"Gould" Violin
"The Gould" violin has a two-piece maple back with a tight flame and a two-piece spruce top with an orange-brown varnish. Although modern performers continue to use seventeenth- and eighteenth-century stringed instruments by great makers, nearly all of the instruments have been modified in order to remain useful as performance spaces grew larger and repertoire pushed instruments to create louder sound over an extended range.
In 1975, The Metropolitan Museum had the luthier Frederick J. Lindeman of Amsterdam modify "The Gould" so that it would be in a Baroque configuration. He based his alterations on what was known of historical setups from the late seventeenth century, specifically he patterned the fingerboard and tailpiece after surviving original examples on the 1690 "Tuscan-Medici" Strad housed at the Accademia in Florence. Lindeman also fashioned a shorter neck and bassbar and fitted the instrument with a new soundpost, bridge, and pegs, as well as stringing it in gut. "The Gould" is the only violin by the famed master that has been returned to a Baroque setup and that is regularly used for performance of period repertoire.
Certificates:
Albert Caressa, April 25, 1928
Hermann, March 20, 1942
In 1975, The Metropolitan Museum had the luthier Frederick J. Lindeman of Amsterdam modify "The Gould" so that it would be in a Baroque configuration. He based his alterations on what was known of historical setups from the late seventeenth century, specifically he patterned the fingerboard and tailpiece after surviving original examples on the 1690 "Tuscan-Medici" Strad housed at the Accademia in Florence. Lindeman also fashioned a shorter neck and bassbar and fitted the instrument with a new soundpost, bridge, and pegs, as well as stringing it in gut. "The Gould" is the only violin by the famed master that has been returned to a Baroque setup and that is regularly used for performance of period repertoire.
Certificates:
Albert Caressa, April 25, 1928
Hermann, March 20, 1942
Artwork Details
- Title: "Gould" Violin
- Maker: Antonio Stradivari (Italian, Cremona 1644–1737 Cremona)
- Date: 1693
- Geography: Cremona, Italy
- Culture: Italian (Cremona)
- Medium: Maple, spruce, ebony
- Dimensions: Height: 23 1/4 in. (59 cm)
Width: 7 3/4 in. (19.7 cm) - Classification: Chordophone-Lute-bowed-unfretted
- Credit Line: Gift of George Gould, 1955
- Object Number: 55.86a–c
- Curatorial Department: Musical Instruments
Audio
9453. Violin
0:00
0:00
We're sorry, the transcript for this audio track is not available at this time. Please email info@metmuseum.org to request a transcript for this track.
Listen to more about this artwork
More Artwork
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.