Joseph Contreras
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Joseph Contreras
Joseph Contreras (c. 1710 – c. 1780), was a Spanish violin maker. Contreras was born around 1710, in Granada, Spain(hence his commonly used nickname 'el Granadino'). He probably lived in Italy during his early life, his style being Italian. He worked in Madrid from about 1745, as violin maker and repairer to the Spanish Court. This brought him into contact with some of the best violins of his day, including examples by Stradivarius and Guarnerius. He is famous for the copies of these instruments which he made, using fine materials and exceptional skill. Only a few of his instruments have survived today, and are highly prized. Famous players of Contreras violins have included Shlomo Mintz, Nigel Kennedy and members of the Endellion Quartet The Endellion String Quartet was a British string quartet, named after St Endellion in Cornwall. History The quartet was formed in 1979 with the following original members: * Andrew Watkinson, violin * Louise Williams, violin * Garfiel ...
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Granada
Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of four rivers, the Darro (river), Darro, the Genil, the Monachil (river), Monachil and the Beiro. Ascribed to the Vega de Granada ''comarca'', the city sits at an average elevation of Above mean sea level, above sea level, yet is only one hour by car from the Mediterranean coast, the Costa Tropical. Nearby is the Sierra Nevada Ski Station, where the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1996 were held. In the 2021 national census, the population of the city of Granada proper was 227,383, and the population of the entire municipal area was estimated to be 231,775, ranking as the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities, 20th-largest urban area of Spain. About 3.3% of t ...
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Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Madrid , coordinates = , largest_city = Madrid , languages_type = Official language , languages = Spanish language, Spanish , ethnic_groups = , ethnic_groups_year = , ethnic_groups_ref = , religion = , religion_ref = , religion_year = 2020 , demonym = , government_type = Unitary state, Unitary Parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutional monarchy , leader_title1 = Monarchy of Spain, Monarch , leader_name1 = Felipe VI , leader_title2 = Prime Minister of Spain ...
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Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and its monocentric metropolitan area is the third-largest in the EU.United Nations Department of Economic and Social AffairWorld Urbanization Prospects (2007 revision), (United Nations, 2008), Table A.12. Data for 2007. The municipality covers geographical area. Madrid lies on the River Manzanares in the central part of the Iberian Peninsula. Capital city of both Spain (almost without interruption since 1561) and the surrounding autonomous community of Madrid (since 1983), it is also the political, economic and cultural centre of the country. The city is situated on an elevated plain about from the closest seaside location. The climate of Madrid features hot summers and cool winters. The Madrid urban agglomeration has the second-large ...
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Violin Maker
A luthier ( ; AmE also ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. The word "luthier" is originally French and comes from the French word for lute. The term was originally used for makers of lutes, but it came to be used already in French for makers of most bowed and plucked stringed instruments such as members of the violin family (including violas, cellos, and double basses) and guitars. Luthiers, however, do not make harps or pianos; these require different skills and construction methods because their strings are secured to a frame. The craft of luthiers, lutherie (rarely called "luthiery", but this often refers to stringed instruments other than those in the violin family), is commonly divided into the two main categories of makers of stringed instruments that are plucked or strummed and makers of stringed instruments that are bowed. Since bowed instruments require a bow, the second category includes a subtype known ...
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Stradivarius
A Stradivarius is one of the violins, violas, cellos and other string instruments built by members of the Italian family Stradivari, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), during the 17th and 18th centuries. They are considered some of the finest instruments ever made, and are extremely valuable collector's items. According to their reputation, the quality of their sound has defied attempts to explain or equal it, though this belief is disputed. The many blind experiments from 1817 to as recently as 2014 have found no difference in sound between Stradivari's violins and high-quality violins in comparable style of other makers and periods, nor has acoustic analysis. The fame of Stradivarius instruments is widespread, appearing in numerous works of fiction. Construction Stradivari made his instruments using an inner form, unlike the French copyists, such as Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume, Vuillaume, who employed an outer form. It is clear from the number of f ...
