Lutherie – Page 61
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FocusReverse engineering: explaining a Cremonese mystery by making the insides of the arches first
In his search for the secrets behind the classic arching technique of the Cremonese makers, Torbjörn Zethelius uncovered some revealing insights in this article from The Strad August 2006 issue. He will be returning to the topic in the November 2017 issue with observations from the intervening decade
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FocusFrom The Strad Calendar 2018: Giuseppe Guarneri ‘filius Andreae’ cello, c.1710
Based in Cremona, the Friends of Stradivari network brings together instruments owned by collectors and stringed-instrument enthusiasts from around the world. The Strad Calendar 2018 celebrates twelve of these treasures, starting in January with this cello. Text by John Dilworth
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VideoLuthiers Stefan-Peter Greiner and Mark Jennings at IMS Prussia Cove
The materials on day one With sounds of rehearsals in the background, luthiers Stefan-Peter Greiner and Mark Jennings remove the mould from the violin they are working on collaboratively while resident at the International Musicians Seminar (IMS) at in Cornwall, England. ‘The project will help the musicians ...
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FocusFrom the archive: A violin by G. B. Guadagnini, 1743, in the context of booming auction results
This photo was published in the January 1989 issue of The Strad as part of a round-up of London auction sales the previous November – Robert Lewin, a contributor to the Strad for over 40 years, diagnosed ‘violin fever’
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VideoGreat French violin makers: F.L. Pique & J.B. Vuillaume
Another video from Sean Bishop of Bishop Instruments & Bows in London, here talking about two violins by François Louis Pique and one by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume – the latter, according to Bishop, being the ‘one true genius after Stradivari and Guarneri’.
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VideoDocumentary on the 'Tuscan' Stradivari – featuring Fabio Biondi
This documentary is linked to the upcoming release of the second volume of Treasures of Violin Making from Edizioni Scrollavezza & Zanrè, focusing on the 1690 ‘Tuscan’ Stradivari from the collection of the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Rome. The video includes extracts of Baroque specialist Fabio Biondi playing Biber’s Chaconne ...
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FocusFrom the archive: a 1712 viola by Giovanni Grancino
Published in the January 1989 issue of The Strad and also featuring on its cover, these photos accompanied an article by Roger Hargrave, an extract of which appears below
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FocusViolin expertise and how to acquire it: Jacques Francais on the pitfalls of instrument identification
Legendary Manhattan-based French dealer, who died in 2004, with some words of wisdom first published in The Strad November 1988 issue. Interview by Stewart Pollens
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FocusDigital Amati: a computer program putting luthiers back in touch with ancient principles
A decade ago, François Denis’s Traité de Lutherie showed how the old Italians used Euclidean geometry to design their instruments. Now a computer program based on these principles allows luthiers to construct and adapt patterns quickly and easily. Its creator, Harry Mairson, explains the genesis of Digital Amati
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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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FocusMaking matters: ground prep
Since time immemorial, makers have searched for the perfect varnish recipe, and take great care of the ground – but often fail to realise the importance of preparing the wood first. Christopher Jacoby gives a crash course in ‘ground prep’
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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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FocusFrom the archive: a 1748 Guadagnini cello
These photos were published in the November 1988 issue of The Strad along with an interview with the cello’s owner, Gilberto Munguía
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VideoNaples violin makers: Della Corte, Postiglione and Pistucci
Sean Bishop of Bishop Instruments & Bows in London talks us through some 19th-century Naples violin makers, some following Gagliano models and other with more individual touches. n.b. the video is flipped horizontally - Sean Bishop assures us his instruments are strung the usual way round
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VideoUpton Bass: Laminated or Solid Double Bass Ribs?
’When you get inside an old old instrument, you’ve got grafted pieces of wood, you’ve got linen cloth… it’s essentially bad plywood’. Gary Upton of Upton Bass in Mystic, Connecticut, explains the benefits of plywood ribs on a double bass.
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BlogsFrom concept to sound: What judges look for in a violin making competition
Luthier Patrick Robin, one of the jury members of the International Violin Making Competition Prague, discusses how he goes about assessing an instrument
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FocusFrom the archive: the 'Duport' Stradivarius cello played by Rostropovich
These photos were published in the October 1988 issue of The Strad in an article by Edward Sainati about 19th-century French cellist August Franchomme
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VideoThe Violinist Leonidas Kavakos - excerpt from Deutsche Welle documentary
In this clip from the 2015 documentary The Violinist Leonidas Kavakos broadcast on Deutsche Welle, he makes a visit to Florian Leonhard Fine Violins to try out some instruments. Both Kavako’s previous Stradivari, the 1724 ’Abergavenny’, and his current 1734 ’Willemotte’ acquired earlier this year, have come via the London-based ...
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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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GalleryFrom the Archive: 1911 violin by Giuseppe Fiorini
These photographs were published in the June 1988 issue of The Strad. The following text is from the accompanying article, ’Fiorini: A modern heritage’ by John Dilworth
