Stradivarius 1696 Cello "Lord Aylesford"

I am playing a beautiful Stradivarius, Lord Aylesford, one of the precious instruments owned by Nippon Music Foundation. I would like to thank you with all my heart because this has been my lifetime dream and has completely changed my life. I strongly believe that this is the best cello ever made. His rich warm sound is out of this world; it resonates like golden magic in the concert hall and it doesn't leave anyone indifferent. It keeps getting better and better and we are becoming a great great team. I am deeply in love with the cello and could be talking day and night how passionate I feel about it. Every morning I open the case and can´t help but feel “goose bumps” to know that I have the chance to play this almost sacred instrument. It is a great honour for me to be able to play for the Foundation and its guests tonight to express my appreciation. The program I chose is composed of some of my very favorite pieces:
(Excerpted from NMF Concert program December 11, 2014)