In blind tests, top violinists often prefer new violins to Stradivari.
A Stradivarius can sell for millions, and its tone is said to be unmatched. But in carefully blinded studies, leading soloists wearing dark goggles played old Italian and new violins. Most preferred a new one, and they couldn't reliably tell which was which.
Antonio Stradivari made instruments in Cremona, Italy, in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Around 650 of his instruments are thought to survive, and his violins, along with those of Guarneri del Gesù, have long been considered the pinnacle of the craft. Scientists have investigated everything from the wood's density, possibly affected by a cold period in Europe, to chemical treatments and varnish in search of the secret.
In 2010, researcher Claudia Fritz and violin maker Joseph Curtin ran a double-blind test at a competition in Indianapolis. Experienced violinists, wearing modified welding goggles so they could not see the instruments, played three new violins and three old Italian ones, including two by Stradivari. The most-preferred instrument was new, and the least-preferred was a Stradivarius. Players could not reliably tell old from new.
In a follow-up published in 2014 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ten renowned soloists tested six old Italian violins and six new ones, first in a rehearsal room and then in a concert hall. Six of the ten chose a new violin as the one they would most like to take on tour, and as a group they could not tell old from new at better than chance.
These studies do not mean Stradivari's instruments are poor; they are superb. But they suggest that the best modern makers can match them, and that part of the Stradivarius mystique comes from history, rarity and expectation. The legend may sound as good as the wood.
Source: Fritz et al. (2014), PNAS
