Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius Violin

Overall Rating: 4.7/5

We hope you find this article helpful and unbiased. By using links on this page we may receive compensation at no extra cost.

Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius Violin Review

In this review, we’ll analyze a finely crafted reproduction of a well-known Stradivari from 1714 named by the famous Amedee Soil. This original instrument was later acquired by the famous violinist Yehudi Menuhin.

Made to the same level of exquisite craftsmanship as other Holstein violins, the Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius violin feels unique as soon as you start playing it.

In particular, the Holstein workshop focuses on handcrafted violins that top others with sophistication and detail.

By choosing the best woods like 100+ year-old Bosnian maple and fine quality Italian spruce dried for more than 10 years, professional luthiers create instruments that last for generations.

Since there are no compromises on the build, the Soil Stradivarius violin’s sound is uniquely lively and resonant.

Who Is This Instrument Intended For?

For centuries, many violinists have considered the Soil Stradivarius to be among the best violins ever made. And since this signature violin has a long history of exquisite performances, its replicas are ideal for professional or semi-professional solo or string quartet performances.

Indeed, it’s a violin for well-educated violinists that know how to bring out the violin’s hidden potentials.

If you’re new to the violin, this is not a product that we would recommend. Not only because of its price, but the level of performance technique you’d have to acquire.

It’s not a forgiving instrument unless you know how to properly play it, otherwise you face the steep learning curve required to bring out the instrument’s full potential and character.

Similarly, if you’re a self-taught player or a student, it would be best to consider other violins or violin outfits to help you learn the basics.

Once you master the first few levels, that’s when you can start thinking about updating your equipment and, eventually, getting a new traditional Soil Stradivarius violin.

What’s Do You Get with the Holstein Soil Stradivarius Violin?

Most importantly, you get the Holstein certificate of authenticity that guarantees that your violin is hand-made in their select VSA award-winning workshop by a master luthier.

In the event you need a suitable violin case for it, make sure to include it in your order alongside a new bow and high-quality rosin.

Holstein Soil Stradivarius Violin Features

In terms of structure, the Holstein Soil Stradivarius violin is as mentioned made of wood dried for at least ten years.

The best types of wood are fine Italian spruce for the front and aged Bosnian maple for the violin’s back and ribs.

The fingerboard and fittings are from fine Ebony, and the Despiau “Three Tree” bridge is hand-carved to perfectly fit the instrument.

Thomastik Vision strings are a standard for premium violins, but there are other options if you want a more resonant sound.

If purchasing this violin through Fiddlershop.com, who are well-known for going the extra mile in customer service, they’ll recommend the best possible accessories to uplift your playing experience.

The violin body is light and well-balanced, and the varnish is carefully added to replicate the original, creating a similar tonal clarity.

Highlights

• Made from the finest materials
• Hand-carved and fitted Despiau bridge
• Complex and lush sound
• Impeccable fitting process
• Certificate of authenticity

Getting the Most Out of the Soil Stradivarius

Apart from some minor adjustments, your Holstein Workshop Soil violin will be ready to go, fully set up by Fiddlershop’s in-house luthier staff.

As mentioned, this is not the most forgiving instrument when it comes to technique, but it does allow you to grow and improve significantly.

With a stable chin rest, you’ll have a good posture and be able to play for hours without any back pain.

Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius Violin Review: Key Points

Comparable Violins for Reference

Final Thoughts on the Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius Violin

As our Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius violin review comes to a close, we’ve hopefully demonstrated that this is a premium quality instrument that excels in any performance.

Not only does it have an exquisite sound, but it outshines other instruments with its craftsmanship and durability. It offers immense value for your money, especially when you consider all the premium features from the careful choice of tonewoods to strings and fittings.

Between the beautiful body and superior sound, it would be hard to find the instrument that gives you more in its particular category.

Of course, should you want a violin with a complete outfit, you might look for other options. Indeed, every professional or advanced learner would very much enjoy practicing on this violin for hours on end.

Check Holstein Workshop Soil Stradivarius Availability >>

Holstein Traditional Red Mendelssohn Violin

We certainly hope you find this article helpful. Just so you know, we may receive compensation if you use the links on this page. If you do, thank you so much!

