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Finalists announced for 2025 Isang Yun Cello Competition
A lasting relationship: the Ariel Quartet performs Beethoven op.59 no.3
Anna Urpina: uncovering Baroque works by female composers
The quest for Cassadó: the interdisciplinary partnership to introduce Gaspar Cassadó to a broader audience
Cellist Anouchka Hack receives Beethoven Ring 2025
Grancino violin and two bows stolen from Dutch train
The instrument and bows, which belong to Ryo Terakado, were in a triangular blue case
Hilary Hahn cancels three Berlin Philharmonic dates in December
The violinist is still recovering from a double pinched nerve injury
‘It came as a surprise to us’: Essen Philharmonic issues statement on cancelled violin concerto
Members of the orchestra say of Clara Iannotta’s new concerto, ‘the decision to cancel was made by the artistic management’, not the musicians
Playing Hub
Sentimental Work: Krysia Osostowicz on Shostakovich’s String Quartet no.15
For the British violinist, Shostakovich’s String Quartet no.15 calls to mind a moving Menuhin rehearsal and her initiation into the Brodsky Quartet
‘Paganini came up to me gesticulating violently’ - From the archive: November 1905
Author Stephen S. Stratton recounts how a generous gift from Nicolò Paganini revitalised the ailing career of Hector Berlioz
The quest for Cassadó: the interdisciplinary partnership to introduce Gaspar Cassadó to a broader audience
Erin Jones speaks to cellist Katie Tertell and historian Rosi Song about their mission to uncover the music of Cassadó, through their project ‘Lost in Plain Sight’
Breaking the sounds of sameness: why music education must resist global uniformity
Hector Scott argues for the embrace of the creative exchange of ideas in music education, rather than a repetitive replicated approach that avoids innovation
A neglected work from Wales: uncovering Grace Williams’s Violin Concerto
Madeleine Mitchell shines a light on the Violin Concerto by Grace Williams (1906–1977), Wales’s most significant female composer, ahead of a performance in Wrexham on 9 November
Opinion: Duets as a teaching tool
Cellist and teacher Naomi Yandell outlines the reasons why duet playing is an essential tool in one-to-one instrumental teaching
Premium ❘ Feature
Letters from America: 130 years of Hindemith
To mark the 130th anniversary of Paul Hindemith’s birth, Carlos María Solare delves into the composer and violist’s US years and hears from three leading soloists about what his music means to them
Premium ❘ Feature
‘Paganini came up to me gesticulating violently’ - From the archive: November 1905
Author Stephen S. Stratton recounts how a generous gift from Nicolò Paganini revitalised the ailing career of Hector Berlioz
Premium ❘ Feature
Letters from America: 130 years of Hindemith
To mark the 130th anniversary of Paul Hindemith’s birth, Carlos María Solare delves into the composer and violist’s US years and hears from three leading soloists about what his music means to them
Premium ❘ Focus
‘Positivity goes a much longer way than negativity’ - Melissa White’s life lessons
The American violinist on having inspirational tutors, the power of positivity and the need for risk-taking
Premium ❘ Focus
Postcard from Idaho: Sun Valley Music Festival
The Sun Valley Music Festival is a unique experience where visitors can hear free concerts performed by first-rate musicians in a beautiful setting, as Emma Baker discovered
Competitions
Finalists announced for the 8th Mirecourt International Violin Competition
Three finalists will perform a concerto with orchestra on 9 November 2025 in Thaon-les-Vosges, France
Finalists announced for 2025 Isang Yun Cello Competition
Four cellists will perform a concerto on 8 November in Tongyeong, South Korea, for the chance to win the top prize of KRW30,000,000 (£16,000)
2025 Concours de Genève preview: what to expect from this year’s viola edition
The competition’s first viola edition since 2005 kicks off with an opening concert tonight, featuring Tabea Zimmermann and the Novo Quartet
Premium ❘ News
Premiere of the Month: Bobby Ge’s new violin concerto
A new ballet-inspired violin concerto
Premium ❘ News
Competitions, Awards and Appointments: November 2025
The latest competition results, appointments and forthcoming contests
Masterclass: Brahms Violin Concerto, second movement
The feeling of rhetoric and a stream of consciousness must be represented when approaching this movement, says violinist Liza Ferschtman
Masterclass: Dvořák Romance in F minor op.11
Violinist Grace Park examines ways of creating nuance and variety in this seemingly simple piece, which is imbued with folk elements characteristic of Dvořák’s heritage
Masterclass: Brahms Violin Concerto, second movement
The feeling of rhetoric and a stream of consciousness must be represented when approaching this movement, says violinist Liza Ferschtman
Masterclass: Dvořák Romance in F minor op.11
Violinist Grace Park examines ways of creating nuance and variety in this seemingly simple piece, which is imbued with folk elements characteristic of Dvořák’s heritage
Masterclass: Ysaÿe’s Rêve d’enfant op.14 for violin and piano
