crime

Violin, bow worth Y16 mil stolen from Nara concert hall

19 Comments

Police said Thursday that a violin and a bow worth 16 million yen were stolen from a concert hall in Nara Prefecture on Tuesday.

The violin is owned by Kazuto Umezawa who is the former concert master of the Osaka Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra and current music director of the Nara Prefectural Cultural Hall. According to TBS, Umezawa was at the hall on Tuesday afternoon for a junior orchestra concert and left his violin in an anteroom for about 90 minutes between 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. The instrument was stolen during that time, police said, adding the room was not locked.

The violin, which was made in France in 1804, is worth 13 million yen, and the bow is valued at 3 million yen, Umezawa was quoted as saying.

© Japan Today

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

19 Comments
Login to comment

Someone thought it was throwing stick...

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Didn't lock the door, idiot.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

He probably could not imagine that someone would take his instrument, Hope it was insured.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I can't understand why a musician would use such an antique instrument, why? should be in a museum Modern instruments can sound as good As it is rare it should be difficult for the thief to sell it without being caught.

-7 ( +0 / -7 )

Woooooowww! Just WOW I call foul play. If you know how valuable that item is why would you leave it just lying around in some room. Most violinist i have seen that use expensive instruments keep them in the case and with them or in some safe room or something until performance time.

Either this is insurance fraud or someone just took it not really knowing who's it was or the true value of it. Somebody might have even shifted it just to clean the room. 90mins is a long time. If someone stole it, its the owner's fault.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

LLLowe,

why, simple because they sound the BEST, they need to used, maintained otherwise they will go to pot.

As for the fool that stole this, if they want to sell it they wont get much because any buyer of that kind of instrument wud KNOW that if they were stupid enough to buy it they cud NEVER show to anyone because these kind of instruments are VERY well known.

Lets hope the thief is stupid & is soon caught!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Ah, Japan, the safety country? Shouldn't that be, the foolhardy country? How many times do read about people leaving extremely valuable items or large amounts of cash unattended and they snatched? Wake up to yourselves people!

However, this violin will turn up soon enough. The master thief will have it on Yahoo auctions within the week.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

why, simple because they sound the BEST

Not so, apparently -

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/03/science/in-play-off-between-old-and-new-violins-stradivarius-lags.html

the fiddles made by the old masters do not in fact sound better than high-quality modern instruments, according to a blindfolded play-off

An object is worth whatever someone is prepared to pay for it, but if you have something you think is worth 16 million yen you don't leave it lying around on its own in an unlocked room for 90 minutes.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Cleo,

well the same article as had this & other tid bits:

A less respectful view of Dr. Fritz’s study is offered by the violinist Earl Carlyss, a longtime member of the Juilliard String Quartet. “It’s a totally inappropriate way of finding out the quality of these instruments,” he said. The auditions, he noted, took place in a hotel room, but violinists always need to assess how an instrument will project in a concert hall. He likened the test to trying to compare a Ford and a Ferrari in a Walmart parking lot.

I will say this these days there are many fantastic new instruments being made BUT fir many there is a certain magic that is missing & MAY only come in time.

If given the choice this weekend guitar warrior wud take a 58 Les Paul burst or a 53 Tele ANY DAY over any modern equivalent!

Ok truth if I was only able to receive new ones for free I wudnt refuse haha!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I suppose the thief must have know the value. Someone connected somehow to Umezawa that was waiting for the chance.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Insurance fraud perhaps?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Hahaha Good selling! .. If. You can...

0 ( +0 / -0 )

He would have been better off forgetting it in a taxi or on the train.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

It can be a pro theft too. Just like paintings.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

suppose the thief must have know the value. Someone connected somehow to Umezawa that was waiting for the chance

Probably not, it wud be like stealing the mona lisa & then trying to sell it for what its worth, forgetta a bouuuuut'it!

Now if it was some dolt who is going to try to sell at some no-name recycle shop he might get a pittance for it.

Either way this thief is now finding they are stuck with something thats going to be hard to sell

0 ( +0 / -0 )

A lot of posters are assuming the thief took it to sell it.

What if it was a jealous and envious musician. A "second fiddle" so to speak (excuse the pun, but really, it was crying to be used).

Imagine it. You hate this guy, you hate the fact that he has a 16 million yen violin/bow and don't think he deserves it, in fact, he doesn't deserve you, you do, you deserve! So you take it.

Musicians are mad. I love them, but they are mad mad mad.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@ GW I understand what you are saying and correct about the sound qaulity from the instrument.

However, I have had a lot of thumbs down about my last comment. Excuse my ignorance, I still don't understand why someone would use this instrument, You say it needs to be maintained, correct, but use also means wear and tear, scratches, dents etc. So, why would an instrument of such value be used in this way.

Another question, as GW says it sounds better, right I agree, but due to the acoustics in a hall, and the majority of people not tuned in to this precise sound, the majoity of sound systems people have in their homes that cannot reproduce this sound.

The question still stands, why is this not in a museum, (private or public) and being looked after as an investment??

Perhaps now it is!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@Liberty Joe Lowe

Liberty Joe Lowe MAR. 26, 2012 - 10:18AM JST I still don't understand why someone would use this instrument, You say it needs to be maintained, correct, but use also means wear and tear, scratches, dents etc.

This is a concert instrument. Probably only used for performances. Most of the practice is done on a "beater" and then you perform on the masterpiece.

Another question, as GW says it sounds better, right I agree, but due to the acoustics in a hall, and the majority of people not tuned in to this precise sound, the majoity of sound systems people have in their homes that cannot reproduce this sound.

Sound has to be able to expand in order to sound good to the ear. This is a problem with recording symphonic orchestras. You can't record just from the stage or from above the audience, you have to do both. This also helps to make it easier for a home stereo to come close to reproducing some of the sound of a symphony.

The question still stands, why is this not in a museum, (private or public) and being looked after as an investment??

To this, I can only say the following. Paintings, drawings, sculptures, dramas, should be looked at, listened to and admired, but instruments are made to be played. There are some that are too fragile to be used, but if you take proper care of an instrument, it can have an extremely long life.

I think this is a concept that is extremely difficult for non-musicians to really understand. Having played a number of antique instruments, I can tell you that the experience is very exhilarating. The closest approximation, IMO, is driving a super/antique-sports-car.

A good movie, which mostly captures this passion is "The Red Violin." Very good movie and it comes very close to showing the power that a masterpiece instrument can have on a person.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites