Bonjour Stradivarius
Encyclopedia
The Bonjour Stradivari cello
was made by famous luthier
Antonio Stradivari
1692. The instrument is named after the amateur 19th-century Paris
ian cellist Abel Bonjour.
On the death of Bonjour sometime after 1885 the cello passed via Fridolin Hamma of Stuttgart to Dr. Hans Kühne of Cologne, who loaned the cello to the Stradivari Bicentennial exhibition in Cremona
in 1937.
Other owners include The Habisreutinger Foundation of St. Gallen
, Switzerland
, soloist Robert Cohen (who played it between 1984 and 1993) and Martin Lovett of the Amadeus Quartet
.
The present owner acquired it in the fall of 1999 and it is currently on loan to The Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank, which then loans this instrument for 3 years to the winner of its national competition. After being loaned to Korean-Canadian cellist Soo Bae
for 3 years, it was awarded in September 2009 to Canadian cellist Rachel Mercer. It is currently valued at US$8 million.
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
was made by famous luthier
Luthier
A luthier is someone who makes or repairs lutes and other string instruments. In the United States, the term is used interchangeably with a term for the specialty of each maker, such as violinmaker, guitar maker, lute maker, etc...
Antonio Stradivari
Antonio Stradivari
Antonio Stradivari was an Italian luthier and a crafter of string instruments such as violins, cellos, guitars, violas, and harps. Stradivari is generally considered the most significant artisan in this field. The Latinized form of his surname, Stradivarius, as well as the colloquial, "Strad", is...
1692. The instrument is named after the amateur 19th-century Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
ian cellist Abel Bonjour.
On the death of Bonjour sometime after 1885 the cello passed via Fridolin Hamma of Stuttgart to Dr. Hans Kühne of Cologne, who loaned the cello to the Stradivari Bicentennial exhibition in Cremona
Cremona
Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments...
in 1937.
Other owners include The Habisreutinger Foundation of St. Gallen
St. Gallen
St. Gallen is the capital of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It evolved from the hermitage of Saint Gall, founded in the 7th century. Today, it is a large urban agglomeration and represents the center of eastern Switzerland. The town mainly relies on the service sector for its economic...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, soloist Robert Cohen (who played it between 1984 and 1993) and Martin Lovett of the Amadeus Quartet
Amadeus Quartet
The Amadeus Quartet was a world famous string quartet founded in 1947.Because of their Jewish origin, violinists Norbert Brainin, Siegmund Nissel and Peter Schidlof were driven out of Vienna after Hitler's Anschluss of 1938...
.
The present owner acquired it in the fall of 1999 and it is currently on loan to The Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank, which then loans this instrument for 3 years to the winner of its national competition. After being loaned to Korean-Canadian cellist Soo Bae
Soo Bae
Soo Bae is a Korean-Canadian cellist who currently resides in New York. She was born in Seoul, Korea, and began her cello studies at six years of age. She then moved to Toronto, where she studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music. She continued her cello studies at The Curtis Institute of Music...
for 3 years, it was awarded in September 2009 to Canadian cellist Rachel Mercer. It is currently valued at US$8 million.