{"id":1097,"date":"2026-06-16T10:32:35","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T08:32:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/?p=1097"},"modified":"2026-06-19T10:13:43","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T08:13:43","slug":"a-strad-out-of-the-blue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/2026\/06\/16\/a-strad-out-of-the-blue\/","title":{"rendered":"A Strad Out of the Blue"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The book that tells the story of the Gibson strad<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Chaudi\u00e8re<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Among the legendary creations of Antonio Stradivari, one instrument holds a story so captivating that it reads like a Hollywood thriller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his novel, A Strad out of the Blue<\/em><\/strong>, Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Chaudiere, violin maker and expert, chronicles the incredible journey of the famous Gibson Stradivarius, which now belongs to Joshua Bell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A story crafted by a violin maker<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Stolen by a bored jazz violinist, the priceless masterpiece vanished from the cultural radar for decades. The thief didn\u2019t keep it safely tucked away in a velvet case; he routinely used the stradivarius in bars and venues, eventually even using it as an ash tray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on his luthier insights, Frederic takes the reader on a journey originating in 17th century Cremona. From there, he maps out a centuries-long trajectory, the story traverses through the worlds of aristocrats, dealers, thieves, scoundrels and concert performers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This well-researched whodunit and psychological thriller will capture readers well beyond the bounds of the music-loving public.<\/p>\n\n\n

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NY Times – May 1987<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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\u00ab A spur of the moment theft which remains undiscovered for 50 years. A fascinating story, combining the esoteric world of expensive violins with the intrigue of the criminal underworld. Highly recommended!<\/em> \u00bb
Tim Ingles, former head of Sothebys’ violin dept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


\u00ab For a first try, this is a master stroke<\/em> \u00bb
France Culture<\/p>\n\n\n\n


\u00ab One of the best violin thrillers ever<\/em> \u00bb
Financial Times Deutschland<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Upcoming event<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You like the story and want to learn more? Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric will give a lecture about the theft of the Gibson Stradivari at the VSA convention in Cleveland, nov. 2026.
Unseen photos and documents will help bridging the gap between the thieves\u2019 version, court rulings and reality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read the story today<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The ebook edition of A Strad out of the Blue<\/em> is available on Amazon<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perfect for your holiday breaks, this thriller will be a good addition to your digital library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ebook<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a> to learn more about Chaudi\u00e8re instruments, and our upcoming events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The book that tells the story of the Gibson strad By Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Chaudi\u00e8re Among the legendary creations of Antonio Stradivari, one instrument holds a story so captivating that it reads like a Hollywood thriller. In his novel, A Strad out of the Blue, Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Chaudiere, violin maker and expert, chronicles the incredible journey of the… Continue reading A Strad Out of the Blue<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1111,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-non-classifiee","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1097"}],"version-history":[{"count":38,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1097\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1169,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1097\/revisions\/1169"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chaudiereviolins.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}