Contributors

SEAN BISHOP (In Focus, page 61) is a

SOUNDPOST

Letters, emails, online comments

The Strad

W elcome to Degrees 2023–24 – your international

CHECKLIST

Questions to help you find the right course and to prepare you for life as a student

INSPIRED TO SUCCEED

Find out where you can study with some of the string world’s most in-demand pedagogues

COURSE LISTINGS

ARGENTINA Taller Escuela de Música y Artes (TEMA),

Edith Cnockaert, violin

Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel, Brussels

Kristian Mráček, violin

Prague Conservatoire, Prague

Sophie Kauer, cello

Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo

Élise Hiron, viola

Haute École de Musique de Lausanne, Sion Campus

Elliot Kempton, viola

Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London

Alyssa Barker, violin

Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA

Editor’s letter

One of the marks of a great player

Rise and shine

News and events from around the world this month

‘Baltic’ Guarneri sells for $9.44 million at auction

The c.1731 ‘Baltic’ Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ sold for

PREMIERE of the MONTH

MAN OF THE AUER: Italian violinist Giuseppe Gibboni

COMPETITIONS

1 Trio Menil 2 Abel Selaocoe 3 Nicola

On the go

MUSIC STAND

GOLDEN TOUCH

VIOLIN STRINGS

TWICE AS NICE

VIOLIN CASE

Life lessons

Catherine Hewgill

RC WILLIAMS COMPANY

RCWilliamsCompany.com

TURN UP, TUNE IN, PLAY ON

The art of deputising, or ‘depping’, whether in an orchestral or theatrical context, may be one of the scariest things a musician can do, but it’s a skill that can benefit all players, says cellist

Pride of Norway

Musicians, luthiers and experts converged on Oslo’s National Museum in February for ‘Master to Master’, a feast for the eyes, ears and brain. Christian Lloyd reports on a full-on celebration of fine instruments

‘I WANT TO LIVE EVERY NOTE OF THE MUSIC’

The Russian-born UK-based violinist Alina Ibragimova is famed for her versatility and an intensely honest musical approach. She speaks to Jessica Duchen about her influences and plans for the future, including an increasing focus on playing–directing

BEYOND THE LIMITS

Since its creation in 2001, the charity Luthiers sans Frontières has brought the tools and skills for violin making to some of the poorest countries in the world. Peter Somerford speaks to representatives of the UK and US chapters to discover its impact over the past two decades

STEPPING OUT OF THE SHADOWS

Myra Ross began to lose what vision she had in her teens, but that hasn’t stopped her pursuing her passion for playing the viola and the violin. She writes about her experience as a blind string player, and the skills she has learnt in order to enjoy playing orchestral and, above all, chamber music

TWENTIETH CENTURY CLASSIC

Shostakovich’s Cello Sonata is a cornerstone of the repertoire, but with the composer’s own interpretative view seemingly shifting during his lifetime, it’s hard to know what he really meant. Cellist and Shostakovich scholar Elizabeth Wilson examines the puzzle of the different editions

TOTAL IMMERSION

British violinist Rachel Podger tells Toby Deller why making her new disc of C.P.E. Bach with keyboard player Kristian Bezuidenhout was an intense and all-consuming experience

ROOM TO BREATHE

In the first of two articles investigating how the arching of violin plates affects tone, Nigel Harris presents evidence, theoretical and experimental, regarding the ‘breathing action’ of the plates

GAETANO ANTONIAZZI

A close look at the work of great and unusual makers

Restoring the octagon of a violin bow

Makers reveal their special techniques

MICHALIS PANTELIDES

LUTHIER

Artists in resonance

Points of interest to violin and bow makers

GLAZUNOV ELEGY IN G MINOR FOR VIOLA AND PIANO OP.44

Violist Paul Laraia explores the lyrical possibilities of this miniature masterpiece and the emotional journey on which it takes the listener

Sound connections

Sostenuto: how to sing on the violin

CONCERTS

Your monthly critical round-up of performances, recordings and publications

RECORDINGS

CAROLINE BITTENCOURT AUERBACH 24 Preludes for violin and

BOOKS

MATADOR PUBLISHING Jacksons, Monk & Rowe and the

From the ARCHIVE

Spanish virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate gives an exclusive interview to The Strad in his eye-wateringly bright yellow salon in Paris

IN THE NEXT ISSUE

Ayanna Witter-Johnson The British cellist and singer– songwriter

ANTOINE TAMESTIT

The French violist has performed Mozart’s Sinfonia concertante with a host of different violin soloists, but the second movement still packs a hefty emotional punch