Prized Stradivarius returns to the stage in New York City
NEW YORK -- The three daughters of renowned violinist Roman Totenberg have heard the sound of their late father’s Stradivarius for the first time nearly four decades after it was stolen.
The prized 18th century instrument came back to life on Monday night at a private Manhattan concert, tucked under the chin of Totenberg student Mira Wang.
The violin disappeared in 1980 after a Totenberg performance in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The thief was an aspiring violinist who kept the Stradivarius hidden, patching some spots with glue. After his death, his ex-wife alerted authorities.
The instrument was returned to the family in 2015 by Preet Bharara, then the U.S. attorney in Manhattan.
Wang immigrated from China to study with Totenberg.
A child prodigy in his native Poland, Totenberg bought the Stradivarius in 1943 for $15,000 -- more than $200,000 in today’s dollars -- and it was the only instrument he performed with until it was stolen. He kept performing into his 90s and taught at Boston University until he died in 2012 at age 101.
A rare multi-million dollar Stradivarius stolen from a concertmaster was recovered in Milwaukee in 2014.