The Strad October 2018 issue is out now

The Strad October 2018 issue is out now in which Hilary Hahn, the quirky, effervescent US violinist, gives us an insight into the creative process as she returns to the Bach recording project she began 20 years ago.

We investigate the making traditions of Brescia, just 30 miles north of Cremona, which evolved in a very different way from those of their neighbour; and Charlotte Gardner finds out why the road to creating your first album can be a learning curve involving a vastly new set of skills – and a raft of expenses.

We report from Audition Perform, a new week-long course for students, professional players and teachers which took place in Chichester, UK, in August; and Alessandra Barabaschi and Gregg Alf survey the twelve Stradivari instruments selected for The Strad Calendar 2019 – all of which are on display at the Tokyo Stradivarius Festival.

In our regular sections:

In Focus features a violin from 1784 by the little-known Spanish luthier Vicente Assensio; Stefan Lindholm describes how to use a flat gouge in Trade Secrets; My Space features the workshop of double bass maker Sergio Scaramelli; and in Making Matters we observe the 2018 Oberlin Bow Making Workshop’s focus on Nikolai Kittel.

Our monthly Masterclass features Edicson Ruiz discussing the Dittersdorf Double Bass Concerto; Violist Jacob Adams gives useful tips regarding bow speed and distribution in Technique; British violinist and chamber musician Irvine Arditti tells us his Life Lessons; plus Rachel Podger on what Bach’s Violin Concerto in E minor means to her in Sentimental Work.

We also bring you news of the latest competitions, products and auctions, and comprehensive reviews of concerts, CDs and books.

In this month’s digital edition:

• View more photos of our in Focus instrument, a very rare violin by Spanish luthier Vicente Assensio, including close-ups and unusual angles
• More photos of instruments from Brescia, including basses by Zanetto Micheli and Gasparo da Salò
• Extra images from the special tribute concert to Leonard Bernstein, featuring Midori, Yo-Yo Ma and John Williams, which took place on the 100th anniversary of the composer’s birth
• Verbier 25: another special gala concert in which 25 top string stars performed on stage together for the first time
• More from this year’s Oberlin bow making workshop, where the group project was to make copies of a Nikolai Kittel bow
• And of course, audio clips from the three recordings this month which earned a ‘The Strad Recommends’ sticker

The digital magazine and print edition are on sale now.