Table of Contents

Holstein Traditional Red Mendelssohn Violin Review
Overview
What’s Included?
Features
Highlights
Other Violins to Consider
Final Thoughts

Holstein Traditional Red Mendelssohn Violin Review

Red Mendelssohn Overview

Holstein is a name deeply rooted in the history of violins, and there’s no better example to prove it than a Red Mendelssohn violin.

It’s a faithful copy of the violin Antonio Stradivari created in 1720 that even inspired other workshops to use red varnish on their instruments.

The modern version comes with hand-applied varnish on ten-year-old wood to produce a warm sound and pay tribute to the priceless original.

The Red Mendelssohn can create a brilliant yet powerful sound with a solid core that proves to be one of its most significant features.

Who is the Holstein Mendelssohn Violin For?

After reading this Holstein Red Mendelssohn violin review, you’ll realize that this instrument is best suited to intermediate and professional violinists.

If you’re an adult learner, this violin will give a lot of space for growth. It has a premium build quality that looks and sounds like a custom-made instrument.

However, most teachers suggest that you’ll appreciate it more when it’s an upgrade from another model. Most violin novices find it out of their price range for a first violin but as a worthwhile investment if it is an upgrade.

Students also find this instrument to be ideal for solo performances and long practice sessions. It’s a light and responsive violin that you can use to fiddle and perform classical pieces due to its versatile and powerful sound.

What’s Included?

At first glance, you’ll notice that a Holstein Red Mendelssohn violin has a wonderfully crafted boxwood neck. The mix of two pieces of pearwood in the back with ebony trim shows that no compromises were made regarding its craftsmanship.

It also features Despiau Three Tree bridge and Thomastik Vision high-quality strings.

Should you decide to purchase the Holstein Red Mendelssohn violin, you’ll have to count on additional expenses like a bow, violin case, rosin, cloth, or anything else you might need.

Luckily, if you order it from the Fiddlershop, you’ll get personalized instrument reviews and recommendations based on your preferences.

A bow is one of the most essential accessories for any violin. The best reviews go to the Holstein Pernambuco bow and Holstein Three Star bow as they’re lightweight and easy to maneuver in this category.

Some violinists like to use the Holstein 1-Star Sandalwood bow as it creates a slightly warmer undertone.

Features of Holstein Red Mendelssohn Violin

Delivered only as a 4/4 violin, it’s a full-size violin for adult players with accurate string separation and height measurements. The material used to create a Holstein Traditional Mendelssohn violin has to be 10-year dried, fine-grained maple or dry pearwood.

Luthiers carefully apply the varnish, especially on the two-piece back, to achieve the best flaming effect and red finish.

It has a well-aligned, slightly thicker bridge that comes from Despiau, and it’s a Three Tree model, famous for its first-class quality. You can choose among a variety of strings depending on the sound you want to achieve.

Most players go with Thomastik Vision to get the full and rounded tone with colorful overtones. This model comes with only one fine tuner. Should you want all four, you’ll have to make a specific order.

One of the potential downsides you might feel as soon as you start playing is a slightly thicker bridge made from boxwood. Some players find this hard to get used to and replace it with all-ebony fittings.

What draws players and enthusiasts to this particular model is the movie “The Red Violin.” The film follows the story of the real Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius violin only to underline its somewhat unusual properties.

After the film, the interest in this particular violin grew, especially when its current owner Elizabeth Pitcairn shared exciting stories about her instrument’s history.

Violin Highlights

• Historic value
• Powerful and solid sound
• Premium quality varnish
• Responsive instrument
• Lifetime structural warranty

How to Get the Most of the Mendelssohn Violin

One of the best features of the Red Mendelssohn violin is the ability to play it right out of the box. It will arrive tuned and customized to your needs and performance style.

Holstein Mendelssohn Violin Key Points

Other Violins to Consider

Final Thoughts: Is The Holstein Red Mendelssohn Violin the Best Choice for Your Next Step?

