|
The
Royal Academy
of Music, London, UK
EMu user since 2001
|
Date
created: 1709
Creator: Antonio Stradivari
Woodwork
Viotti was the first significant virtuoso to popularise the modified
Stradivarius violin and the Tourte model bow. His own playing instrument was a
Stradivari of 1704, possibly presented to him by Catherine the Great of Russia
in 1781. He may also have endorsed and sold instruments to admirers.
The Viotti ex-Bruce is one of the best-preserved examples of
Stradivari's workmanship. It was made during Stradivari's so-called golden period, when he is thought to have been at the height
of his powers. The one-piece back, made from tiger-stripe maple, is particularly
striking. The quality of the workmanship and the state of preservation - the instrument has been played rarely in the last two centuries - were the
key factors in the National Art Collections Fund’s decision to award a grant
towards its acquisition.
Giovanni Battista Viotti (1755-1824) can be regarded as the father of modern
violin-playing, and as the populariser of Stradivari's violins. As Marie
Antoinette's personal violinist he fled the Terror in Paris and
arrived in London in 1792 with a reputation as the greatest performer in Europe.
He astonished listeners with a tone and expressiveness completely new at the
time. The Morning Chronicle from February 1793 says:
it is impossible to speak of [Viotti's] performance in common terms… He not only strikes the senses with wonder, but touches the heart with emotion.
The importance of the Viotti ex-Bruce violin, quite apart from its
remarkable condition and outstanding quality, lies in its potential as an object
and subject of inquiry and research. The instrument will be played sparingly
under strictly controlled conditions and it will form the pivotal exhibit in a
new display of stringed instruments and related material from the Foyle-Menuhin
Archive which was acquired by the Academy in 2004.
The instrument has been allocated to the Royal Academy of Music after having
been accepted by HM Government in lieu of inheritance tax. It was acquired with
the aid of additional funding from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the
National Art-Collections Fund, J&A Beare, The Belmont Trust, Nigel Brown,
Mrs Elizabeth Insall, Mr Albert Frost CBE, Mr Ian Stoutzker CBE, Old Possum's
Practical Trust and many anonymous donors.
 
|
