The Amati Quartet in Residence is a string quartet

String quartet

A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...

, associated with the University of Saskatchewan

University of Saskatchewan

The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...

 (U of S) in Saskatoon

Saskatoon

Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

The ensemble performs with four instruments made by the Amati family

Amati

Amati is the name of a family of Italian violin makers, who flourished at Cremona from about 1549 to 1740.-Andrea Amati:Andrea Amati was not the earliest maker of violins whose instruments still survive today...

 of luthiers now owned by the university. They were acquired from farmer and collector Steven Kolbinson in 1959 for C$

Canadian dollar

The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...

20,000. The combined valuation of the group of instruments currently exceeds C$3 million.

They were loaned to the Lafayette String Quartet of the University of Victoria

University of Victoria

The University of Victoria, often referred to as UVic, is the second oldest public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It is a research intensive university located in Saanich and Oak Bay, about northeast of downtown Victoria. The University's annual enrollment is about 20,000 students...

for some time before being returned to the University of Saskatchewan, and held in storage at the University's Archives and rarely used in performance. In 2003 the Amati Quartet was established who regularly perform on the instruments to address concerns that they should be heard.

Instruments

• Violin 1637, ex-Daisy Kennedy, Nicolò Amati
• Violin 1627, Antonio & Girolamo Amati
• Viola 1607, Antonio & Girolamo Amati
• Cello 1690, Girolamo Amati II