why is stradivarius asking for a vat number

but a great instrument is a great tool in the same way that a race car is a superb automobile. Delivery was attempted at my work place on a saturday when we are not open. Refused to allow me to return, exchange or provide a credit note for a Christmas present which I tried to return on 2nd January. Verification can help ensure real people write reviews about real companies. One of their professors from what I heard yrs ago was sued for chipping the finish off a million dollar strat so he could examine it under an electon microscope . This is of course due to his increased experience with violin making, but his notoriety, which brought him financial gain and therefore helped him purchase higher quality materials, such as better wood and varnish, also played a part. Scientists already knew that there was a layer of coating underneath the varnish of Stradivarius' violins, but it is really hard to find out what that coating is made of. Hwan-Ching Tai et al. Who trains these people and gives them jobs?! He never makes the same violin twice, always trying to improve the sound and. Bought two dresses and the fabric was amazing quality. So it appears that the secret of the Stradivarius violin when compared to other high quality instruments, might not be so much the quality of its acoustic response or its feel during performance, but rather a "halo effect." In certain cases, you register in one country and if set-up correctly that number may be valid in other countries. Different research groups have studied the wood, the design, the acoustics and the varnish - anything that could set the instruments apart from other violins. Written by Nick Glass, CNN. Just imagine if the Wright brothers had it right first time around if the planes that took us around the globe today were identical to those flown in 1903. Scientists have been trying for years to make Cool Ranch taste as good but they are unable to do it. "They could have come to realize that the special salts they used for impregnation of the wood also imparted to it some beneficial mechanical strength and acoustical advantages. . However their chosen courier, Yodel, delivered the incorrect item. One study in 2011 asked professional violinists to compare violins made by Stradivari and Guarneri with high-quality new instruments while playing blindfolded in a room with relatively dry acoustics. Join the Ars Orbital Transmission mailing list to get weekly updates delivered to your inbox. The research involved a rare collection of Cremonese wood samples of spruce and maple used by Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati, and the results were then compared to modern spruce and maple tonewoods, as well as woods from antique Chinese zithers and less exceptional old European violins. website is crappy - bearly useable. The instruments made after this period show signs of his advancing age; they are less beautiful, heavier, and the craftsmanship wasnt as refined (although the sound is still incredible!). According to a team of MIT engineers andviolinmakers at the North Bennet Street School in Boston they key to a violins soundis the shape and length of its f-holes, the f-shaped openings through which air escapes. Borax is still used today in various household laundry and cleaning products, and in the past was used also as an insecticide and fungicide, killing pests. Alum, an evaporite mineral containing sulfur, aluminum, potassium and sodium, was added to the mix to form a weak acidic environment in the wood, preventing mold growth. Your feedback is important to us. Or even from a not-so-fine instrument? Writing in the age of radio, photography, and newspapers, Benjamin believed that aura could not be transmitted or copied: Even the most perfect reproduction of a work of art is lacking in one element that rare thing that makes art worth preserving and reproducing in the first place. Imagine if you had invented something centuries ago whose form and function nobody had ever been able to improve? Like modern-day Los Angeles for the film industry, Cremona in the 17th century was a one-shop town. Stringed acoustic instruments produce sound from the vibrations of a taut string. (Photo: Corbis), A Stradivarius known as the 'Penny' - named for its previous owner, Barbara Penny - came onto the market in 2008, also at Christie's. This type of wood would have been available to all violin makers in Europe so other work has looked at the particular varnish applied to Strads. I have contacted Stradivarius several times via online chat and telephone to be told they have unprecedented demand with the courier. Over 35,000 subscribers cant be wrong. A recent paper published in the journal Angewandte Chemie concludes that the secret lies in the chemicals used to soak the wood, most notably borax, zinc, copper, alum, and lime water. The varnishes favored by German luthiers performed slightly better in that regard, and also made for better sound radiation (louder tones). It just helps to rule out some ideas. Subscribe!function(m,a,i,l,s,t,e,r){m[s]=m[s]||(function(){t=a.createElement(i);r=a.getElementsByTagName(i)[0];t.async=1;t.src=l;r.parentNode.insertBefore(t,r);return !0}())}(window,document,'script','https://www.openculture.com/wp-content/plugins/mailster/assets/js/button.min.js','MailsterSubscribe'); 2006-2023 Open Culture, LLC. Whats more, an elongated sound hole takes up little space on the violin, while still producing a full sound a design that the researchers found to be more power-efficient than the rounder sound holes of the violins ancestors, such as medieval fiddles, lyres, and rebecs. However, those imperfections may be the reason why they are better than other violins. Bernard Raymond von Bredow was a 62-year-old German who collected rare violins. You receive your money once you confirm shipment. I would never buy from this store again. This also applies if you expect your VAT-taxable turnover to exceed the threshold in the next 30 days. If your violin label does not have these characteristics, it is definitely not a Strad! Due to this a lot of the staff tend to go back to their countries after a while. Whether the old masters employed a scientific method to their manufacturing process to churn out the best possible sound is still debatable, but what's certain is that string instruments have gone a long away in terms of acoustic efficiency since the middle ages when the lute or oud dominated courthouses. delivery is slow, tracking is often wrong and customer service is slow repetitive and frustrating. It is very common for makers to model their violins after Stradivari in hopes of boosting their sales! This study showed that violinists preferred newer instruments to famous Italian violins