NMM Discovery Saturday: Ex-STRAD-vaganza!

September Discovery Saturday will be an Ex-STRAD-vaganza!
 

 

Spotlight Talks with NMM Curator Arian Sheets will be held at 11:00 a.m. and noon. Sheets will present the original ‘Harrison’ Stradivari alongside the ‘Harrison 2.0’ replica, sharing insights into the process and significance of creating a copy of one of the museum’s most treasured instruments. At 1:30 p.m., NMM Educator Anna Van Kley will lead a “Strings to Strings” tour through the permanent exhibits.

 

Violins by Antonio Stradivari of Cremona, Italy, are among the most revered instruments in the world—not only for their sound, but also for their history. Played by great musicians, owned by royalty, and built with remarkable innovation, they remain legendary. Stradivari’s 1693 ‘Harrison’ violin (NMM03598), part of the NMM’s collection, is a rare “Long Pattern” design from a period when the maker was reimagining the violin’s form and tone.

 

For centuries, violin makers have studied instruments like the ‘Harrison’ as models for their own work. The practice of making a new violin look centuries old—known as antiquing—dates back to the 1700s. Today’s luthiers reproduce varnish, wear, and construction so precisely that even experts can find it difficult to distinguish an original from a copy. When a maker creates a replica directly from the original instrument, it is called a bench copy.

 

The NMM’s ‘Harrison’ bench copy was created over the past two years by leading international luthiers participating in the prestigious Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Each summer, this intensive two-week program brings together master makers from around the world to study, collaborate, and build. A historic instrument is chosen as the focus of their work, and the ‘Harrison’ Stradivari project provided an extraordinary opportunity to explore 17th-century Cremonese techniques through direct observation, shared expertise, and craftsmanship.

 

Visitors will have the chance to compare the Stradivari ‘Harrison’ with its 2025 bench copy on Discovery Saturday—will you be able to tell which is which?

 

Later this year, both the original ‘Harrison’ Stradivari and the ‘Harrison 2.0’ will be featured, along with another NMM masterpiece, the 1668 Jacob Stainer violin, in a once-in-a-generation concert on Wednesday, December 3, at Aalfs Auditorium in Vermillion. Internationally acclaimed violinist Rachel Barton Pine will perform these instruments publicly for the first time in decades. More information and tickets are available at nmmusd.org/events.

 

All Discovery Saturday activities are included with museum admission. Discovery Saturdays are held the first Saturday of each month, offering unique programs and guided experiences throughout the museum.

 

The National Music Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. For more information, visit www.nmmusd.org.