A Stradivarius viola (pictured) made the headlines last month with an asking price of $45m (?27m) at a forthcoming Sotheby’s sale. Next to that stratospheric figure, a mere ?200k for a historic Italian violin might seem a reasonable price.
Yet for an orchestral musician on an ever-diminishing income, or a young graduate musician starting out as a freelance soloist, such an expense is most likely going to come as a choice between a mortgage or an instrument. Continue reading “When a Stradivarius costs $45m, creating an Art Fund’ for musical instruments is vital”