Nachéz

This is the violin: the Tivadar Nachéz Stradivari of 1703. The label inside says 1709 but the dealer thinks earlier, and the top dates from 1727, much later. The theory is that the violin's top was cracked so the owner took it back to Stradivari, who made a new one and put it on.

The violin is named for the Hungarian violinist who used it as his main concert instrument. Nachéz was quite famous in the early 1900's, though not as famous as some others--Kreisler, Ysaye, Elman come to mind; a modest star in the sky of music.

The chance to play an early violin by Stradivari, ones he made in the 1690's, had been given me twice before, but this was different. This work comes from the years when he was entering the stage in his life when he made the greatest of his instruments. There is a violin from 1704 in the Library of Congress. The most famous violin of all, the Messiah, was born in 1716.

Look at how red this one is; the other, earlier ones are a rich honey gold color. You can see how the light flows softly, richly  over the varnish; there is nothing harsh or sharp or brittle here. And you can see orange-gold highlights, better in the next picture below, of the back. These are what remains of the original varnish that Stradivari put on slowly, with the greatest care and skill, coat after coat, and between each coat the violin was suspended from a cord on the sunroof of the master's house--not in the direct sun, but up where the radiance and the fresh air could swirl around and saturate and warm the wood, the oil, the precious varnish nobody else has ever known how to make.

The third picture shows the "bee-sting" at the corner of the back. Stradivari, the perfect artist with the sharp knives used to carve these parallel lines around the edge, couldn't resist adding one more hint of grace and refinement, one more evidence of his incredible skill: this line that continues the curve of the violin to its finest point, something else no one has done with such mastery.

But the real enchantment comes when you whisper the bow across the strings. The lightest touch brings this work to life; sweet, rich sound flows out almost effortlessly. More pressure and the sound swells to fill the room, and when you catch the string and pull harder, well, there are no words to describe the luminous music that just pours out like dark liquid amber.

This was a good day; a day to remember.

Comments

[John]

What a beautiful Stradivari!! The varnish on a Cremona fiddle is a sight to behold, even when it is all broken up from years of long use. Can you illustrate the back in full length?

Thank you.