The world鈥檚 most famous violin is coming to town this weekend, and all Columbus gets to see and hear it.
That violin is the priceless 18th-century Guarnerius del Ges霉 violin nicknamed 鈥淚l Cannone鈥� 鈥� The Canon 鈥� by its former owner, the legendary violin virtuoso Niccol貌 Paganini. He called the violin his 鈥渃annon鈥� because of its larger-than-life sound, in particular its booming lower range.
Il Cannone will be displayed in the from May 11 through 19. Columbus Symphony Orchestra concertmaster Joanna Frankel will on the instrument as soloist with the orchestra, Wednesday, May 15 at 8 p.m. in the Ohio Theatre, with music director Rossen Milanov conducting.
The concert鈥檚 program will feature violin showpieces by Saint-Sa毛ns, Massenet, Tchaikovsky and Paganini selected to spotlight Il Cannone鈥檚 expressive and sonic range.
Performing on Il Cannone is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that has left Frankel all but speechless.
鈥淚t鈥檚 absolutely stunning,鈥� Frankel said in a recent interview. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think that I鈥檓 still really comprehending it fully. When it was disclosed to me that I would be playing it and that I would be the only person playing it, it was breathtaking. I didn鈥檛 really know how to feel. I feel mostly very humbled, and very excited.鈥�
Frankel will have only one hour to practice with Il Cannone before her May 15 performance on the instrument.
She took some time recently to speak with me about what she鈥檚 doing differently to prepare for her performance on this famous yet unfamiliar instrument, and what we might expect to hear when Il Cannone starts singing from the Ohio Theatre stage. Listen to our conversation above.
Il Cannone鈥檚 upcoming visit to Columbus marks the violin鈥檚 first trip to the United States since 2003. The instrument belongs to the city of Genoa, Italy, Paganini鈥檚 birthplace, to which Paganini bequeathed the violin.
Genoa is one of Columbus鈥� sister cities, and Il Cannone鈥檚 Columbus visit has been arranged by , in partnership with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and the .
Two copies of Il Cannone exist. The earlier copy was made in the 19th century by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume, the luthier who adjusted and maintained the instrument during Paganini鈥檚 lifetime.
The creation of the more recent copy of Il Cannone by Ohio violinmaker for the Romanian violinist Razvan Stoica was chronicled in the award-winning documentary , which will be screened Tuesday, May 14 at 7 p.m. at the Gateway Film Center. A Q&A with Houck and Strad Style writer, director and cinematographer Stefan Avalos will take place in conjunction with the screening.
