Blood drive Friday

Once belonging to Anna Sinton Taft, the “Taft” Stradivarius Violin made a special appearance Tuesday, Nov. 23, at the Taft Museum of Art. The rare instrument is currently on loan to Canadian violinist Chris Whitley from the Canada Council for the Arts as part of the Musical Instrument Bank’s national competition.

Whitley and the Thalea String Quartet (including musicians Kumiko Sakamoto, violin; Lauren Spaulding, viola; and Cincinnati-native Titilayo “Titi” Ayangade, cello) were in town for the week to perform with Chamber Music Cincinnati at Memorial Hall. The special violin, initially only on loan through 2021 to Whitley, was extended through August 2022 due to the pandemic. This was a silver lining for the quartet who could now reunite the special instrument with its heritage.

“I thought it would be really wonderful to bring the violin ‘home,’ if only for a short while,” said Whitley. “It has been at least 20 years since the instrument has been in Cincinnati and I wanted to make the most of this opportunity.”

While in the midst of its $12.7 million Bicentennial Infrastructure Project to preserve and protect the Taft historic house, the museum’s iconic Music Room was inaccessible for a performance. However, the violin still got the chance to reunite with many of the artworks that would have graced the halls of the residence during its time with the Tafts. During a private lunch-hour concert, the quartet played a selection of songs from their repertoire amongst 80 highlights from the Taft’s collection in the special exhibition, In a New Light: Treasures from the Taft, located in the Fifth Third Gallery. CONTRIBUTED

Help replenish the community blood supply after the long Thanksgiving weekend by supporting the Oxford Presbyterian Church