Violinist Nancy Zhou demonstrates the breadth of Ysaÿe’s expressive devices in an intimate piece dedicated to his son
The Strad Podcast: How to tailor the Suzuki Method to different students with violinist Meghan Faw
The violinist shares her personal experiences with the method as both a student and a teacher
The Strad Podcast: How to hold a masterclass with violinist Paul Huang
The violinist speaks about his teaching approaches in a unique learning experience, in the third part of our four-part education-themed podcast series
The Strad Podcast: How to teach collaborative skills with violinist Annie Fullard of the Cavani Quartet
‘We should live in a chamber music world’ - the violinist speaks about the importance of collaboration inside and outside of the practice room, in the second episode of our four-part education-themed podcast series
The Strad Podcast: How to practise effectively with violinist Ray Chen
The first in our new four-part education themed podcast series features our September 2024 cover star
The Strad Podcast: How to tailor the Suzuki Method to different students with violinist Meghan Faw
The violinist shares her personal experiences with the method as both a student and a teacher
The Strad Podcast: How to hold a masterclass with violinist Paul Huang
The violinist speaks about his teaching approaches in a unique learning experience, in the third part of our four-part education-themed podcast series
The Strad Podcast: How to teach collaborative skills with violinist Annie Fullard of the Cavani Quartet
‘We should live in a chamber music world’ - the violinist speaks about the importance of collaboration inside and outside of the practice room, in the second episode of our four-part education-themed podcast series
Competitions
Finalists announced for the 8th Mirecourt International Violin Competition
Three finalists will perform a concerto with orchestra on 9 November 2025 in Thaon-les-Vosges, France
Finalists announced for 2025 Isang Yun Cello Competition
Four cellists will perform a concerto on 8 November in Tongyeong, South Korea, for the chance to win the top prize of KRW30,000,000 (£16,000)
2025 Concours de Genève preview: what to expect from this year’s viola edition
The competition’s first viola edition since 2005 kicks off with an opening concert tonight, featuring Tabea Zimmermann and the Novo Quartet
A lasting relationship: the Ariel Quartet performs Beethoven op.59 no.3
The ensemble presents an al fresco performance of the third Razumovsky quartet, as it releases its second instalment of complete Beethoven string quartet recordings
A lasting relationship: the Ariel Quartet performs Beethoven op.59 no.3
A tribute to Mr Menuhin: an encore performance from Edinburgh International Festival
‘A vast expressive range’: violinist Stanislav Pronin performs Der Rosenkavalier on Heifetz’s violin
Anna Štube performs Ernest Kanitz’s Violin Sonata
Paganini’s Mosè Fantasy: bel canto and virtuosity on only one string
Colin Alexander: from resembling to reassembling the human voice on the cello
A cello distortion rock-up: Zoë Martlew performs ‘G-lude’
Bach’s Sixth Suite Prelude on five-stringed baroque cello
New video: Yo-Yo Ma and Icelandic choir perform ‘Earth Hymn’
‘These pieces are tied to our upbringing as a quartet’ - The Novo Quartet presents its debut album
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Half a century of craft at the Chicago School of Violin Making
The Chicago School of Violin Making looks back on a legacy that began with Tschu Ho Lee and the Warren family. Executive director Antoine Nédélec reflects on CSVM’s craft, community and continuing influence
The Strad Calendar 2026: 1773–78 ‘Crafoord’ Guadagnini viola
The back of this viola is made from two pieces of bird’s-eye maple cut on the slab, with a faint figure running more or less horizontally
Sing the body electric: early amplified instruments
The 1920s saw a demand for louder, more resonant instruments, and resourceful violin makers rose to the challenge. Clifford Hall looks at some of the innovative solutions they came up with
My Space: Vinay Murali’s Chendamangalam workshop
The maker gives us a tour of his workshop in India
The Strad Calendar 2026: 1727 ‘Eugenio di Barbaro’ Stradivari violin
Made during the tail end of the master luthier’s life, this instrument also displays the hands of his sons Omobono and Francesco
Making Matters: Infrared reflectography in restoration
Luiz Amorim demonstrates how infrared reflectography can be used in violin restoration, as a non-invasive method for diagnosing problems
Half a century of craft at the Chicago School of Violin Making
The Chicago School of Violin Making looks back on a legacy that began with Tschu Ho Lee and the Warren family. Executive director Antoine Nédélec reflects on CSVM’s craft, community and continuing influence
The Strad Calendar 2026: 1773–78 ‘Crafoord’ Guadagnini viola
The back of this viola is made from two pieces of bird’s-eye maple cut on the slab, with a faint figure running more or less horizontally
Sing the body electric: early amplified instruments
