Alexander Goncharoff Stradivari  Concept,   2004

We offer three types of violins:

We use the word Concept to stress that these are not just look-alike 'copies' of the Old Italian instruments, but rather, the types of instruments based upon the acoustic principles of the great masters. Each concept differs significantly from the others resulting in a different type of tone, response, and other playable characteristics, which can be especially beneficial for certain type of music or style of playing.

The concepts themselves are not fixed absolutes. It is not the master's intention to reproduce a 'pure' Amati, or Stradivari sound, especially considering the fact that it was changing continuously over the centuries, as the instruments aged. The traditional principles are used as a base to create new variations of tone. Thus, violins based on one concept may have some characteristics of other concept(s) (for example, Amati concept could have some Strad's sound characteristics, the Strad concept could have some Guarneri sound characteristics). So, even though there are only three conceptual sources, the tone combinations are limitless.

Choosing the right concept:
When considering the right type of instrument, don't just pick the 'name' of a concept because you believe this violin maker to be superior to the others. The fact of the matter is - each concept is unsurpassed by the other two in certain unique qualities. Another obvious fact is - you are not choosing between, say, Amati and Guarneri, you are choosing one of the concepts - a free expression of the form made by another master. These instruments possess their own qualities in addition to the ones you'd expect to find in a professional violin. What you need to decide is - what type of instrument is the most compatible with your style of playing, and your specialty as a chamber music performer, symphony orchestra player, or a soloist. Each of the three types possesses unique characteristics that the other two lack. This was true for the original violins, and this is still true for the instruments you find here. Note that both the Stradivari and Guarneri concepts are mostly 'solo' instruments, and are specifically designed to 'break away' from the orchestra (with the exception of smaller Stradivari models). One would be quite uncomfortable with, say, a Guarneri concept instrument playing in a chamber orchestra, sticking out from the group like a sore thumb, unless you are a concertmaster who needs this extra power at hand and, as a consequence, has to play ‘mezzo piano’ most of the time.