Casa Stradivari, the former home of the greatest violin maker of all time, Antonio Stradivari (1648-1737) is intended to serve as an international cultural centre for young musicians and reopened in autumn 2022.
The project was promoted by the Fondazione Casa Stradivari in collaboration with the Municipality of Cremona, Stradivari's birthplace. The founding members of the foundation, Fabrizio von Arx, Antonio Gambardella and Stefania Soldi explained the mission for this iconic setting on 4 February in Cremona, with mayor Gianluca Galimberti present.
The dream of reopening Casa Stradivari stems from a road trip undertaken by Fabrizio von Arx, from Geneva to Cremona, in September 2020 with his Stradivari, renamed " The Angel " (ex-Madrileno 1720). It was a thrilling 982km route, with concerts and musical encounters in different alpine villages, as recounted in the documentary “ Le voyage itinérant».
The project was presented in Stradivari's marital home on Corso Garibaldi, no. 57, Cremona. Later on in the afternoon, the first two events promoted by the Fondazione took place in the Violin Museum's Giovanni Arvedi Auditorium: the screening of the documentary, “ Le voyage itinérant ”, and shortly after, a concert by Fabrizio von Arx and Kit Armstrong.
The creation of the Fondazione Casa Stradivari aims to revive the workshop and restore a fundamental part of the national and international musical scene to the city of Cremona's cultural heritage. Casa Stradivari is the place where it all began: it was in the very rooms of Stradivari's marital home, where the Cremonese luthier lived between 1667 and 1680, that his genius emerged.
« “It was here that Stradivarius had his vision of resonance, and it was here that the Stradivarius myth began to take shape in the Master Luthier's workshop,” explains Fabrizio von Arx, the Foundation's artistic director. “It is with great emotion that we bring Casa Stradivari back to life, but it is also a great commitment and a great responsibility. This house will be rich in ideas and inspiration for young musicians. We want to offer music and cultural initiatives from the former workshop, and give new impetus to sharing the classical repertoire and Stradivarius’ name throughout the world.”. »
