The 311-year-old Stradivarius Violin sold for $11.25 million at Sotheby's on Friday and sold at a meticulously viewed auction that attracted interest from investors, collectors and classical musicians.
The violin was made in 1714 by the famous Italian Luciéantonio Stradivari. It was later owned by the Hungarian-born master Joseph Joachim, a close companion to Johannes Brahms, one of the great violinists of the 19th century.
The Stradivarius was sold by the New England Conservatory. The New England Conservatory plans to use the proceeds from the sale to donate to the Student Scholarship Program. The instrument was previously owned by Si-Hon MA, a school graduate who passed away in 2009. His property is a provision that can be sold to fund student scholarships in 2015, and in 2015 he donated the instrument to the New England Conservatory.
“Now we really have the opportunity to benefit more students — the future generations of students are like this,” said Andrea Karin, president of the Conservatory.
Among the violins that were sold publicly at auctions, the current records were held by the so-called “ladybrand” Stradivarius, once owned by Lord Byron's granddaughter.
The instrument sold on Friday was one of several violins owned by Joachim, which premiered the Brahms Violin Concerto in 1879.
Simin Ganatra, chairman of the strings division at Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University in Bloomington, said his connection to composer Joachim was a major selling point.
“It's a magical experience for a musician to play an instrument they once played, and it's something you can't really cost,” she said.
The violin sold on Friday is known as the “Joachimma” Stradivarius. According to the dealer, the rare violin, once owned by famous nouns such as Fritz Chrysler, Jaska Heifetz and Yehudi Menuhin, has been selling personally for up to $20 million in recent years. The instruments they play usually carry their names.
The “Joachimma” violin auction has attracted considerable news media attention in recent weeks. Sotheby called the instrument a “music masterpiece” and initially estimated it to be between $120,000 and $18 million. However, bids began at $8 million and sold for $10 million. At the buyer's fee, the price reached $11.25 million.
Before auction on Friday, violinist Genevre, a graduate of the New England Conservatory, performed Lago from Bach's Sonata No. 3 on the “Joachimma” violin.
There is a booming market for Stradivarius Instruments, but surge in prices are out of reach for most violinists. Collectors and institutions may purchase them and lend them to performers.
The New England Conservatory has allowed four students to use “Joachimma” Stradivarius for one to two years in the past decade. She said it was a privilege to have that caliber rare measure in the conservatory, but the school said it felt that sales could help more students.
“It's really about the most powerful use of instruments,” she said.