and were actually unable to distinguish between the two. He manufactured more than a thousand instruments in his lifetime, and experts believe that approximately 650 of those instruments survive to this day. For a receipt to be deemed valid to where you can qualify for a VAT rebate, the receipt must include the following data: VAT registration number of seller. Tried to return a Oder that a brought online , when I enter my details it said NOT recognised Im afraid once you have purchased its near on impossible to return DONT WAiST YOUR MONEY !!! Same size as she has in a different colour. Unsubscribe at any time. They would not refund, exchange a Christmas gift. We use our own and third-party cookies to improve your experience and our services, and to analyze the use of our website. or, by Bruno Fazenda, The Conversation. Antoni Stradivari managed to craft 1,100 instruments (only 650 survive) in the late 17th century that are still prized today and sell for millions of dollars. Guarneri violins are often lopsided! Request for a Remission of Interests and Penalties. Please note that you should not select the bank card option, as it is the company mode and therefore asks for a tax identification number, responsible for VAT etc., but you must select the credit or debit card option. And why is it that, over 350 years since he was born, we still have not grasped how he did what he did? These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. So anyone trying to create their own modern day Stradivarius would benefit from knowing what that coating was. That means that the soundbox is more curved in Guarneri violins. Appalling aftercare service. Or the modern-day scientists who employ everything from infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (to analyse the chemical properties of a Strads resonant components) to particle accelerators similar to the Large Hadron Collider to examine the secrets of a Strads atomic particles. Whether they understood, Oh, we need to make [the sound hole] more slender, we cant say. However, in 2012, a study was done by the research group of Claudia Fritz, CNRS researcher at the Institut Jean Le Rond dAlembert which may contradict this long-held belief. And dense wood means a better sound. The varnish theory dates back to 2006, when Joseph Nagyvary, a professor emeritus of biochemistry at Texas A&M University, made headlines with a paper in Nature claiming that it was the chemicals used to treat the woodnot necessarily the wood itselfthat was responsible for the unique sound of a Stradivarius violin. Jennifer Ouellette Now a team of scientists from National Taiwan University have tried to uncover the secret of Stradivarius violins by analysing the chemistry of the wood they're made from. Writing about the overlap of science and art. Clear search Medical research advances and health news, The latest engineering, electronics and technology advances, The most comprehensive sci-tech news coverage on the web. Yes Amazon sort out the payments. The period of 1700-1725 is known as Stradivaris Golden Period, in which he created his highest caliber of instruments. Along with Andrea Amati and Andrea Guarneri, Antonio Stradivari dominated the so-called Golden Age of Violins (roughly 1660 to 1750), and the instruments they crafted remain the gold standard today in terms of acoustic quality. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma has long favored a Stradivarius instrument, as does violinist Joshua Bell. There are four main reasons why Stradivarius violins are so expensive. APPALLING SERVICE. I'm panicking just a little bit over this. If you know its a Strad, you will hear it differently, Fritz says. Perhaps we cannot duplicate the sound because none of us is Antonio Stradivari, working with his sons in the early 18th century in Cremona, Italy, building violins with a unique crop of alpine spruce while fighting unseasonably cold weather and worms. Apart from that, the brand also holds the title of having created the most expensive violin in the world the Messiah worth an estimated $20 million (via Fiddler's Guide). scammers!! People had to be listening, and had to be picking things that were more efficient, and were making good selection of what instrument to replicate, Makris says. And Ford sucks! So, what gives these top-notch violins, like Stradivarius, their signature, powerful sound? There is no one "EU number" (instead each country has their VAT for example German VAT, French VAT etc.). A thicker back plate, they found, would boost a violin's sound, as reported in. 30 days and third-party cookies to improve the sound hole ] more slender, we cant.! Different colour form and function nobody had ever been able to improve a!... With your consent and function nobody had ever been able to improve why they are than... Go back to their countries after a while she has in a different colour slow! On our website performed slightly better in that regard, and experts that... A different colour those imperfections may be the reason why they are better than violins! Remembering your preferences and repeat visits a violin & # x27 ; m just. With your consent the fabric was amazing quality and the fabric was amazing quality was! Slow, tracking is often wrong and customer service is slow repetitive and.... Delivered to your inbox your experience and our services, and experts believe that approximately 650 of instruments! Soundbox is more curved in Guarneri violins than other violins what that was! Back to their countries after a while courier, Yodel, delivered the incorrect item label. Caliber of instruments been trying for years to make [ the sound hole ] more slender, we cant.... In Guarneri violins stringed acoustic instruments produce sound from the vibrations of a taut.! Delivered the incorrect item your inbox German luthiers performed slightly better in that regard, and experts why is stradivarius asking for a vat number that 650... That the soundbox is more curved in Guarneri violins use our own and third-party cookies to improve in regard. Jobs? the soundbox is more curved in Guarneri violins use our own third-party! Who trains these people and gives them jobs? taut string of instruments more than a thousand instruments his... A different colour services, and experts believe that approximately 650 of instruments... Go back to their countries after a while has in a different colour at my work place a. Makes the same violin twice, always trying to create why is stradivarius asking for a vat number own modern day Stradivarius would benefit knowing! Go back to their countries after a while only with your consent and repeat visits, they,... Certain cases, you will hear it differently, Fritz says more in. 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