Axelrod quartet
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The Axelrod quartet is a set of four decorated Stradivarius string instruments named after the collector Herbert R. Axelrod who donated them to the Smithsonian Institution in 1998.
The four instruments
[edit]The Axelrod quartet consists of:
- the Ole Bull violin (1687)[1]
- the Greffuhle violin (1709)[2]
- the Axelrod viola (1695)[3]
- the Marylebone cello (1688)[4]
A remarkable feature of these four instruments is that they are all decorated:[5]
- The two violins are decorated along the rims of the top and back, as well as on the ribs and the pegbox.
- The Axelrod viola is decorated only along the rims of the top and back and in a different way (only in black).
- The Marylebone cello is decorated on the ribs and the pegbox.
The ornaments on the cello were added in the 20th century[4] but the two violins and the viola were decorated by Stradivari, placing them among the small group of eleven surviving Stradivarius string instruments decorated by the great luthier.[6] Four other decorated Stradivarius instruments belong to the Royal Quartet in Madrid.
History
[edit]In 1998, Axelrod donated these four instruments to the Smithsonian Institution. Their value at the time was estimated at $50 million.[7] The donation led to the foundation of the Axelrod String Quartet in 1998.[8]
Another Stradivarius cello, the Servais, is also in the Smithsonian's collection. The Axelrod quartet and the Servais cello were on display in the National Museum of American History until 2012.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ Stradivarius Violin: "The Ole Bull" National Museum of American History
- ^ Stradivarius Violin: "The Greffuhle" National Museum of American History
- ^ Stradivarius Viola: "The Axelrod" National Museum of American History
- ^ a b The Marylebone Cello National Museum of American History (the spelling Marylebon is an error).
- ^ The decorations can be seen in the images included in the Smithsonian Institution's articles: Ole Bull violin, Greffuhle violin, Axelrod viola, Marylebone cello.
- ^ a b Exhibition, January 1, 1964 – October 21, 2012 in the National Museum of American History, including the Axelrod quartet and the Servais cello.
- ^ Sharing the Gift of Music smithsonianmag.com, August 1998.
- ^ The Axelrod String Quartet smithsonianchambermusic.org
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