If you compare the Holstein Traditional Red Mendelssohn violin price and its quality, it becomes clear that it’s made for advanced and adult learners. With its flaming reddish-orange finish, it’s a dazzling violin even when seen from afar.

If you’re looking for a violin and nothing else, the Holstein Red Mendelssohn might be the best choice in its price range. As expected, this violin is not sound forgiving as it was made for the most skilled solo players.

But with enough practice, every learner can hone its lovely soft sound and enjoy its projection. A more budget-friendly option could be the Fiddlerman Soloist Violin Outfit since it comes in four varied sizes and is easy to play, but it all depends on what you’re looking for in an instrument.

In this Holstein Red Mendelssohn violin review, we’ve shown you everything that makes this violin the right choice for any adult learner that wants nothing but the best for themselves.

Check Today’s Holstein Red Mendelssohn Violin Price! >>

Are Stradivarius Violins Really Rare?

Have you ever asked yourself, “how many Stradivarius violins are there in the world today?” The question may come from an interest in the history of the instrument, or perhaps you simply want to start playing the violin.

Regardless, the answer may surprise you.

There are many violins out there that bear the label, “Stradivarius” but, unfortunately, these labels often mean made in the style of, rather than made by the master.

Below you’ll find all you need to know about these elusive violins.

What is a Stradivarius violin?

A true Stradivarius must be made by Antonio Stradivari himself. He was a master at making musical instruments in many different forms. While he is most famous for his violins and the impact that his design had on the future of these instruments, he also made violas, harps, and cellos.

All of the instruments that he made bear a label written in Latin. This label reads: “Antonius Stradivarius Cremonensis Faciebat Anno [date].” It indicated the maker, the place of production, and the date.

The man was a master craftsman, and his violins are acknowledged as the best ever produced. His design became a gold standard in violin-making. Unfortunately, as a result, several knock-offs were made.

These would also bear the name of the master but not with the aim of hoodwinking people buying them. These copies would be a lot less expensive to buy and shoppers of the time understood that they weren’t getting the real thing.

Unfortunately, though, a couple of hundred years later, this has led to a lot of confusion.

One thing is for certain, though, these instruments certainly do capture the imagination. Take the so-called Red Violin, for example. It was made by Stradivari in 1720 and disappeared for a couple of centuries to reemerge as a gift for a talented player today.

It’s a story that lends itself to telling, and a movie based on the legend was made. Whether or not the film is accurate is open to debate, but it is very entertaining.

How much is a Stradivarius worth?

A violin that has been established as genuine is worth millions. The highest price paid to date in this area is $16 million. So, if you do suspect that you have a real Stradivarius, be sure to have it appraised as soon as possible – we’re not talking about chump change.

What kind of wood is a Stradivarius violin made of?

The wood used is by Stradivarius was Maple infused with minerals. It is this infusion that some claim is the reason behind why we have not been able to replicate the sound produced by the genuine article even if we stick to the exact same measurements and use Maple wood as well.

How many Stradivarius violins are known to exist?

It is estimated that in total, Stradivari made around 1,100 musical instruments in total. Of these, 600 are still thought to be in existence. Of that number, only 244 violins are currently accounted for.

Part of the problem is that identifying a real model is particularly difficult because there were many copies produced over the next few centuries. These may come to light now and look very much like a genuine Stradivari.

Many instruments dating back to the 1700s and 1800s are still in circulation today. The problem is that they are the right age, look right, and may even have the name of the master in them.

The only real way to tell whether or not your instrument is the real thing is to have it certified by an expert in the field. There are subtle differences in the varnishes used, the chemical composition of the wood, etc. that are not possible to pick up with the naked eye.

What is the most expensive violin in the world?

That would be the Messiah Stradivarius. It is currently estimated to be worth $20,000,000. Why is it so valuable?  It is the only known Stradivarius that is in nearly new condition. The original varnish is still in place and in very good repair.

It is famous for being produced when the master was at the peak of his powers. It is said that this instrument has never been played. We wonder what the master might have thought of that – we find it a little sad, and we feel that he might have as well.

Would he scoff at a musical instrument being on display in a museum, never to be played? Who knows, but we think it likely.

