February 2021 issue | The Modigliani Quartet | The Strad, essential reading for the string music world since 1890

April 2021 issue

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Cover features

Two Shapiros: musical doubles

Though unrelated by birth, US violinists Eudice Shapiro and Frances Shapiro (later Magnes) forged parallel careers which provide a fascinating insight into the lives of female musicians during the mid-20th century, writes Tully Potter

Song of the gut string makers

In 1877, Markneukirchen in Germany was at the heart of the world’s string making industry. The townsfolk were so proud, they even composed a drinking song all about it. Kai Köpp explains what the lyrics (translated into English for the first time) reveal about this convoluted process

Strings and Piano: a sound balance

Producing a nuanced, well-balanced and blended combination of piano and strings can be a difficult performance feat to achieve. Pauline Harding talks to chamber musicians, soloists and teachers to discover some of their secrets

David Garrett: His own path

At the age of 40, German–American violinist David Garrett is a bona fide crossover star, in non-Covid times playing regularly to thousands at sold-out arena shows. But, as he tells Charlotte Smith, he has no intention of deserting his classical roots

Ludwig Bausch: Gone… but not forgotten

Respected during his lifetime, Ludwig Bausch was almost unknown just a few years after his death – and his bows were considered unremarkable junk. Josef P. Gabriel reveals why the maker and his family were almost lost to history, and why his work deserves to be listed among the greats

Session Report: Shining a light

Polish virtuoso Janusz Wawrowski’s new arrangement of Ludomir Różycki’s Violin Concerto reveals a far more optimistic work than its wartime origins suggest, writes Harry White

Cover story

Francesca Dego: chance of a lifetime

For Italian violinist Francesca Dego, the opportunity to perform and record on Paganini’s ‘Il Cannone’ Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ of 1743 was a dream come true. She shares with Tom Stewart her experiences with the rarely accessed instrument – which came complete with security guards and its own dressing room