist Rob Landes experiments with a violin made out of sheet titanium. Its maker described some of the challenges invoveld in its construction: ‘The number one problem when working with titanium is it reacts with the oxygen in air anytime it is over 800 degrees ...
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Focus
From the archive: the 1697 'Molitor' Stradivarius
This article by Philip Kass was first published in the December 2010 issue, soon after the instrument had been sold to Anne Akiko Meyers for a then-record $3.6m
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News
Ten Stradivarius instruments brought together for D.C. concert
Library of Congress collection joined by ‘Paganini’ quartet for special event. Philip J. Kass reports
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Focus
Anne Akiko Meyers on playing the 'Vieuxtemps' Guarneri 'Del Gesù'
The US violinist, who has been loaned in perpetuity what is currently the world’s most expensive instrument, discusses its tone quality and projection
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Focus
From the archive: a violin by Santino Lavazza, c.1720
In the January 2007 issue, John Dilworth took a close look at a violin by one of the lesser known Milanese makers of the 18th century
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Focus
The ‘Vieuxtemps’ Guarneri ‘Del Gesù’
Currently the world’s most expensive violin, the 1741 ‘Vieuxtemps’ Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ is in a remarkable state of preservation, considering it has been in use for most of its life. In this extract from the first of a two-part article, Terry Borman introduces the instrument’s most celebrated owner
