Antonio Stradivari, Cremona
Stradivari is probably the best known violin maker that even non-musicians have heard of. Despite this and although much investigating has been done, his date of birth is still lost in the mists of time. By way of calculations based on data contained in Cremonas‘ residents lists the experts have reached a date of approx. 1644. It is also still unknown where Stradivari was apprenticed. It is however of interest that Stradivari commanded considerable prices for his instruments during his own lifetime, whereby he often delivered to the royal houses of Europe. Although not to be equalled, it is always a challenge to choose violins of this gifted instrument maker as a model. The fact that his instruments and their measurements have been so extensively publicized has been a great help to me, as well as being able to familiarize myself with his style at exhibitions all over the world.