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Violinist Leonidas Kavakos ‘thrown off balance’ by JD Vance booing at the Kennedy Center

2025-03-20T11:12:00+00:00

The violinist responds to last week’s incident at the Kennedy Center, describing it as disruptive to his pre-performance concentration

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Thirteen-year-old violinist Himari signs exclusive contract with Decca Classics

2025-03-18T10:40:00+00:00

Described as a ‘once-in-a generation talent’, the young Japanese violinist will release her debut EP in May

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Record breaker: ‘Baron Knoop’ Stradivari violin sells for $23 million

2025-03-11T14:23:00+00:00

The price for the 1715 instrument, crafted in Stradivari’s ‘golden period’, is the highest for any violin in history

Playing Hub

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From screen to strings: concert works by screen composers

2025-03-28T10:00:46.837+00:00

Rita Fernandes presents a curated list of string works by ten composers best known for their screen work, as well as interviews with composers and players

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Opinion: The importance of repetition in teaching

2025-03-28T10:00:05.067+00:00

In the practice of teaching, the value and beauty of repetition must always be encouraged, says violinist and pioneering Suzuki pedagogue Helen Brunner

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Fiddles and folkore: Kronos Quartet transforms itself into a Hardanger band

2025-03-26T10:54:00+00:00

Kronos Quartet violinist Gabriela Díaz speaks with The Strad’s US correspondent Thomas May about Elja, the ensemble’s new Hardanger fiddle collaboration with Benedicte Maurseth and Kristine Tjøgersen, which premieres at Carnegie Hall this week.

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Andrea Casarrubios on her Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, ‘MIRAGE’

2025-03-26T10:41:00+00:00

The Spanish-American musician speaks about the upcoming premiere of her cello concerto, MIRAGE, a work that encapsulates her duality as cellist and composer, along with her cultural identity

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Violinist Arabella Steinbacher: angels and demons

2025-03-21T10:47:00+00:00

Pauline Harding hears from the German violinist about her cathartic journey into the darkest depths and brightest heights of Lentz’s Violin Concerto, its pairing with Beethoven on her latest recording and the impact of motherhood on music making

Quatuor Diotima beim Eröffnungskonzert_1_c Nico Rademacher

Postcard from Germany: Heidelberg String Quartet Festival

2025-03-21T10:46:00+00:00

Carlos María Solare joined the loyal audience at Heidelberg’s String Quartet Festival, which celebrated both its 20th anniversary and the upcoming 90th birthday of composer Helmut Lachenmann

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Premium ❘ Feature

From screen to strings: concert works by screen composers

2025-03-28T10:00:46.837+00:00

Rita Fernandes presents a curated list of string works by ten composers best known for their screen work, as well as interviews with composers and players

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Premium ❘ Feature

Making Matters: Making instruments with tulipwood

2025-03-28T10:00:20.997+00:00

A case of mistaken identity left luthier Sibylle Ruppert with a batch of untested tulipwood – but a few experiments showed its high potential for instrument making

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Premium ❘ Focus

Sentimental Work: Fabio Biondi on Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette

2025-03-14T09:43:00+00:00

Discovering Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette was a pivotal moment in the Italian violinist–conductor’s path to understanding the world of 19th-century Romanticism

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Premium ❘ Focus

‘You have to feel you’re worthy of standing on stage’ - Julia Fischer’s life lessons

2025-03-07T08:43:00+00:00

The German violinist on her influences and navigating today’s challenges

Competitions

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Winners announced for the Sinfonima Foundation competition

2025-03-26T10:35:00+00:00

Nine cellists from German and Swiss music academies won two-year loans of fine cellos and bows to help facilitate their career development

pc Lou Jacobson

Winners announced for the Johansen International Competition for Young String Players

2025-03-24T14:13:00+00:00

Violinist Valery Breshears, violist Junyan Du, and cellist Joshua Kováč each receive $10,000

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Echo Theory trio wins the 2025 HUGO Competition

2025-03-13T14:21:00+00:00

The trio receives a €1,500 cash prize and a €5,000 production budget to stage its concert and installation

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Premium ❘ News

Premiere of the Month: Avner Dorman’s new double concerto for Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony

2025-03-21T10:43:00+00:00

Bach and the Book of Ecclesiastes shape a new double violin concerto

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The Strad Podcast: How to tailor the Suzuki Method to different students with violinist Meghan Faw

2024-09-19T09:05:00+01:00

The violinist shares her personal experiences with the method as both a student and a teacher

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The Strad Podcast: How to hold a masterclass with violinist Paul Huang

2024-09-12T08:49:00+01:00

The violinist speaks about his teaching approaches in a unique learning experience, in the third part of our four-part education-themed podcast series

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The Strad Podcast: How to teach collaborative skills with violinist Annie Fullard of the Cavani Quartet

2024-09-05T09:47:00+01:00

‘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

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The Strad Podcast: How to practise effectively with violinist Ray Chen

2024-08-29T10:06:00+01:00

The first in our new four-part education themed podcast series features our September 2024 cover star

Competitions

Sinfonima-Stiftung Amalia Rümmele_Mail

Winners announced for the Sinfonima Foundation competition

2025-03-26T10:35:00+00:00

Nine cellists from German and Swiss music academies won two-year loans of fine cellos and bows to help facilitate their career development

pc Lou Jacobson

Winners announced for the Johansen International Competition for Young String Players

