Klaus Döring's Classical Music/Klaus Döring's Klassische Musik

By Daniel Ross, ClassicFM London Just how good does a Stradivarius sound, and could you pick one out in a blind test? The Strad magazine staged one to find out. image: http://assets7.classicfm.com/2010/04/stradivarius-violin-1264422192-article-0.jpg Earlier this month, The Strad magazine got the leader of the London Symphony Orchestra to play six different violins in a blind test - one of them being a legendary Stradivarius model from 1709. Listen to the test below and see if you can work out which  violin  is the Stradivarius - you might be surprised… The other violins that you can hear are an 1850 Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume, a 1923 Giuseppe Fiorini, a modern Del Gesù copy, a Mirecourt French trade violin from around 1900 and an 1835 A.S.P. Bernardel. Visit The Strad's feature on the experiment to find out more about what happened. Share 1K More Violin features This is what makes a Stradivarius violin sound ...

What makes Stradivarius violins so special? Made by Antonio Stradivari and his family, these instruments are among the most valuable violins in the world, highly regarded by performers and audiences. Take a look at pictures from the Stradivarius exhibition at Oxford's Ashmolean museum, uncovering the beauty of these musical works of art. The Alard Stradivarius Antonio Stradivari is one of the most famous makers of stringed instruments (otherwise known as luthiers) of all time. His instruments are highly regarded and often sell for six figure sums at auction thanks to their unique sound and esteemed history. Created in 1715, in Stradivari's 'golden period' this violin takes its name from French violinist Jean-Delphin Alard, its most famed owner. The instrument sold at auction in 1981 to a collector in Singapore for $1.2 million. Look at the ornate carving on the tailpiece.