The Stradivarius violin and its history

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Three centuries have passed since the death of the great Italian stringmaker Antonio Stradivari, and the secret of making his instruments has not been revealed. The sound of the violins he made, like the singing of an angel, elevates the listener to heaven.

Youth Stradivari

As a child, Antonio tried to express with his voice what was hidden in his heart, but the boy did not come out very well, and people simply mocked him. The strange child constantly carried a small penknife with him, with which he carved various wooden figures. The boy's parents wished him a career as a cabinetmaker. At the age of eleven, Stradivari learned that the famous Nicolo Amati, who was considered the best violinist in all of Italy, lives in their hometown of Cremona. Antonio loved music, so the choice of profession was obvious. The boy became Amati's student.

Career start

In 1655, Stradivarius was just one of the many students of the master. At first, his duties included delivering messages to the milkman, butcher and wood suppliers. The teacher, of course, shared with the childrensecrets, but the most important, thanks to which the violin had a unique sound, he told only his eldest son, because it was, in fact, a family craft. The first serious business for the young Stradivarius was the manufacture of strings, which he made from the sinews of lambs, the best were obtained from 7-8 month old animals. The next secret was the quality and variety of wood. The most suitable tree for the manufacture of the upper part of the violin was considered to be spruces grown in the Swiss Alps, the lower part was made of maple. The first Stradivarius violin was created by him at the age of 22. Antonio carefully honed his craft with each new tool, but still worked in someone else's workshop.

Short happiness

Stradivari opened his business only at the age of 40, but the Stradivari violin was still a semblance of his teacher's instruments. At the same age, he married Francesca Ferrabochi, she gave him five children. But the happiness of the master was short-lived, because a plague came to their city. His wife and all five children fell ill and died. Even the Stradivarius violin no longer pleased him, out of desperation he hardly played and did not make instruments.

Return to life

After the epidemic, one of his students knocked at the house of Antonio Stradivari with sad news. The boy's parents died, and he could not study with the master due to lack of funds. Antonio took pity on the young man and took him to his house, later adopting him. Once again, Stradivari felt the taste of life, he wanted to create something extraordinary. Antonio decided to createunique, unlike other violins in sound. The master's dreams came true only at the age of sixty. The Stradivarius violin had a flying ethereal sound that no one can reproduce to this day.

Legends

The mystery and unearthly beauty of the sound of the master's violins gave rise to all sorts of gossip, it was said that the old man sold his soul to the devil, and he creates instruments from the wreckage of Noah's ark. Although the reason was completely different: incredible hard work and love for their creations.

The cost of an unusual tool

A Stradivarius violin, which cost 166 Cremonese lire (about $700) during the lifetime of the master, is now worth about $5 million. If you look from the point of view of value for art, then the works of the master are priceless.

How many Stradivari violins are left on the planet

Antonio was an incredible workaholic, a genius creating tools until his death at 93. Stradivari created up to 25 violin instruments a year. Modern best craftsmen make by hand no more than 3-4 pieces. The maestro made about 2,500 violins, violas, cellos in total, but only 630-650 instruments have survived to this day, most of which are violins.