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Unstill Life: The Instruments of Charlotte Symphony Orchestra

Nov 7, 2017

QC Exclusive gets up-close and personal with Charlotte Symphony's most storied instruments.

Charlotte Symphony Orchestra is made up of a lot of people. That much is clear, from the moment the musicians ceremoniously file onto the stage, formal in bearing and attire. Within minutes of this ritual, a mass of people becomes one, a kind of well-oiled machine, filling their concert hall with a presence and a magic not easily found outside of these walls. And then they go their separate ways. Each musician has his or her own story, of course, and some have even been well documented... but what of their instruments? 

The instruments reside with these particular Charlotte musicians for the time being, but most live their own lives. Close-up inspections alone are enough to write home about. They're hand-beaten brass, they're repaired wood, they're stretched sheep gut. Some have been deconstructed and reconstructed, or transformed into a totally different style of instrument. They've passed hands--even famous ones. Some of them are extraordinarily rare, and some are really, really old. Fortunately for the instruments (and for our ears), even those rare old things are still being played. Surely these things, beautiful works of art in themselves, have plenty to share. So, we asked.

By Corey Miller

Original story here.

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