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Stradivarius' Powers Just a Musical Myth

Researchers show that even pro musicians can't tell the difference

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Jan 3, 2012 12:10 PM CST

(Newser) – They’re famed far and wide as the finest violins on the planet (one recently sold for $16 million), but do Stradivarius violins actually sound better? A study suggests they don’t, NPR reports. Researchers assembled a group of six violins—two Stradivariuses, a Guarneri, and three modern violins—and invited a group of professional violinists to try them out while wearing dark goggles that prevented them from visually identifying the instruments. They were told at least one was a Strad, and asked to guess which.

The results? Only three of the 17 participants got it right. Seven got it wrong, and another seven simply admitted they couldn’t tell. “There was no evidence that people had any idea what they were playing,” said one researcher. “That really surprised me.” What’s more, when asked which violin they’d want to perform with, two-thirds picked one of the new models—indeed, one of the Strads was consistently their least favorite. (Click to hear two clips and see if you can pick out the Strad.)

A rare 'Archinto' Stradivarius Viola is seen at The Royal Academy of Music on March 9, 2011 in London, England.
A rare 'Archinto' Stradivarius Viola is seen at The Royal Academy of Music on March 9, 2011 in London, England.   (Getty Images)
Philip Dukes, a teacher at the Royal Academy of Music and international soloist , plays a recital on a Stradivarius Archinto viola at the Royal Academy of Music in central London, on March 9, 2011.
Philip Dukes, a teacher at the Royal Academy of Music and international soloist , plays a recital on a Stradivarius Archinto viola at the Royal Academy of Music in central London, on March 9, 2011.   (Getty Images)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 24 comments
Fatquah
Jan 3, 2012 8:40 PM CST
And Ketel One vodka tastes like dirty dishwater. Same phenomenon.
plain_speaking
Jan 3, 2012 4:04 PM CST
this one got me giggling...at a certain point of excellence...it is only the marketing that drives up the price.....
Ultraworld
Jan 3, 2012 2:10 PM CST
I have been a Luthier since 1980. Mainly working with Guitars, but the past 10 years working in a shop that does a lot of Cello & Upright Basses. For a lot of musicians, the mystique of the brand and age of the instrument is as important as the sound of it. I have customers with cherished instruments that really sound average but they paid a lot of money for them. So the customer is convinced it sounds great. A violin this old has no doubt been taken apart, repaired & reassembled many many times. It's probable that the instrument came back sounding very different each time. Maybe not something a listener can hear, but something the player can feel. I have a pretty good ear, I can guaranty you I could not tell the difference. A newer instrument might sound better to me.  The romance of a virtuoso playing a magically sounding Strad is so strong, that people will spend any amount of money for it. 

 
study • classical music • violin • Stradivarius violin

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