Soft, warm, profound, powerful, lustrous… words abound to describe their unique sonority. Stradivari was one of the most famous luthiers in history. It seems that the success of his work lies in the choice and attention to the perfection of a multitude of details. Antonio’s true birth dates to 1655, year in which he created his first violin that he signed off on as a “Stradivarius” with a label stuck on the back of the instrument. He latinized his name as artists did in those days as a metaphor to designate excellence in his craft.
In addition to being a brilliant luthier, he wasn’t a bad mathematician either. He purportedly discovered the measurements to create the perfect violin after a bit of trial and error. By using geometry issued from the golden number, he adapted this method to the entire violin family. Consequently, the master began using a unique tracing method. According to another source, however, the instruments’ shape may have also been inspired by the fronton of the Cathedral of Cremona, his home city. It was the density of the wood that gave an exceptional sonority to his works of art. The spruce wood used for the violin’s table came from the Val di Fiemme in Italy, and the maple on the back of the instrument from the center of Europe. As for cutting down the trees, it was done by the new moon of January, when all the sap was sucked down into the roots, making for a lighter material. The wood would then be hand-chopped and dried for 5 years so that the water could evaporate while the resins oxidized. This operation was created out in the city of Lombardy where the climate was ideal for the drying process: neither too warm nor too cold, too dry nor too humid. It was the essence of these very woods that the founder would call “violin trees”.
With varnish, the artisan didn’t work for an acoustic effect but rather a visual one. The master of Cremona used extracts of plants and insects for it. Dyes including one called dragon’s blood, a vivid red that characterized the carnation of his violins. These were the same dyes that Titian or Veronese used to make their red glaze. Stradivarius wanted very consciously for his creations to be of this intensity. He wasn’t just an exceptional artisan who pushed his art to perfection; he was also a pure esthete.
With such a virtuoso possessing the singular talent of luthier, his marvels are by far the rarest pieces in the world. The alto of his remaining masterpieces is today estimated to be worth more than $45 million, the record for a musical instrument.
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