All violin articles
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The Strad Calendar 2025: 1689 ‘Baumgartner’ Antonio Stradivari violin
Marking the end of Stradivari’s early ’Amatisé’ period, it is named for the Swiss violin dealer Fritz Baumgartner
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The Strad Calendar 2025: 1871 Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume violin
An exact copy of Stradivari’s ‘Messiah’, it remained in a vault in Paris for more than 70 years
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Blogs
Violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja on the shadow world of Shostakovich
US correspondent Thomas May speaks with Patricia Kopatchinskaja about playing Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1 on her current tour with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Edward Gardner, which culminates in her long-overdue Carnegie Hall debut.
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The Strad Calendar 2025: c.1700 ‘Bell’ Giovanni Tononi violin
With a reddish-brown varnish over a golden ground, this violin shows the influence of Nicolò Amati
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The Strad Calendar 2025: 1715 Domenico Montagnana violin
A rare example of a violin by the noted Venetian maker of cellos, it has a two-piece back of irregular figure
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The Strad Calendar 2025: 1700 ‘Taft’ Antonio Stradivari violin
Boasting beautiful orange–red varnish, it was formerly played by Emil Heermann, concertmaster of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
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News
New instrument loan scheme invites applications from emerging Irish string players
The future of string playing in Ireland has received an investment boost of more than €1 million
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Video
Video: 15 Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ violins in less than 4 minutes
Highlights from David Garrett’s 2024 ‘Del Gesù’ Club, bringing together fine Guarneri instruments from all over the world
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News
Royal College of Music appoints four new violin professors
The appointments include the internationally renowned soloist Jennifer Pike and former concertmaster of the Royal Opera House orchestra, Peter Manning
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Video
Video: First violin performance in space
Violinist and space engineer Sarah Gillis performed ‘Rey’s Theme’ by John Williams aboard the SpaceX spacecraft Crew Dragon
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News
Competition preview: What to know before the George Enescu International Competition for the violin division
From 7-16 September, the violin division of the George Enescu International Competition takes place in Bucharest, Romania, with 50 contestants aged between 14 and 31 in the running.
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Blogs
How I found my violin (or rather, how my violin found me) - Lois de Cruz
Lois de Cruz shares how buying a £150 violin led to a musical journey that has helped her through a time of need and grief
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News
Winner of the 2024 Tibor Junior International Violin Competition announced
Of a total of 15 candidates from all over the world who came to Sion, Switzerland, to participate in the biannual competition, the 16-year-old Corina Deng won first prize as well as three special prizes.
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News
Violin maker Ansaldo Poggi to be celebrated in new exhibition
One of the most highly regarded Italian luthiers of the 20th century, he was an apprentice of Giuseppe Fiorini
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Blogs
My great-uncle Alex, his violin, and the premiere of Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’
When Anton Alterman acquired his great-uncle Alex Drasein’s violin, little did he know that it was the instrument Draesin played for the 1924 world premiere of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. The discovery spurred on the writer to find out more about the violinist.
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Video
Documentary: World War II violin restored for nonprofit's music project
Once played in a German prisoner-of-war camp, the instrument has been brought back to working condition by the Belgium-based Music Fund
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News
Alleged Stradivari violin seized at Ukrainian border
The instrument, containing a label dated 1713, was found in a car travelling to Romania
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Review
Book review: The Living Art of Violin Playing: Progressive Form
Philippa Bunting reviews Maureen Taranto-Pyatt’s well-described account of her theories on ’progressive form’
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8 tips for perfecting your violin varnish
Advice from The Strad Archive on preparing, applying and drying varnish for best results
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6 tips for improved coordination
Guidance from The Strad’s archive for greater synchronisation between left-hand fingers and bow