The Elbow Music social media campaign puts modern instruments in the spotlight My recent article about Frank Peter Zimmermann’s dilemma...

The great British writer Thomas Hardy was born on 2 June, 1840. His father was a fiddler in the village band and he himself also played....

How much can an adult amateur expect to develop as a musician in a short space of time? Quite a lot, it turns out, given the right...

The great violinist, former leader of the Lindsay Quartet, and one of the unique and most charismatic voices in chamber music, died on...

Jury places audience favourite in fifth place at Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition in Belgium Music competitions get a lot of bad press...

Observing masterclasses can be a brilliant way to learn and find inspiration, and yet students rarely turn up to watch. They may be too...

The former Vermeer Quartet leader and Curtis Institute professor discusses the negative sides of Ilona Fehér's 'tough love' school of...

In honour of Pinchas Zukerman's performance tonight of the Elgar Violin Concerto with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at London's...

Violinist Benjamin Baker has just been selected for the final rounds of the Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition. Such contests are...

As two top violinists are forced to give back the classic instruments they've been borrowing, should more performers consider modern...

The Russian violinist is forthright about Baroque rules, the narrow-mindedness of only listening to classical music, and allowing...

Today's classical music business may be competitive and tough, but there are also more opportunities than ever. Success lies in knowing...

For violinists, playing the mandolin offers instant rewards and benefits, but some challenges, too. I asked for advice from the best in...

Charlie Chaplin was one of the most expressive and popular communicators ever. What can string players learn from his art? Light and...

I recently interviewed Eugene Drucker about his Southbank Centre concert with the Emerson Quartet on Sunday, 16 November, which you can...

The legendary violinist Kyung Wha Chung makes her much-awaited London comeback this December, after more than a decade away. On a recent...

While I’ve been researching my article on violinists who’ve crossed musical borderlines, for Sinfini Music, I found myself debating with...

There are many different tribes of violin makers, in my experience. Conservatives, Futurists, Archivists, Geometrists, Philosophers,...

Musical timing and closure, hearing and thinking for ourselves – just some of the things that teaching often fails to help us with,...

Two weeks at a violin practice retreat were life-changing for me, but left me wondering why there aren't enough places for amateur...