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Overview

Internationally acclaimed violinist Rachel Barton Pine will perform on two of the National Music Museum’s (NMM) treasured historic violins in concert as part of a week-long residency with the University of South Dakota Music Department.

Pine’s solo performance will take place Wednesday, December 3, at 7:00 p.m. at Aalfs Auditorium, on the campus of the University of South Dakota.

The program will feature music by Johann Sebastian Bach performed on a violin made by Jacob Stainer (1668), alongside demonstrations on the NMM’s 1693 ‘Harrison’ Stradivari violin and its recently completed replica, the ‘Harrison’ Strad 2.0.

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to hear history brought to life, as centuries-old craftsmanship meets world-class artistry.

Project Background

During a recent visit to the NMM while performing with the South Dakota Symphony, Rachel Barton Pine encountered the museum’s rare violins and was especially captivated by the 1668 Jacob Stainer violin.

Jacob Stainer (c. 1619–1683), the most important violin maker north of the Alps in the 17th century, was admired for the silvery sweetness of his instruments. The Stainer violin at the NMM is preserved in exceptionally fine condition, with its original neck, interior components, fingerboard, and tailpiece. Dendrochronology performed on the instrument in 2003 revealed tree rings dating from 1444 to 1584.

Bach himself owned a Stainer, making it historically authentic for Pine to perform a recital of music by Johann Sebastian Bach on this instrument. The NMM’s Stainer violin has not been heard publicly since it arrived at the museum in 1989, making this a truly exceptional concert.

The evening will also highlight the NMM’s 1693 ‘Harrison’ Stradivari violin, considered one of the finest surviving examples of Stradivari’s “long pattern.” The NMM’s Harrison is among only a handful of Strads that still retain their original neck. This violin has not been played in concert since Eugene Fodor’s recital in 2002 and will be returned to permanent exhibit at the NMM following this recital.

In contrast, audiences will also hear the premiere of the 2025 ‘Harrison’ Strad 2.0—a faithful replica of the Harrison, created by the Oberlin School of Violin Making (Ohio) and the Chicago School of Violin Making (Illinois). After two years of painstaking craftsmanship, the replica will be heard publicly for the very first time alongside its 17th-century counterpart, allowing listeners the rare chance to compare the original Strad with its modern re-creation.

Both Strads – the original and the replica – will remain on exhibit at the National Music Museum, ready for you to examine both instruments.

Rachel Barton Pine

“Striking and charismatic… she demonstrated a bravura technique and soulful musicianship.”– The New York Times

“Pine displays a power and confidence that puts her in the top echelon.”– The Washington Post

The acclaimed American concert violinist Rachel Barton Pine thrills international audiences with her dazzling technique, lustrous tone, and emotional honesty. With an infectious joy in music-making and a passion for connecting historical research to performance, Pine transforms audiences’ experiences of classical music. She is a leading interpreter of the great classical masterworks as well as groundbreaking contemporary music.

Pine performs with the world’s foremost orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Camerata Salzburg, and the Chicago, Vienna, and Detroit symphony orchestras. She has worked with renowned conductors that include Teddy Abrams, Marin Alsop, Daniel Barenboim, Semyon Bychkov, Neeme Järvi, Christoph Eschenbach, Erich Leinsdorf, Nicholas McGegan, Zubin Mehta, Tito Muñoz, and John Nelson. As a chamber musician, Pine has performed with Jonathan Gilad, Clive Greensmith, Paul Neubauer, Jory Vinikour, William Warfield, Orion Weiss, and the Pacifica and Parker quartets.

Highlights of Pine’s 2024–25 season include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra premiere of José White’s Violin Concerto in F-sharp Minor; a tour of Israel with the Tel Aviv Soloists Ensemble; Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra; the world premiere of Haralabos [Harry] Stafylakis’ Violin Concerto with the Winnipeg Symphony; Billy Childs’ Violin Concerto No. 2 with the Rhode Island Philharmonic; and the French premiere of Earl Maneein’s violin concerto Dependent Arising with the Orchestre National de Bretagne. Over the season, Pine will also perform concertos by Brahms and Sibelius, in addition to other notable works by Wynton Marsalis, Jessie Montgomery, and Mark O’Connor, among other living composers.

She performs on the “ex-Bazzini, ex-Soldat” Joseph Guarnerius “del Gesù” (Cremona 1742), on lifetime loan from her anonymous patron.

About the Instruments

Stainer Violin – 1668

Jacob Stainer (c. 1619–1683), Absam bei Innsbruck, Austria

Before Stradivari, there was Stainer. Considered the greatest violin maker of the 17th century outside of Italy, Stainer’s instruments were favored across Europe for their pure, silvery tone.

The NMM’s 1668 Stainer violin is exceptionally well-preserved, retaining its original neck, fingerboard, tailpiece, and interior components—rare survivals from its era. Highly arched and elegantly proportioned, it exemplifies the Stainer model that was widely imitated in his lifetime. Historical evidence suggests this instrument was first housed in a convent, sheltered for more than 250 years.

This violin, along with a rare Stainer tenor viola, ranks among the NMM’s crown jewels.

NMM 04548

Board of Trustees, in memory of Arne B. and Jeanne F. Larson, 1988

Stradivari “Harrison” Violin – 1693

Antonio Stradivari (1644–1737), Cremona, Italy

Stradivari’s violins are universally regarded as the pinnacle of violin making, and the ‘Harrison’ violin is among the most outstanding examples. One of only six Stradivari violins to survive with its original neck and pegbox, the Harrison is celebrated for its elegant long-pattern design, introduced by Stradivari in the 1690s.

Named for English lawyer and musician Richard Harrison, who owned it in the late 19th century, the violin has passed through the hands of many distinguished owners, including the virtuoso Kyung-Wha Chung. It was gifted to the NMM in 1985 by Bob Rawlins in honor of his wife, Marge.

The Harrison is often described as “the greatest concert violin built before 1700.”

NMM03598

Rawlins Fund, 1985