Friday, August 19, 2016
Friday Video: Listen to a Guitar Made by Antonio Stradivari in 1679
Friday, August 19, 2016
Isabella reporting,
Antonio Stradivari (1644-1737) is arguably the most famous maker of stringed instruments of all time time. The sound of his violins and cellos is considered magical, almost mystical, and experts have argued endlessly about what exactly makes them so special. Around 650 of his instruments are known to survive today; most of these are the legendary violins.
Much rarer still are guitars made by Stradivari. Only five still survive. Of those five, only this one remains playable. Known as the Sabionari, the guitar dates from 1679. Here Rolf Lislevand, a musician who specializes in performing early music, plays a tarantela by Spanish composer Santiago de Murcia (1673-1739.) What a wonderful way to begin the weekend!
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5 comments:
How beautiful! What a lovely way to start the day. Is this a six-string guitar? I can't tell...
Wonderful!! Thank you.
Gayle V - According to my husband the guitarist, the number of strings on guitars wasn't standard at this time. This one appears to have eight strings. :)
Are any of us today making something that will still function this well 350 years from now? Lovely!
I'm not sure what blows my mind the more: the beauty of this only surviving (playable) Stradivari guitar at over 300 years old, or Mr. Lislevand's skill in showing it at its best.
Thanks VERY much for sharing this.
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