Stradivarius

Paganini Quartet

Stradivarius 1680 ViolinPaganini

Stradivarius 1727 ViolinPaganini

Stradivarius 1731 ViolaPaganini

Stradivarius 1736 CelloPaganini

This is one of the only six sets of quartet compiled with Antonio Stradivari’s (1644-1737) instruments known to exist today. All the instruments of this quartet were once owned by Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840), a legendary violinist during the 19th century. Nippon Music Foundation acquired this quartet from the Corcoran Gallery of Arts in Washington, D.C. in 1994 and loans them as a set succeeding the will of Madam Anna E. Clark who donated the quartet to the Corcoran Gallery.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Sep 1995 ‐ Jul 2013Tokyo String Quartet

・Dec 2013 - Aug 2017Hagen Quartet

・Sep 2017 - Nov 2018Quartetto di Cremona

Stradivarius 1700 Violin

Dragonetti

This violin is one of the very few instruments which still retains its original neck. Its name was taken from the owner, Domenico Dragonetti (1763-1846), the Italian virtuoso double bass player. Dragonetti formed a large collection of double basses, violins, cellos, harps and guitars. Just prior to the Foundation’s acquisition, this violin was played throughout the world by the renowned violinist, Frank Peter Zimmermann (1965-).

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Apr 2006 - Oct 2006Mayu Kijima

・May 2009 - Veronika Eberle

Stradivarius 1702 Violin

Lord Newlands

This violin was named after the owner, Lord Newlands (1890-1929), who treasured it throughout his life. While this violin was in the care of W.E. Hill & Sons of London between 1964 and 1982, it was exhibited at the CINOA Exhibit of Bath in 1973 as the most outstanding violin in the Hill Collection. According to the world virtuoso violinist Isaac Stern (1920-2001) who once played this violin, "Lord Newlands" has the same power as his "del Gesu" violins.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Jan 2003 - Mar 2009Toru Yasunaga

・Apr 2009 - Jan 2011Sergey Khachatryan

・Apr 2012 - Jun 2014Ray Chen

・Jan 2015 - Suyoen Kim

Stradivarius 1708 Violin

Huggins

This violin was once owned by the famous luthier, Nicolas Vuillaume. Around 1880, it was acquired by an English astronomer, Sir William Huggins (1824-1910) from the Emperor of Austria via W.E. Hill & Sons, hence the name "Huggins". In 1997, Nippon Music Foundation started to loan this violin to the grand prize winner of The Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in Belgium in order to support the Competition and the young promising players.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Jun 1997 - Aug 1999Nikolaj Znaider

・May 2001 - Feb 2005Baiba Skride

・May 2005 - Apr 2009Sergey Khachatryan

・Jun 2009 - Sep 2010Ray Chen

・May 2012 - May 2015Andrey Baranov

・Jun 2015 - Mar 2019Ji Young Lim

Stradivarius 1709 Violin

Engleman

This violin was once owned by the family of a naval officer Commander Young until his death in the World War II. The Young family had retained possession of the violin for almost 150 years, which is reflected in its superior condition. Nippon Music Foundation acquired it from an American amateur violinist and collector Ephraim Engleman, hence the name "Engleman".

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Aug 1996 - Oct 2001Reiko Watanabe

・Nov 2001 - Apr 2012Lisa Batiashvili

・Nov 2012 - Jul 2014Vilde Frang

・Dec 2016 - Benjamin Beilman

Stradivarius 1710 Violin

Camposelice

The name of this violin is derived from the owner, Duke of Camposelice, who was a well-known Stradivarius collector in France in the 1880s. In 1937, this violin was exhibited at the prestigious Cremona Exhibition by Dr. Kuhne who owned a collection of instruments. Nippon Music Foundation acquired it from the family of a Belgian amateur player who took great care of it for over 30 years.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Mar 2005 - Mar 2010Kyoko Takezawa

・Mar 2010 - Oct 2010Hyun-Su Shin

・Feb 2012 - Svetlin Roussev

Stradivarius 1714 Violin

Dolphin

This violin is recognized as one of the top three violins made by Stradivari along with the 1715 "Alard" and the 1716 "Messiah". This instrument was once owned and played by the world famous virtuoso Jascha Heifetz (1901-1987). The owner in the late 1800s, George Hart who was an instrument dealer in London, named the violin "Dolphin" as its striking appearance and colour of its back reminded him of a dolphin.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Aug 2000 - Akiko Suwanai

Stradivarius 1715 Violin

Joachim

This is one of the three 1715 violins once owned by the famed Hungarian violinist, Joseph Joachim (1831-1907). This violin was later bequeathed to Joachim’s great-niece Adela d’Aranyi, who was a violinist and a pupil of Joachim. Therefore, it is also known as "Joachim-Aranyi". It had since remained in the Aranyi family until Nippon Music Foundation acquired it.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Apr 2001 - Jun 2009Sayaka Shoji

・Nov 2009 - Nov 2010Geza Hosszu-Legocky

・Apr 2012 - Jul 2013Lisa Batiashvili

・Jun 2014 - Ray Chen

Stradivarius 1716 Violin

Booth

The name "Booth" was taken from Mrs. Booth, an English lady. She purchased the violin about 1855 to form a quartet of Stradivari instruments for her two sons who showed considerable talent. In 1931, the violin was passed into the hands of Mischa Mischakoff (1896-1981), a celebrated American violinist, and in 1961, it became a part of the Hottinger Collection in New York. The violin enjoys a very good reputation for excellent quality of tone and power and for good state of preservation.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Mar 2000 - Oct 2004Julia Fischer

