Being in the Washington, DC Metro area, I hear a lot about politics. On the same day that the Washington Post ran an article about the “impeachment march,” the ritual of taking articles of impeachment from the House to the Senate, there was an article about the “Impeachment Polka,” which American composer Charles Dupee Blake wrote in 1868, hoping to profit from Andrew Johnson’s impeachment. As someone who is more interested…

Beginning violinists frequently rent their violins, which may be valued at only a few hundred dollars. As violinists advance, they may purchase an instrument at a cost ranging from several hundred to a few thousand dollars. However, hand-made instruments and particularly those that are made by a famous luthier can range from tens of thousands up to millions of dollars for a Stradivarius. A few lucky musicians may find a patron willing to loan them…

In Identity Theft in Violins and Tax Scams, I shared how my violin was made by Umberto Lanaro in 1962, but bears the label of Eligio Puccini stating the violin was made 25 years earlier. It was a mystery to me why Lanaro, who hails from a family of esteemed luthiers, would use the label of the unknown Puccini. In response to that article, I received an email from another violinist, whom I’ll call…

One of my fondest memories of high school is All-State Orchestra, which brought together serious high school musicians from throughout the state. Every fall, students auditioned for a seat in the orchestra, and the orchestra met for a long weekend in the spring for an intensive orchestra experience under the baton of an esteemed visiting conductor. When I participated, the student had to be in grades 10-12, enrolled in orchestra at their high school, that…

All musicians must maintain their instruments. String instruments can be especially expensive to maintain. If the musician plays regularly, their instrument may need new strings several times a year at a cost ranging from $50 to mid-price violin strings to $275 for high-end cello strings. Bow hair also needs to be replaced just as frequently, at $75 or more per rehair. String instruments are made from dozens of different pieces of wood, carefully carved and…

As the ball drops in Times Square on New Year’s Eve, millions of people join in singing Auld Lang Syne. National poet of Scotland Robert Burns first recorded the words to this poem on paper in 1788. The melody, believed to be Scottish dance tune, The Miller’s Wedding is no stranger to classical music.  It was in English composer William Shield’s comic opera, Rosina, first performed in Covenant Garden in 1782. In 1814, Beethoven…

Every fall, many parents of fourth graders rent an instrument for their child’s school music program. The task is particularly daunting for those renting a string instrument.   Although introductory band instruments come in one size, string instruments come in many sizes, with violins ranging from 1/32 size to 4/4 (or full) size. Most fourth graders need a ½ or ¾ size. To make violin selection more confusing, a ½ size isn’t half the size of a full-size instrument. Rather, for violins, a…