As prices for great Old Master string instruments escalate in the collectables market, only banks and investors can afford to own them. They're increasingly out of reach of even the best musicians. It s increasingly rare for Old Master paintings to be owned by individuals. Most Old Masters are now owned by museums and institutions which will never sell them.
Top soloists consider playing one essential to their careers.
Top orchestras and chamber ensembles believe that the quality of their string instruments is indispensable to defining their sound. But there are only about 700 surviving Stradivari, and only about 100 del Gesu Guarneris maybe only a couple thousand Old Master violins in all. Certainly there are many more good players now than there ever have been, and that fact alone would account for a steady inflation of prices. Violinists must compete with collectors who care more about the violins appreciating value than about their incomparable tonal qualities. The collectability of violins as art has meant that prices for the best instruments have always been above the reach of the average player.