All Focus articles – Page 26
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BlogsThe 4 crucial components of a winning competition performance
Qian Zhou, jury chair of the Singapore International Violin Competition, gives some tips on what it takes to win a share of its $110,000 prize money – plus a bonus tip on the application process
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FocusFrom the archive: the 'David, Heifetz' 1742 Guarneri 'Del Gesù'
These photos were published in the December 1988 issue of The Strad in a special issue dedicated to Jascha Heifetz which also featured a poster of the violin. This is the accompanying text
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FocusJeff Bradetich’s instruments: a 250-year-old Guadagnini and a modern bass made of old wood
The American double bass soloist talks about how each instrument fulfils different needs. Interview by Maggie Williams
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FocusWhat I'd tell my younger self – double bassist Chi-chi Nwanoku
©Eric Richmond The following is published as part of a larger ‘Life Lessons’ interview with Chi-chi Nwanoku in The Strad’s September 2017 issue, out now – download the issue on desktop computer or via the The Strad App, or buy the print edition. My parents raised ...
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VideoMusic Of The Mind - a short film about music and the brain
In this partly dramatised short film based on true events, a violinist brain damaged in an accident nearly 30 years ago is given the opportunity to take part in music making through new technology developed by Plymouth University and the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in London. Rosemary Johnson was a ...
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FocusJames Ehnes on recording the Walton Viola Concerto
In June this year the Canadian violinist joined conductor Edward Gardner and the BBC Symphony Orchestra in the studio to record a concerto on his second instrument, the viola
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FocusRalph Kirshbaum discusses the personal significance of the Elgar Cello Concerto
In the ‘Sentimental Work’ column in the August 2017 issue of The Strad, the US cellist and pedagogue tells how the Elgar Concerto has played a part in some of his most memorable and emotional concerts
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GalleryFrom the archive: the 1717 Montagnana viola once belonging to Lionel Tertis
These photographs were published in the September 1988 issue of The Strad. The following text is from the article they accompanied, in which Tully Potter examines the recent lineage of the instrument, including interviewing current owner Roger Chase
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FocusThe titanium frog - a violinist and a luthier compare notes on the innovation
Violinist Peter Herresthal and luthier Christophe Landon recall how a performance of Kaija Saariaho’s Graal théâtre led to the debut of a new titanium bow frog
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FocusSession Report: Pavel Haas Quartet reunites with former viola for Dvořák quintet
For the Pavel Haas Quartet, recording Dvořák’s String Quintet op.97 and Piano Quintet op.81 is the ideal way to celebrate old friendships with music from the New World. Tom Stewart reports from Prague
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FocusCollé: Kurt Sassmannshaus on mastering a crucial bow technique
Kurt Sassmannshaus, chair of classical violin at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, director of the Great Wall Music Academy, Beijing, and founder of violinmasterclass.com, discusses the bow stroke that forms the beginning of any effective martelé
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FocusStradivari’s wood: investigating the chemical composition of the master's materials
For centuries, luthiers have suspected that the spruce and maple used by Antonio Stradivari had special qualities, and a recent series of experiments has sought to confirm or deny these suspicions. Here lead researcher Hwang-Ching Tai explains the methodology and findings
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FocusMy most memorable musical experience – Joshua Bell
A wayward shoulder rest nearly ruins the violinist’s first appearance with a world-class orchestra, aged just 14
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FocusBlind testing Strads and Guarneris misses a fundamental point
Researchers who seek to compare Old Italian instruments with modern ones under scientific conditions don’t appreciate that the potential of a Strad is intrinsically entwined with its player, writes Frank Almond
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FocusWhat is the best scale system for string students?
The Strad's panel of teaching experts answer reader questions as part of the magazine's Teacher talk series
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ArticleHaydn's music is much more unpredictable than Mozart's - the Chiaroscuro Quartet
For their new release the players of the Chiaroscuro Quartet have put their gut strings and period bows to work on Haydn's kaleidoscopic op.20 'Sun' quartets - the second of two recordings. Helen Wallace meets the musicians during rehearsals.
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ArticleViolist Paul Neubauer on working with conductor Leonard Bernstein
Current Juilliard School viola professor Paul Neubauer served for six years as principal violist of the New York Philharmonic, where he worked with such conductors as Leonard Bernstein and Mstislav Rostropovich
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ArticleHow I cope with the pressures of life as a soloist - Jordi Savall
The viola da gamba player and conductor advocates concentrating on the little things rather than stressing about the whole
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FocusHow do you choose instrumental repertoire for a student?
The Strad's panel of experts answer string teaching questions from readers as part of our Teacher Talk series
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ArticleThe problem of substandard bow hair
Bow makers, suppliers and musicians are increasingly having to deal with thinning and brittle bow hair. How has this situation come about? Nancy Pellegrini reports