The 1920s saw a demand for louder, more resonant instruments, and resourceful violin makers rose to the challenge. Clifford Hall looks at some of the innovative solutions they came up with
My Space: Vinay Murali’s Chendamangalam workshop
The maker gives us a tour of his workshop in India
The Strad Calendar 2026: 1727 ‘Eugenio di Barbaro’ Stradivari violin
Made during the tail end of the master luthier’s life, this instrument also displays the hands of his sons Omobono and Francesco
Making Matters: Infrared reflectography in restoration
Luiz Amorim demonstrates how infrared reflectography can be used in violin restoration, as a non-invasive method for diagnosing problems
Concert review: Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective
Peter Quantrill hears the performance of Bacewicz, Dvořák and Enescu at London’s Wigmore Hall on 15 July 2025
Concert review: Parker Quartet
Leah Hollingsworth hears the performance of Mozart, Kurtág and Ravel at the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival in Vermont, US, on 21 August 2025
Concert review: Mandelring Quartet / Atos Trio
Carlos María Solare attends the Hambacher MusikFest for two days - 20 and 22 June 2025 - to hear performances of Beethoven, Mozart, Wagner, Dessoff and Borodin
Trio Lirico: Spanish Piano Quartets
Utterly committed performances bring these Spaniards to life
Charlie Siem: Brahms, Enescu
Plenty of personality but a short-measure album
Ida Haendel: Brahms, Britten, Elgar, Sibelius
Four concertos celebrate a great violinist in her extended prime
Book review: John Williams: A Composer’s Life
Brian Hodges reviews Tim Greiving’s monumental biography of America’s foremost film composer
Book review: A Cultural History of the Violin in Nineteenth-Century London: From Instrument to Art
Robin Stowell reads Tom Wilder’s socio-economic analysis of the violin’s status as a cultural artefact throughout the Victorian era
Book review: The Eyes of Bach
Raphael Klayman reads Marc Moskovitz’s historical novel imagining the great composer’s relationship with cellist Carl Friedrich Barth
Debate
Opinion: Duets as a teaching tool
Cellist and teacher Naomi Yandell outlines the reasons why duet playing is an essential tool in one-to-one instrumental teaching
Why you should stop and think before you play
Violinist and Suzuki pedagogue Helen Brunner advocates for a thoughtful, step-by-step approach to practice
Debate
Opinion: Duets as a teaching tool
Cellist and teacher Naomi Yandell outlines the reasons why duet playing is an essential tool in one-to-one instrumental teaching
Why you should stop and think before you play
Violinist and Suzuki pedagogue Helen Brunner advocates for a thoughtful, step-by-step approach to practice
Accessories
Products November 2025: Violin Factory Education ABS Violin
A plastic violin designed to make early learning more efficient and affordable
Products November 2025: D’Andrea String Cleaner
A new product to remove build-up on violin and viola strings
Products November 2025: Arcofrog Zipline
Arcofrog’s new product helps with perpendicular bowing in beginners
Concert review: Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective
Peter Quantrill hears the performance of Bacewicz, Dvořák and Enescu at London’s Wigmore Hall on 15 July 2025
Concert review: Parker Quartet
Leah Hollingsworth hears the performance of Mozart, Kurtág and Ravel at the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival in Vermont, US, on 21 August 2025
Concert review: Mandelring Quartet / Atos Trio
Carlos María Solare attends the Hambacher MusikFest for two days - 20 and 22 June 2025 - to hear performances of Beethoven, Mozart, Wagner, Dessoff and Borodin
Book review: John Williams: A Composer’s Life
Brian Hodges reviews Tim Greiving’s monumental biography of America’s foremost film composer
Book review: A Cultural History of the Violin in Nineteenth-Century London: From Instrument to Art
Robin Stowell reads Tom Wilder’s socio-economic analysis of the violin’s status as a cultural artefact throughout the Victorian era
Book review: The Eyes of Bach
Raphael Klayman reads Marc Moskovitz’s historical novel imagining the great composer’s relationship with cellist Carl Friedrich Barth
Trio Lirico: Spanish Piano Quartets
Utterly committed performances bring these Spaniards to life
Charlie Siem: Brahms, Enescu
Plenty of personality but a short-measure album
Ida Haendel: Brahms, Britten, Elgar, Sibelius
Four concertos celebrate a great violinist in her extended prime
Artists
The greatest storyteller: Itzhak Perlman at 80
As he turns 80, the legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman speaks to Ariane Todes about everything from his stellar career to his teaching ethos, and his approach to social media stardom
Yo-Yo Ma: celebrating 70 years of the eminent cellist
The legendary cellist was born on 7 October 1955. We take a look at some moments of the cellist’s unparalleled career over the decades
Alisa Weilerstein: fragments of the future
The US cellist Alisa Weilerstein talks to Peter Quantrill about reinventing the solo recital for a multimedia age, and working with living composers to renew the concerto repertoire
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