THE OSMIUM VIOLIN

 Every person with a new idea is a nutcase. Until the idea succeeds.
[Mark Twain]

 

PREHISTORY OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE VIOLIN IN THE WORLD SO FAR

Not only the famous name of the violin maker, but above all the special playing characteristics make a high-quality violin almost priceless. Some instruments are currently selling for a figure in the mid double-digit millions.

 So far, this violin has achieved the highest sales price:
Giuseppe Guarneri's 1741 Vieuxtemps violin was sold for an estimated $16 million.

 As is often the case with valuable instruments, it got its name from one of its previous owners:

The Belgian Henry Vieuxtemps (1820-1881) is considered one of the most important violin virtuosos of the 19th century.

 What is special about this violin is, among other things, its full and deep sound, which generally sets Guarneri's instruments apart from those of other masters such as Antonio Stradivari and Nicola Amati.

 The violin maker Bartolomeo Giuseppe Guarneri, also known as Guarneri del Gesù, lived from 1698 -1744 and comes from an Italian family of violin makers. Like Stradivarius, he made stringed instruments in Cremona, Italy.

 The current owner of the "Vieuxtemps" is unknown, but he made the violin available to American violinist Anne Akiko Meyers for life.

Vieuxtemps von Guarneri © by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vieuxtemps_Guarneri

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HOW IT ALL BEGAN

 This unique story begins with a meeting on July 17, 2020 in a small Italian restaurant in Graz with Karl Grossschädl. The first two Corona lockdowns were behind us and the time was ripe for a new, big challenge.

After a good glass of Franciacorta Riserva Extra Brut and hours of brainstorming together, we finally came up with the brilliant idea of having a violin made with osmium.

That was the birth of 

THE OSMIUM VIOLIN 1.0

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WHY A VIOLIN?

Karl Grosschädl remembered his old school friend who had already built the most expensive new violin for His Majesty, the Sultan of Oman Qabus bin Said.

Qabus bin Said © Juli 2013 by Qabus bin Said – Wikipedia

With the sale, Edgar Russ had to sign a confidentiality agreement, a so-called "non-disclosure agreement". To date, it has not been officially allowed to talk or report about the owner or the price at which the violin was sold.

Since His Majesty surprisingly succumbed to cancer on January 10, 2020, this secret of the most expensive new violin to date can now be made public. This violin is currently being made accessible to the general public in the museum in Muscat/Oman.

With this history, the excellent reference and his anticipatory reputation as a "distinguished violin maker", it was obvious that this project could only be implemented with Edgar Russ. That was the beginning of the joint project "The Osmium Violin 1.0". Further projects such as the unique "OSMIUM-ART© Quartet" are being planned and we consist of the following stringed instruments:

Further projects such as the unique "OSMIUM-ART© Quartet" are being planned and consist of the following string instruments:

The Osmium Violin 1.0 -The Osmium Violin 2.0 -The Osmium Cello 1.0 -The Osmium Viola 1.0

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OSMIUM-ART^© ART PROJEKT 2020-2023

THE OSMIUM VIOLINE

What makes this unique violin so special is already obvious:
Her extraordinary sound and currently she is the

THE WORLDS MOST

PRECIOUS NEW VIOLIN 

1st presentation folder © July 2020 by OSMIUM-ART^© 

1st modified draft © August 2020 by OSMIUM-ART^©

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PROJECT DATA 

Masterminds
DI Kurt Assam & Karl Großschädl

 Violin maker
Edgar Russ

Project start
July 2020

 Production time
32 months

 Place of manufacture
Cremona/Italy

 Model
ER-OS

String
Thomastik Infeld Dynamo

 Body length
13,98 inch

 Total length
23,43 inch

 Weight
1,30 pound

 Call price
price on demand

For any price inquiries, please contact our agency here >>>

 

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WOOD MATERIALS

Top
This front part of the soundbox, in which the soundholes are also cut, hoops on the ribs, corner, upper and lower block on the rib rim inside, bass bar and soundpost are made of Italian hazel spruce from Val dì Fiemme (South Tyrol, Bolzano North, Latemar), about 25-30 years old, bought as a whole trunk and split by the luthier himself.
Latin name: Picea Abies Pinaceae

back, ribs and neck with scroll
These are made from a whole piece of flamed Bosnian sycamore maple, purchased from a French clay wood dealer about 20 years old. It is only when processing tonewood by hand that one "grasps" the true outstanding quality. The quality of the woods used is absolutely fabulous and dreamlike.
Latin name: Acer Aceraceae

Fingerboard, upper saddle, lower saddle
Here was used best ebony from Cameroon, which is very stable due to its enormous density and hardness and is over 30 years old.
Latin name: Ebano Diospyros ebenum

Varnish
This varnish was applied by hand in seven very thin coats and is a secret recipe developed by the luthier especially for this violin, based on linseed oil amber iron oxide pigments and much more, which must be stored for at least several years. Then the varnish gets this beautiful special brown color with the slight tendency to green

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DECORATED

crystalline osmium
541 pieces of custom-made Osmium inlays were created according to an exact CAD plan, cut by wire erosion, certified with OIC and assigned an X-code for the entire instrument, each inlay set in 18 carat gold by hand and worked into the wood

high quality gemstones
298 pieces of diamonds, rubies, sapphires and tsavorites, each inlay set by hand in 18 carat gold, worked in and laid between a gold vein

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PRESENTATION 2023

WORLD PREMIERE
The Osmium Violin meets Elena Denisova

March 30th Vienna/Austria
Access for press & media from 5:00 p.m. only with official accreditation!

The Osmium Violin meets Slovenia
July

The Osmium Violin meets Italy
August

The Osmium Violin meets Cremona Mondomusica
September 22th - 24th Cremona/Italy

 

INTERNATIONAL

The Osmium Violin meets Abu Dhabi
May/June in the United Arab Emirates

DESTINATIONS IN PLANNING

The Osmium Violin meets New York

The Osmium Violin meets Melbourne

The Osmium Violin meets Tokio

The Osmium Violin meets Berlin

The Osmium Violin meets Hamburg

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  PROJECT TEAM
Kurt Assam - Edgar Russ - Karl Großschädl
(from left to right)

prjet team © by OSMIUM-ART^© 

Edgar Russ
distinguished Violinmaker
www.violincellomaker.com
Youtube Kanal von Edgar Russ

 
© by Michael Königshofer 

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THE ORIGIN STORY FAST MOTION