The Stradivarius of 1730, also called the De Munck-Feuermann, is an antique cello crafted by Italian

luthier 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 o ...

Antonio Stradivari. It was notably owned and played by

Ernest de Munck Ernest is a given name derived from Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious". Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), son of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor *Ernest, M ...

and Emanuel Feuermann. Steven Isserlis has described the instrument as his "dream cello ..it has everything." It is currently owned by the Nippon Music Foundation, who has loaned the instrument to a number of prominent cellists.

Background

The ''De Munck-Feuermann'', while labelled 1710, was made during Stradivari's "late period". It owes its nicknames to two notable owners and players of the instrument, cellists

(acquired in 1869) and Emanuel Feuermann (acquired in 1934), the latter being considered one of the greatest cellists of the 20th century. After Feuermann's death in 1942, the instrument was acquired by American collector Russell B. Kingman, and then sold to cellist Aldo Parisot in 1956. The instrument was sold by Parisot to the Nippon Music Foundation in December 1996. It was on loan to Steven Isserlis until May 2011, then to

Danjulo Ishizaka Danjulo Ishizaka (born 14 May 1979) is a German cellist and professor at the Berlin University of Arts and City of Basel Music Academy Life Ishizaka, born in Bonn, Germany, is the son of the German piano teacher Ruth Nathrath and Japanese im ...

. On 24 September 2019, it was loaned to Camille Thomas for a period of one year.

Measurements

The ''De Munck-Feuermann'' is characterised by its long narrow shape. Its detailed dimensions, as measured by calliper, are:

References

1730 works Stradivari cellos Stradivari instruments {{Cello-stub