The ''General Kyd; ex-Stern Stradivarius'' is an antique

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G ...

crafted in 1684 by

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

luthier

Antonio Stradivari Antonio Stradivari (, also , ; – 18 December 1737) was an Italian luthier and a craftsman of string instruments such as violins, cellos, guitars, violas and harps. The Latinized form of his surname, '' Stradivarius'', as well as the collo ...

of Cremona. It was used by the English cellist

Leo Stern Leo Stern (5 April 186210 September 1904) was an English cellist, best remembered for being the soloist in the premiere performance of Antonín Dvořák's Cello Concerto in B minor in London in 1896. Biography Leopold Lawrence Stern was born ...

in the premiere of Antonín Dvořák's Cello Concerto in B minor in London in 1896. Noted owners of the ''General Kyd-Stern'' are its namesakes, General Kyd and Leo Stern, as well as Lord Amherst of Hackney, W.E. Hill & Sons and

Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume (7 October 1798 – 19 March 1875) was a French luthier, businessman, inventor and winner of many awards. His workshop made over 3,000 instruments. Early life Vuillaume was born in Mirecourt, where his father and g ...

. At the time of Stern's death in 1904, the ''General Kyd'' was valued at US$6,000; its current value is US$9.5 million. This cello, currently owned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and played by

Robert deMaine Robert DeMaine (born December 6, 1969 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is an American virtuoso cellist, best known as Principal Cello of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Early life From a musical family, Robert DeMaine began learning music at age 4 fr ...

, was previously played by

Peter Stumpf Peter Stumpf may refer to: *Peter Stumpp (d. 1589) or Peter Stumpf, tried as a werewolf in 1589 *Peter Stumpf (cellist), principal cello of the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra * Peter P. Stumpf Jr. (1948–2010), American politician and business ...

, and was stolen from Stumpf's porch in 2004. The General Kyd was later recovered after narrowly escaping being turned into a fancy

CD rack The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Octo ...

. The "General Kyd" underwent 18 months of restoration by Rafael Carrabba Violins in Seattle and was returned in fine condition to the Los Angeles Philharmonic in March 2016.

References

1684 works Stradivari cellos Stradivari instruments {{cello-stub