Tarisio Auctions

This is the main page for Tarisio Auctions, the online string instrument auction house. For the Italian violin collector, see Luigi Tarisio

Luigi Tarisio

This page refers to the violin dealer and collector. For the online string instrument auction house, see Tarisio Auctions.Luigi Tarisio was an Italian violin dealer and collector....

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Tarisio Auctions is a web-based auction house specializing in string instruments and their bows. Founded in 1999 with locations in New York and London, its online auctions provide a global marketplace for musical instrument sales.

Locations

Tarisio's New York offices and gallery are housed at 244-250 W 54th St in the former workshop of prominent French violin dealer and restorer Jacques Francais. Mr. Francais was joined in 1964 by fellow French luthier René A. Morel

René A. Morel

René A. Morel was an experienced and influential luthier who was highly regarded by leading international string players, who had been described as "arguably the best violin restorer in the world"...

, who later opened his own shop in the same space. Mr. Morel continues to work in collaboration with Tarisio, offering soundpost adjustments and luthier expertise. Luthier Stefan Valcuha works alongside Mr. Morel and Tarisio performing expert restorations and maintenance.

The London-based office and showroom of Tarisio Europe is located on Essex Road in the borough of Islington. The current director of operations in London is Naomi Sadler, former editor of The Strad magazine.

History

Founded in 1999 by partners Christopher Reuning, Dmitry Gindin, and Jason Price, Tarisio is the world's only internet-based auction house specializing in string instruments and their bows. The firm held its first online auction in November 1999 and by October of that year British string magazine The Strad declared it a "major player" in the string instrument auction world, suggesting that "Sotheby's now regards Tarisio as its principal rival." According to The Red Book catalogue of auction results, the company set over 400 international auction records in its first 10 years of business.
In May 2003 the firm auctioned the private collection of acclaimed violinist Isaac Stern

Isaac Stern

Isaac Stern was a Ukrainian-born violinist. He was renowned for his recordings and for discovering new musical talent.-Biography:Isaac Stern was born into a Jewish family in Kremenets, Ukraine. He was fourteen months old when his family moved to San Francisco...

, which grossed $2.3 million, at the time the second-highest total for a violin auction. In July 2006 the firm announced its expansion with the addition of a London office to increase its presence in the European market. Mr. Price became the sole owner of the firm in January 2010, although Mr. Reuning and Mr. Gindin continue to serve as expert consultants for certifications and consignments. In June 2010 Tarisio auctioned the contents of the firm of the historic Philadelphia violin firm of William Moennig & Son. The "mammoth" sale, which included over 600 lots of instruments, bows, and historical photographs, sold 100 percent of lots. The October 2010 auction, which included the 1697 "Molitor" Stradivarius, was at the time the highest-grossing violin auction in history with over $9 million in sales.

Notable Sales

The following is a list of notable instruments and bows sold by Tarisio Auctions. All prices are in $US and include the buyer's premium.

• After the death of American violinist Isaac Stern in 2001, his estate decided to sell his entire collection of instruments, bows and musical ephemera through Tarisio. Among the many world record prices seen in the May 2003 sale was an astonishing $130,000 paid for a modern copy of one of Stern’s Guarneri violins by Brooklyn maker Samuel Zygmantowicz.
  

• The two François Xavier Tourte cello bows sold by Tarisio in October 2006 and February 2007 sold for then world record prices: the first made $196,000, while the second, the "ex-Romberg," just beat this price, fetching £101,000 ($202,000). In the 20th century they were owned by Edmund Kurtz, principal cellist of the Chicago Symphony.

• In October 2009, Tarisio auctioned a 1648 Nicolo Amati violin previously owned by Hollywood music mogul George E. Stoll, best known as the composer of the Oscar award-winning score to “The Wizard of Oz.” The violin was sold for $620,000, which at the time was the record for a Nicolo Amati sold at auction.

• Also sold in the October 2009 auction was a Jean Baptiste Vuillaume violin made c. 1860, which fetched a record $210,000.

• In June 2010 Tarisio auctioned the contents of the Philadelphia violin firm of William Moennig & Son. Among the many fine bows in the sale was a François Nicolas Voirin "picture" viola bow, which featured a lens embedded in the frog bearing a photograph of J.B. Vuillaume. The bow was sold for $27,600.

• Among the highlights of the April 2010 sale was a Joseph Alfred Lamy violin bow auctioned for $54,000.

• The October 2010 sale, in addition to setting a new world record of $9.4 million for a musical instrument auction, included an 1892 Vincenzo Postiglione violin which was sold for a record $126,000 and a Nicolas Maline violin bow, which fetched $36,000.

• The star lot of the October 2010 auction was the 1697 "Molitor" Stradivarius
  Molitor Stradivarius
  The Molitor Stradivarius is an antique violin made by Italian luthier Antonio Stradivari of Cremona in 1697, the very beginning of the maker's celebrated "Golden" period...
  
  , which was sold for a record $3.6 million to American concert violinist Anne Akiko Myers.

• After enthusiastic bidding, the 1721 "Lady Blunt" Stradivarius violin was sold in the June 20, 2011 auction for a record $15.9 million. Sold on behalf of the Nippon Music Foundation of Japan, the violin's proceeds benefited the Nippon Foundation’s Northeastern Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.