Violins, Violas, and Cellos

By Scott Shu Kun Cao

Scott Shu-Kun Cao was born in Guangzhou, 1956 into a musical family. Growing up, he loved playing numerous instruments. Following that passion, he was admitted to the Guangzhou No. 2 Light Industry Municipal Bureau Professional Technical School where he studied violin making with Xu Fu and Liang Guo Hui.

Cao moved to the United States in 1985 and worked on restoring and repairing fine, rare instruments in California. He studied around Roland Feller, Hans Weisshaar, and Luiz Bellini.

In 1989, Cao had already established his own violin factory in Guangzhou, China, and went on to establish his own studio and violin shop in California, USA. Instruments that were personally made by Scott have taken numerous awards in international competitions, including gold, silver, and certificates of merits. Similarly, Cao's own students have won many awards in international violin making competitions.

Scott Cao is one of if not the most well-known Chinese makers. His violins are owned and played regularly by virtuosos and collected internationally. See a list of awards and those who own Scott's violins below.

Gidon Kremer World-famous Classical Violinist
Ning Feng Renowned Award-winning Classical Violinist
Adrian Anantawan Worldwide Soloist and Teacher
Iskandar Widjaja Multiple Prize Winning Violinist
Gao Can Award-winning Concert Violinist, Ambassador, and Lecturer
Xiao Liu Multi-champion Soloist; Nicknamed "Mr. Paganini"
Xie Nan Internationally Acclaimed Soloist
Yu Lina Award-winning Violinist and Influential Violin Pedagogue
Si-Qing Lu Winner of 1987 Paganini Violin Competition
Elmar Oliveira Tchaikovsky International Competition Gold Medal Violinist
Eduard Schmieder Violinist, Teacher, and Conductor
Gideon Grau Conductor of the Palo Alto Philharmonic
Nigel Kennedy Violin Soloist and Multi-genre Musician
Mark Volkert Acting Concert Master of San Fransisco Symphony
Bin Hwang Winner of the 41st Paganini Violin Competition
Byung Wookim Former Concert Master of San Jose Symphony Orchestra
Shen Ko-Shu Concert Master of Taipei Symphony Orchesstra
Nick Dargahi Cellist with the San Jose Symphony Orchestra
Tim Barnes Principal Violist With the Palm Beach Opera Orchestra

Instruments tailor made for you

For over ten years, Scott has replicated famous violin models. Due to his vast experience, Scott can individually tailor make instruments for any player's tonal requirements.

If you need a darker, more powerful tone, Scott can make a "Cannon" del Gesu Guarneri or a "Soil" Strad copy.

If you prefer a sweet, clear and open tone, Scott can make a "Kreisler" del Gesu Guarneri or a "David Oistrakh" Strad.

Scott Cao can make exact copy of almost all the greatest violins played by the most famous players. After years of experimentation, the following list of models are highly recommended by Scott:

Scott's Personal Recommendations

Guarneri del Gesu

#1: 1743 "Cannon", played by Paganini

"A powerful violin, with the G string projecting a wonderful, dark sound while the E string has a bell-like, penetrating projection. Some may find this instrument difficult to play because of its high ribs and unusually thick graduation, but those with forceful bowing arms who love to dig into the strings will fall in love with the personality of this great violin."

#2: 1740 "Ex-David", played by Heifetz

"If this celebrated violin is not the best sounding violin of all time, it has at the very least produced some of the most beautiful concert music in history. The beautiful tones range from powerful and aggressive to subtle and gentle. This is a violin that will respond to the tonal color a player is seeking. Players whose main consideration is ease of play will love this instrument."

#3: 1744 "Ole Bull" played by Ole Bull

"As one of the later instruments produced by del Gesu, one can see that the varnish is a pale dilution of his previous works, but display a wonderful sheen. Even then, the sound holes sliced out to an extreme length and the strongly formed flat archings suggests his prevalence against his aging body. The result: A quality sound that reconciliates the richness of Cremonese tradition and a dark sonority displayed by many Brescian master luthiers."

#4: 1740 "Ysaÿe", played by Isaac Stern

"This distinctive work showcases versatility and ability of a maker to alter their own work to show different characteristics. The slim pattern is given very short corners, allowing this instrument to have good playability despite its powerful, dark, and deep sound. "

#5: c.1730 "Kreisler" played by Fritz Kreisler

"This instrument redefined violin playing in the 20th century. With its distinct tone, ease of play, and design, it responds well to concert soloists and chamber musicians. Think of it as having Stradivari's characteristic sound holes and archings with the outline of a del Gesu."

#6: 1741 "Vieuxtemps"

"This instrument possesses an extraordinary tone that is somewhat darker than a typical Stradivari. The sound is rich and haunting, loved by the player Henri Vieuxtemps so much that he requested his pupil Eugene Ysaÿe to bring it to his funeral. A violin with unique size, the narrow upper bout makes it ideal for players with smaller hands."

Full list

Antonio Stradivarius

#1: 1714 "Soil" played by Itzhak Perlman

"Of all of Stradivari's violins, this is the most experienced on the concert platform. With an enormous range of tone colors and a vast, warm, cavernous sound, this is an instrument familiar to thousands of concert goers. In addition to its strikingly handsome appearance, this has to be the greatest sounding Strad of all."

#2: 1715 "Cremonese", played by Joseph Joachim

"This instrument is an inspiration to some of the greatest makers in history and continues to inspire to this day. The choice of wood, the pattern, the arching, the varnish, and the sound are a testament to Stradivari's great genius. Its sound combines the sweetness and grandeur of a Strad while having the depth of a fine del Gesu."

#3: 1713 "Gibson", played by Joshua Bell

"This violin is built masculine, yet the body is shorter than 14 inches making it an extremely easy instrument to play. The tone is outstanding, with a big, open sound, bell-like tones, and good response to the player's preferences making it a versatile concert instrument."

#4: 1693 "Ries", played by Gil Shaham

"The Ries is one of the best sounding long pattern Strads. The violin has a beautiful tiger frame 1 piece back and fine-grade 2 piece top, displaying excellent worksmanship. It has a rich, full, and powerful tone that makes it exceptionally easy to play. Even with such a narrow body and sloped shoulder, it's hard to believe how big of a tone it produces!"

#5: 1716 "Milstein" played by Nathan Milstein

"Milstein was surrounded by renowned violinists -- David Oistrakh, Eugène Ysaÿe, Pyotr Stolyarsky. After playing many different violins, he acquired the 1716 "Goldman" Stradivarius in 1945 which he renamed the "Maria Teresa" and used for the rest of his life. This violin has the best characteristics of the Stradivarius Golden Period sound -- sweet, pure, powerful with depth, and clarity. It's brilliant and everything a violinist wants."

#6: 1715 "Titian" played by Jimmy Lin

"As one of the Stradivari Golden Period violins, this one is flowing with creative output. It was one of the favorites of the great luthier Simone Fernando Sacconi. Not a surprise, with its marvelous golden ground coat and unique bear claw figuration, the violin sounds extremely sweet and pure while carrying excellent power. There is a velvet-like tonal quality with depth, altogether making this violin's sound a favorite by audiences around the world."

Full list