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Guarnerius
The Guarneri (, , ), often referred to in the Latinized form Guarnerius, is the family name of a group of distinguished luthiers from Cremona in Italy in the 17th and 18th centuries, whose standing is considered comparable to those of the Amati and Stradivari families. Family members * Andrea Guarneri ( 1626 – 7 December 1698) was an apprentice in the workshop of Nicolò Amati from 1641 to 1646 and returned to make violins for Amati from 1650 to 1654. His early instruments are generally based on the "Grand Amati" pattern but struggled to achieve the sophistication of Amati's own instruments. Andrea Guarneri produced some fine violas. The ex-Primrose Viola, which was played by William Primrose, bears Andrea's label but may have been made by his son Giuseppe. Two of Andrea's sons continued the father's traditions: * Pietro Giovanni Guarneri (''Pietro da Mantova'') (18 February 1655 – 26 March 1720) worked in his father's workshop from around 1670 until his marriage in 1677. ...
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Shlomo Mintz
Shlomo Mintz (Hebrew: שלמה מינץ) (born 30 October 1957) is an Israeli violin virtuoso, violinist and conductor. He regularly appears with orchestras and conductors on the international scene and is heard in recitals and chamber music concerts around the world. Biography Shlomo Mintz was born in Moscow. In 1959, when he was two, his family immigrated to Israel, where he studied with Ilona Feher, a student of Jenő Hubay. Feher introduced Shlomo Mintz to Isaac Stern, who became his mentor. He was also a student of Dorothy DeLay in New York. Mintz got married and had two sons, Eliav and Alexander. Music career His first performance on stage was at the age of six, and at age eleven he played as soloist with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Soon afterward, he was called on a week's notice by Zubin Mehta to play Paganini's Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 6, with the orchestra when Itzhak Perlman fell ill. He made his Carnegie Hall debut at the age of sixteen with the Pittsburg ...
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Nigel Kennedy
Nigel Kennedy (born 28 December 1956) is an English violinist and violist. His early career was primarily spent performing classical music, and he has since expanded into jazz, klezmer, and other music genres. Early life and background Kennedy's grandfather was Lauri Kennedy, principal cellist with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and his grandmother was Dorothy Kennedy, a pianist. Lauri and Dorothy Kennedy were Australian, while their son, the cellist John Kennedy, was born in England. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Music in London, at age 22, John joined the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, later becoming the principal cellist of Sir Thomas Beecham's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. While in England, John developed a relationship with an English pianist, Scylla Stoner, with whom he eventually toured in 1952 as part of the Llewellyn-Kennedy Piano Trio (with the violinist Ernest Llewellyn; Stoner was billed as "Scylla Kennedy" after she and John married). But th ...
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Endellion Quartet
The Endellion String Quartet was a British string quartet, named after St Endellion in Cornwall. History The quartet was formed in 1979 with the following original members: * Andrew Watkinson, violin * Louise Williams, violin * Garfield Jackson, viola * David Waterman, cello In 1986, Ralph de Souza replaced Louise Williams as second violin of the quartet. The Endellion Quartet became the quartet-in-residence at Cambridge University in 1992. The quartet regularly performed at such venues as Wigmore Hall. The quartet has commissioned new music from such composers as Sally Beamish, Prach Boondiskulchok, Jonathan Dove, and Giles Swayne. The quartet received the 1996 award for 'Best Chamber Ensemble' from the Royal Philharmonic Society The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb .... ...
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1710 Births
Year 171 ( CLXXI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Herennianus (or, less frequently, year 924 '' Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 171 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire * Emperor Marcus Aurelius forms a new military command, the ''praetentura Italiae et Alpium''. Aquileia is relieved, and the Marcomanni are evicted from Roman territory. * Marcus Aurelius signs a peace treaty with the Quadi and the Sarmatian Iazyges. The Germanic tribes of the Hasdingi (Vandals) and the Lacringi become Roman allies. * Armenia and Mesopotamia become protectorates of the Roman Empire. * The Costoboci cross the Danube (Dacia) and ravage Thrace in the Balkan Peninsula. They reach Eleusis, near Athens, and ...
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1782 Deaths
Year 178 ( CLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Scipio and Rufus (or, less frequently, year 931 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 178 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire * Bruttia Crispina marries Commodus, and receives the title of '' Augusta''. * Emperor Marcus Aurelius and his son Commodus arrive at Carnuntum in Pannonia, and travel to the Danube to fight against the Marcomanni. Asia * Last (7th) year of ''Xiping'' era and start of ''Guanghe'' era of the Chinese Han Dynasty. * In India, the decline of the Kushan Empire begins. The Sassanides take over Central Asia. Religion * The Montanist heresy is condemned for the first time. Births * Lü Meng, Chinese general (d. 220) * Pen ...
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