Professional violinists pay a lot of money for their hand crafted instruments. And the prices keep rising. One of the most celebrated violinists in the world Itzhak Perlman says of his Stradivarius violin, “It’s the violin of my dreams.” But when asked if he could afford his violin at today’s prices–by Bill Whitaker on CBS’ 60 Minutes (Sunday, December 7, 7pm)–the musician replies, “Absolutely not.”
What makes the most expensive violins so special? It sounds like an old folk tale but the violin makers of Cremona, the birthplace of the Stradivarius, find the most “acoustic” wood in a special forest discovered hundreds of years ago by Antonio Stradivari. Each year, there is a celebration in the woods to honor the trees. As Whitaker describes it: “Italy being Italy, there’s a violinist to play a concert – not for the spectators, for the trees.”
