Looking at the Arts

Joint Seminar by the Doctoral Program for Philosophy, Arts and Society and the University of the Arts
University of Helsinki, 11 September 2015

‘The Beautiful Past:

Rethinking Stradivari Violins in the Aesthetics of European Neoclassicism (c. 1760-1814)’ /
‘Kaunis Menneisyyden:
Uudelleenarviointia Stradivarin Viulut Estetiikkassa Euroopan Uusklassismiin (c. 1760-
1814)’

Christina Linsenmeyer, University of the Arts, Sibelius Academy

Academy of Finland Postdoctoral Researcher
(1.10.2015–30.9.2018)

The case of the ‘Lady Blunt’

In June 2011, the “Lady Blunt” Stradivari violin sold at online-auction for £9.8 million, a
notable increase compared to the record it set in 1971, selling at Sotheby’s for a mere £84,000.
Regarding musical instruments, only old violins, particularly “Strads”, sell for that kind of money
and few investments, of any kind, have that increase in return. There are a handful of celebrity
guitars and pianos that are valued at about $1 million USD, but even the average Stradivarius
violin fetches that multifold.
Classical Italian violins, particularly Cremonese, are status symbols that drive consumer
demand and therefore new making aesthetics; in violin making, commercial success has become
the authority. Makers imitate old violin models because that is what sells, and in many cases,
violin-making practice is reduced to a quest for the “secret of Strad”. Since the early nineteenth
century when the violin-making discipline established its “classic” canon from an idealized past,
“Stradivari” has become a household name. After two centuries of branding, Antonio Stradivari (d.
1737) and his instruments have become fetishized, effectively and problematically removing them
from their historical context.
The violinmaking literature abounds with references and discussions of the “classical
tradition”, however, only a few sources attempt to combat the myth-mania; instead, most continue
the nineteenth-century historiographical tradition of the “Great Man – Great Work” “grand
narrative”, promoting the “secret of Strad” and the idea of a “lost art”.
The Lady Blunt example leads us to wonder why the violin is valued so much compared to
other instruments; why it has become an “art object” in itself; why is it the only old musical
instrument to to be recycled in standard-classical-music practice; and why has its design persisted
almost unchanged, that is, what we see is basically a baroque design.

Substantiating the violin-making canon in nineteenth-century Paris

My previous work has looked at nineteenth-century violin historiography and the reception of
Cremonese violins, including those of Antonio Stradivari. It has focused on the nineteenth-century
centre of the violin world at that time – Paris – where Cremonese violins were canonised. It has
considered how the French championed Italian style towards ideals of “good taste” and how this
was a result of a historicist aesthetic (that is, one that prioritizes things from the past). I have
demonstrated how this historicist aesthetic was driven by socio-political factors and international
economic competition.
Wincklemann, neoclassical aesthetics and Cremonese violins
In relation to arts aesthetics, we can understand the flowering of historicism as an
eighteenth-century phenomenon, with Wincklemann’s theories about ancient Classical art as its
theoretical source; Winckelmann constructed the superiority of Greek culture, mainly -- that ideals
of beauty are to be found in ancient art. Arguably, his theories (about mid-century) created an
environment for neoclassicism to thrive.
In my project, entitled ‘The Beautiful Past’, will focus on the period prior to the canonization of
Stradivarius violins. I aim to show that Winckelmann’s theories reflected not only architecture and
the visual arts, but also violin-making design and reception. This project is related to studies
regarding: the cultural value of violins; Stradivari; the dissemination of Italian style; and eighteenth-
century historicism and neoclassicism.

The ‘Beautiful Past’

In my project, I will examine violin-making practices and reception in the eighteenth century,
and bring cultural-historical research methods to a new research area. So, our understanding of
the violin, its design, history, and meaning will not be understood as inherent in the object itself, but
rather understood through the cultural-context of the appropriate times and places.
My research objective for this project is to interpret and trace “old” and “Italian” as aesthetic
paradigms in the eighteenth century, and how eighteenth-century ideas about looking to the past
for ideals of beauty is crucial for understanding how we came to fetishize Stradivarius violins.
I will focus on musical instruments, particularly violin-family instruments. In order to
contextualize them, I will consider historicist tendencies, surveying five core aesthetic areas
relevant to eighteenth-century neoclassicism: 1) the representative arts (painting and sculpture); 2)
architecture; 3) decorative arts and interior design; 4) music, including composition and
performance and 5) musical-instrument making, including violin making. These areas will be
considered at the crossroads where ideals of beauty intersect with ideas of progress.
I will continue my research in the UK and France, and also consider Wincklemann’s
residencies in Germany (Dresden) and Italy (Rome) where he worked with ancient collections. The
archaeological excavation sites during the eighteenth-century, such as the Pompeii area, are also
significant for their influence on design.

Outcomes
I hope to demonstrate how cultural-historical factors substantiated neoclassical style outside
of Italy, including the preference for old objects, and how this context affected musical-instrument-
making practices and reception. I will attempt to deconstruct violin-making’s canonical formations
and ideal forms for design, and write a “new history” of the violin that better acknowledges cultural-
historical factors, particularly regarding aesthetics.
As far as outcomes for neoclassical studies: I will survey neoclassical collections towards
creating a new paradigm for understanding neoclassicism, particularly contributing to the diffused
term “classical”. For historiography: I will write a ‘new history’ of the violin. In relation to innovation
theory (musical-instrument design): I will challenge forward-looking theories of innovation that
overlook the ‘role of the past’ in ideas of progress. Regarding societal impact: I hope to contribute
to the understanding of a familiar idea in popular culture that remains unexplained. And finally, for
my study’s artistic impact: I hope the results will enable musicians and violinmakers to make more-
empowering aesthetic judgments and choices.

***