Stradivari is acknowledged as one of the master craftsmen of his era. His work remains unparalleled even today despite all of our technology. If you do ever get the chance to play one of his instruments, make sure that you take that opportunity.

A Mysterious Instrument, and an Even Better Story

The Red Violin story is just as interesting as the film of that name. In fact, while the Red Violin movie did indeed take a lot of poetic license, there are some parallels to what happened in real life.

The Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius

The violin’s history does contain a lot of gaps. But we do know that it was created by Antonio Stradivari in 1720 in Italy. It’s there that the true story of the Red Violin becomes a little more complicated.

The relatively new violin then disappeared for two hundred years. Theories abound about what happened to it, but no one knows for sure until it turned up in Germany in the 1930s.

It was bought by one of the descendants of Felix Mendelssohn before being sold again in 1956 to an American industrialist. During a Christie’s auction in 1990, it came onto the market again, only to end up in the hands of Elizabeth Pitcairn as a gift from her grandfather.

She was only16 at the time and did not advertise the fact that she owned the violin.

It was only thirty year’s later, once she had become one of the best violinist’s in the world, that her ownership of the violin became public knowledge.

Is “The Red Violin” a True Story?

What is the story of the Red Violin? Is the movie based on fact? Most of it is speculation on the part of the writers. The writer’s introduced fictitious violin maker, but it was easy to see that this character was based on Stradivari.

Because the full history of the violin is unknown, and, at the time, it was not known that Elizabeth Pitcairn, the current owner, had bought the violin.

The movie is not considered based on fact. Still, true or not, we’re sure that any of the world’s greatest violinists would be very interested in owning such an instrument.

Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

The Red Violin Movie

For starters, The Red Violin Movie explains that the violin is red from the maker’s wife’s blood. This is not true. There are still parts of this original varnish in place, even after almost three hundred years so it would be easy to put it paid to the notion in the movie about blood being used to stain it.

The Truth in Color

It is a testament to the craftsmanship of the piece and the exquisite care that has been taken with the violin over the years, that it still carries traces of the original varnish. One thing is clear, it was a well-loved instrument and clearly valued highly by its different owners.

When newly finished, it would have been a very light wood, close to white in color. The violin would then have been left in the sun for a few days to weeks to allow it to dry completely.

This would darken it naturally. Once completely dry, the violin would be coated in a mineral-rich varnish that helps to harden the wood and to bring out the natural color of it and to stain it slightly.

The red color of the violin is due to the application of this varnish. It was one way to help differentiate instruments from different makers. The theory is that red was also a highly popular color amongst the aristocracy at the time and this could also have influenced his choice.

That the violin ended up in the hands of a prodigy living in America in the movie was a spooky coincidence in real life.

Pitcairn used the violin to practice over the course of many decades when she was at home in Pennsylvania.

She wanted to become truly accomplished before revealing the origins of the violin and so it was a long time before the world actually knew that she was using a very historically important violin.

Drawing Conclusions

Pitcairn released the facts about the violin when she played a solo in 2003 at the Lincoln Center with the New York String Orchestra. Needless to say, parallels to the movie were immediately drawn, and there was quite a buzz about her and her violin.

So, as far as sorting fact from fiction, who knows, perhaps the writers were inspired by the spirit of Stradivari himself.

The movie is based on supposition, but it is still worth a watch and is one possible way things could have gone with the instrument. It is a richly imagined piece of film history and the fact that the violin actually exists, and that the real ending was so similar to that in the movie does add an extra air of mystery.

The Stradivarius in Culture

There’s no doubt the instrument has has captured the imagination of anyone who appreciates finer things, and a good story.

What the real story is, we might never find out – but do we really want to know all about it? Isn’t the mystery part of the overall appeal of the violin? Would finding out make any difference to our enjoyment of it? Sometimes entertaining the mystery is more enjoyable than uncovering truth.

Nonetheless, if you can’t own the real thing, you can at least enjoy the thought of it – which can be just as rewarding:

Stradivarius Violin Necklace

Stradivarius Violin Pin

Stradivarius Violin Key Chain