2025-03-24T14:13:00+00:00

Violinist Valery Breshears, violist Junyan Du, and cellist Joshua Kováč each receive $10,000

[2] Echo Theory pc Lukas Breuer - Copy

Echo Theory trio wins the 2025 HUGO Competition

2025-03-13T14:21:00+00:00

The trio receives a €1,500 cash prize and a €5,000 production budget to stage its concert and installation

m3

Making Matters: Making instruments with tulipwood

2025-03-28T10:00:20.997+00:00

A case of mistaken identity left luthier Sibylle Ruppert with a batch of untested tulipwood – but a few experiments showed its high potential for instrument making

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A queen and a goddess: Arabella Steinbacher on her violins

2025-03-27T13:13:00+00:00

Our April 2025 issue cover artist discusses her bow and instruments

MARCH Grid posts (4)

Franz Geissenhof: the Viennese Stradivari

2025-03-21T10:47:00+00:00

Franz Geissenhof’s instruments have always been highly regarded, but how far was he influenced by his Cremonese predecessor? Rudolf Hopfner compares a typical Geissenhof violin with Stradivari’s work to find out

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Violin maker Antonio Bagatella: First among equals

2025-03-14T09:43:11.09+00:00

Despite few of his violins surviving today, Antonio Bagatella is important in violin history for writing one of the first treatises on instrument design. Christian Pabst examines his work and shows how his methods stand up to scrutiny

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Trade Secrets: Varnish retouch

2025-03-14T09:43:00+00:00

A method for layering pigments and shellac to reproduce the exact colour and thickness of an instrument’s varnish

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Making Matters: Using various technologies for restoration

2025-03-14T09:42:00+00:00

Luthier Giovanni Lazzaro recalls the extensive restoration of an 1876 cello by Raffaele Fiorini which required the use of a number of different technologies

amihai

Concert review: Amihai Grosz (viola) Berlin Philharmonic/Tugan Sokhiev

2025-03-21T10:42:00+00:00By

Carlos Maria Solare hears the performance of Donghoon Shin’s Threadsuns, plus Lili Boulanger’s D’un matin de printemps and Mahler’s First Symphony, at the Berlin Philharmonie on 10 January 2025

violins of hope

Concert review: Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, RIAS Chamber Choir/Vladimir Jurowski

2025-03-21T10:39:00+00:00By

Carlos María Solare attends a performance showcasing the ‘Violins of Hope’ collection at the Berlin Philharmonie on 27 January 2025

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Concert review: Melissa White (violin) Pallavi Mahidhara (piano)

2025-03-21T10:37:00+00:00By

Bruce Hodges hears the performance of Arvo Pärt, Amy Beach, Reena Esmail and William Grant Still at the American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, on 14 January 2025

Sibelius Capucon

The Strad Recommends: Renaud Capuçon: Barber, Sibelius

2025-03-28T09:59:52.1+00:00By

Master musician combines passion and experience in two contrasting concertos

Enescu Bulayev

The Strad Recommends: Daniil Bulayev: Bloch, Enescu, Ysaÿe

2025-03-28T09:59:48.16+00:00By

A striking debut from a 20-year-old Latvian violinist

Haydn Maxwell Qt

The Strad Recommends: Maxwell Quartet: Haydn

2025-03-28T09:59:42.917+00:00By

The Scottish foursome’s Haydn mini-series ends on a high

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Book review: The Fractured Self: Selected German Letters of the Australian-born Violinist Alma Moodie, 1918–1943

2025-03-14T09:38:30.263+00:00By

Tully Potter reviews a comprehensive collection of letters which cast light on the life and career of one of the early 20th century’s best known female violinists

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Book review: Artistic Violins and Bows: The Music Region of Markneukirchen and Schönbach

2025-03-14T09:38:25.82+00:00By

Andrew Dipper reviews Bruce Babbitt and Brandon Godman’s latest book on the ‘Musikwinkel’ of eastern Germany which became one of the world’s great heartlands of instrument making in the 19th century

Cello

Book review: Cello: A Journey through Silence to Sound

2025-02-14T07:30:00+00:00By

Janet Banks reviews Kate Kennedy’s bestseller relating the stories of four cellists and their instruments

Debate

0549

Opinion: The importance of repetition in teaching

2025-03-28T10:00:05.067+00:00

In the practice of teaching, the value and beauty of repetition must always be encouraged, says violinist and pioneering Suzuki pedagogue Helen Brunner

pc lane womack

Opinion: Embracing diversity in string teaching

2025-02-28T09:54:00+00:00

Having made the difficult journey from an unbending conservatoire education to a fulfilling career playing and teaching non-classical styles, French violinist Scott Tixier says it’s essential to embrace diversity in music education

Debate

0549

Opinion: The importance of repetition in teaching

2025-03-28T10:00:05.067+00:00

In the practice of teaching, the value and beauty of repetition must always be encouraged, says violinist and pioneering Suzuki pedagogue Helen Brunner

pc lane womack

Opinion: Embracing diversity in string teaching

2025-02-28T09:54:00+00:00

Having made the difficult journey from an unbending conservatoire education to a fulfilling career playing and teaching non-classical styles, French violinist Scott Tixier says it’s essential to embrace diversity in music education

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