Historical
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VideoThe Strad Calendar 2021: Gasparo da Salò double bass c.1580
The workmanship of this bass is typical of Gasparo, with the distinctive double purfling and long, widely set f-holes
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Focus
The Strad Calendar 2021: Giovanni Battista Rogeri cello 1695
The arching of the Rogeri is flat, unlike the bulbous forms of most of his contemporary makers
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Video
The Strad Calendar 2021: Carlo Bergonzi ‘Kreisler’ violin 1735
The ‘Kreisler’s characteristically thin yet intensely coloured varnish is in abundance
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Article
‘It was like the earth moved beneath me’ - violinist Leonidas Kavakos on playing the ’Willemotte’ Stradivari
Kavakos describes his first encounter with the 1734 violin, made when Antonio Stradivari was 90 years old
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1734 Stradivari violin ‘Willemotte’: Late… but worth the wait
Made when Antonio Stradivari was 90 years old, the 1734 ‘Willemotte’ bears all his hallmarks including a deep, complex tone quality. Sam Zygmuntowicz examines the violin and compares its design features with other gems of the great master
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The viola d’amore: For a sympathetic ear
The viola d’amore is undergoing a resurgence in popularity among early music groups, with a wealth of repertoire still to be rediscovered. Rachael Durkin tracks the development of this unique instrument, examining its many precursors along the way
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Video
The Strad Calendar 2021: Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume violin 1848-50
This Vuillaume is a mid-period ‘del Gesù ’ copy, on which the f-holes of the ‘Ole Bull’ Guarneri have been imposed
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Video
The Strad Calendar 2021: Giuseppe Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ violin 1744
Guarneri’s carving is free and energetic, the movements of the tools quick and deep
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Focus
The Strad Calendar 2021; Nicolas Lupot cello 1823
The Lupot cello is a wonderful piece of controlled craftsmanship, and bears his personal signature on the back
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Carlo Bisiach: Dispatches from the front line
Gennady Filimonov examines the letters between Carlo Bisiach (1892–1968) and his American representative Leo D. Larsson, which provide a fascinating perspective on the violin trade in the 1930s and 40s, as well as an insight into the Italian luthier’s working methods
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Hollywood Bow Makers: Unsung heroes of the silver screen
Lasting from the late 1920s to 1960, Hollywood’s golden age was a boom time for musicians, and those who catered for them. Raphael Gold tells the stories of some of the era’s best-regarded LA bow makers, and reveals why their work should be better known today
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Focus
What is it like to play Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s own violin?
Christoph Koncz, principal second violinist of the Vienna Philharmonic, shares his experience
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Focus
The Strad Calendar 2021: Francesco and Giovanni Grancino viola c.1665
The varnish of the Grancino is most beautiful and wonderfully well preserved
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Video
The Strad Calendar 2021: Francesco Rugeri cello c.1680
This poplar-backed cello is clearly very similar in form and modelling to Amati patterns
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Video
Cremonese makers launch video showcase
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic and its effect on Italian lutherie, a group of violin makers in Cremona have put together a video showcasing their working methods. The aim is to demonstrate the vibrancy and industriousness of today’s luthiers, as Antonio Stradivari wanders the streets of modern-day Cremona, viewing ...
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Video
The Strad Calendar 2021: ‘Arditi’ Antonio Stradivari violin
This year’s calendar contains twelve masterpieces by Stradivari, Guarneri ‘del Gesù’, Rogeri, Vuillaume and many more
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Video
Video: Violin Makers – The Renaissance of Italian Lutherie
A 60-minute documentary featuring interviews with some of the greatest 20th-century Italian luthiers
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