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The Weekend Vote

V.com weekend vote: Strad or del Gesù?

July 3, 2009 16:00

Earlier this week, Philippe Quint confessed to being a Strad man, and that got me thinking: Strad or Guarneri del Gesù?

The "Stradivarius" label is the famous one, it graces so many knock-offs, and Stradivari is the one violin maker that is known by both musicians and people in the general public -- musical Muggles -- like my Mom. (Hi Mom!) But the del Gesù has captured the imaginations of so many artists; this just can't be denied.

Guarneri del Gesùs have the general reputation of being more sonorous than Strads but less finely crafted. They also are rarer, simply because del Gesù was less prolific than was Stradivari, who kept making fiddles (some 1,000 of them) up until he died at the age of 93. (del Gesù lived only half as long -- to the age of 46). The Stradivari Society estimates there are approximately 135 del Gesùs left in existence, compared to 650 Stradivari instruments.

Here is a list of some violinists who currently play Strads: Joshua Bell plays the 1713 "Gibson ex Huberman" Stradivarius; Janine Jansen plays the 1727 "Barrere" Strad; Gil Shaham plays the 1699 "Comtesse de Polignac" Strad...there are many more, and please feel welcome to mention these artists below.

Perhaps the most famous Strad is the Messiah -- considered such a fine specimen that it is not to be played!

And here are some violinists who currently play on del Gesùs: Rachel Barton Pine plays the 1742 “ex-Soldat” del Gesù; Midori plays the 1734 "ex-Huberman" del Gesù; Vadim Repin plays on the 1736 “Von Szerdahely” del Gesù. Again, feel free to add to this least, it is by no means complete.

Pinchas Zukerman plays a 1742 del Gesù, and last year he test drove another one, made in 1741, and bought for a record-breaking $3.9 million by Moscow lawyer Maxim Viktorov.

The most famous del Gesù is Il Cannone which was Paganini's favorite instrument, so named because of its powerful sound. In 1837 Paganini gave the fiddle to his native city of Genoa, where it still resides and is played once a month, and on special occasions.

Jascha Heifetz, if you are curious, had several Strads and a del Gesù: he owned the 1714 "Dolphin" Strad, the 1731 "Piel" Strad, the 1736 Carlo Tononi, and the 1742 "ex David" del Gesù. It is said that he preferred the del Gesù kept until his death.

So which would you vote for? And please, tell us why. What do you like about the sound? About the craftsmanship? Have you played either kind, and what have been your impressions?