・Feb 2005 - Aug 2006Shunske Sato

・Sep 2006 - Arabella Miho Steinbacher

Stradivarius 1717 Violin

Sasserno

The name of this violin was taken from Comte de Sasserno, a French owner in 1845. In 1894, it was acquired by a violinist Otto Peiniger, who in turn sold it to Pickering Phipps, owner of a well-known brewery in England. In 1906, this violin was passed into the hands of an English industrialist Summers and was well-preserved in his family over 90 years.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・May 1999 - Sep 2012Viviane Hagner

・Feb 2013 - Feb 2019Alina Pogostkina

・Mar 2019 - Ji Young Lim

Stradivarius 1722 Violin

Jupiter

This violin has been in caring hands who appreciated its quality, and therefore it is a well-preserved example of Stradivari’s work. It is believed that a great English collector James Goding named it "Jupiter" in the early 1800s. This violin was once played by the world-acclaimed violinists such as Midori Goto (1971-) and Daishin Kashimoto (1979-), the first concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Jun 1998 - May 2006Daishin Kashimoto

・Dec 2006 - Nov 2009Erik Schumann

・Nov 2009 - Jan 2011Manrico Padovani

・Dec 2013 - Ryu Goto

Stradivarius 1725 Violin

Wilhelmj

The name of this violin is derived from a German violinist August Wilhelmj (1845-1908), who has possessed it for about 30 years since 1866. This violin was his most favourite among many precious violins he owned. He parted with "Wilhelmj" in his fifties, as he made the decision to "quit when at my best".

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Oct 2001 - Feb 2005Shunske Sato

・Feb 2005 - Nov 2010Baiba Skride

Stradivarius 1735 Violin

Samazeuilh

This violin was brought from Italy to France by Tarisio in 1836, and was once owned by the Comte de Chaponay of Lyon. At the end of the 19th century, it was passed to W.E.Hill & Sons of London, who sold it to violinist Arthur Hartmann (1881-1956) in 1901. By 1909 it had been acquired by the Samazeuilh family, hence the name “Samazeuilh”. Virtuoso Mischa Elman (1891-1967), who came to possess the violin in 1923, considered it in a letter written in 1926 ‘one of the best Stradivarius Instruments for tone quality’. The inscription on its label records its maker’s age of 91 years. In August 2017, Nippon Music Foundation acquired this violin with a substantial contribution from Mr. and Mrs. Okamoto in Japan and support from The Nippon Foundation.

Stradivarius 1736 Violin

Muntz

The label attached to this instrument bears an Italian inscription, "d'anni 92 (92 years old)", handwritten by Stradivari himself. It has a first class reputation for its excellent condition and tonal quality. This violin takes its name from a famous collector and amateur violinist, H.M.Muntz of Birmingham, England, who owned it in the late 1800s. This is one of the last instruments made by Stradivari, who passed away in 1737.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Oct 2002 - Aug 2004Judith Ingolfsson

・May 2005 - Sep 2006Arabella Miho Steinbacher

・Nov 2007 - Yuki Manuela Janke

Stradivarius 1696 Cello

Lord Aylesford

This cello was once owned by a well-known amateur player, Lord Aylesford of England, hence its name "Lord Aylesford". He acquired this cello in early 1780s from the famous Italian violinist Felice de Giardini (1716-1796) and it was retained in the Aylesford family for almost 100 years. In 1946 it was passed into the hands of the world-renowned cellist Gregor Piatigorsky(1903-1976) in Philadelphia, USA. During the years between 1950 and 1965, internationally-acclaimed cellist, Janos Starker (1924-2013), played it in numerous concerts and made 35 recordings

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Jan 2004 - Jan 2014Danjulo Ishizaka

・Jan 2014 - Pablo Ferrández

Stradivarius 1730 Cello

Feuermann

This cello is known for its relatively slim body. From 1934, it was owned by Emmanuel Feuermann (1902-1942), one of the greatest cellists in the world and is also well known in Japan as the teacher of Hideo Saito (1902-1974). Feuermann performed throughout the world and recorded with this cello, hence the name "Feuermann".

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Jan 1998 - May 2011Steven Isserlis

・Jan 2014 - Jan 2019Danjulo Ishizaka

Guarneri del Gesu 1736 Violin

Muntz

This violin was made by Bartolomeo Giuseppe Guarneri (1698-1744), a distinguished violinmaker comparable to Stradivari. This violin is known as "Muntz" from its ownership by the same Muntz family as the 1736 Stradivarius violin. Nippon Music Foundation owns two "Muntz" violins both made in 1736 and holds duo recitals to compare the sounds of the two instruments.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・Apr 1995 - Jul 1997Anne Akiko Meyers

・Mar 1998 - Jul 2000Pavel Berman

・Aug 2000 - Feb 2002Karen Gomyo

Guarneri del Gesu 1740 Violin

Ysaye

This violin bears the name "Ysaye" from the Belgian violinist Eugene Ysaye (1858-1931). Inside the violin is an inscription written in French with red ink, "This Del Gesu was the faithful companion of my career. Ysaye 1928". The violin took part in the procession of Ysaye's state funeral being carried on a pillow in front of the virtuoso's coffin. From 1965, it was owned by the world-virtuoso violinist Isaac Stern (1920-2001) from whom Nippon Music Foundation acquired it in 1998.

Long-Term Loan Recipients

・May 1998 - Sep 2001Issac Stern (Entrusted)

・May 2003 - Jun 2009Pinchas Zukerman (Entrusted)

・Oct 2010 - Sergey Khachatryan