My father passed away a little while ago and my mother is cleaning out the house. Because of this, she gave me the violin I once played in high school.
When my parents bought it in 1970ish I was told that it cost more than they were planning on spending, although I don’t know the exact amount.
It has not been played (as far as I know) since 1975, and I am quite sure neither my children nor I will every play it again. Since I don’t have unlimited storage space either, would like the instrument to be used and enjoyed by someone, and could use the money, I’d like to sell it.
I took it to the one and only string dealer in Lafayette, Indiana, and he told me that it was worth more than the instruments he deals with and thus he couldn’t help me more than that. He suggested I contact a person in Chicago to get it appraised.
Here’s my general question. Let’s say it’s appraised for a fair amount of money - $10,000 or more. How does one go about selling an expensive violin? Are there auctions? Dealers? Agents?
Selling through a dealer is one way to go. They’ll probably take it on a comission basis, and these things don’t sell overnight, so you’re not going to make a quick buck. But this way, you should get the best price.
Auctions by their nature aren’t as predictable, but you know you’re going to get the money. To get a decent price, it needs to be in a specialist auction. Avoid any more general sale, otherwise somebody’s going to get a bargain. If you’re interested in this route, and are looking at a five-figure value, a quick browse turned up Christie’s as having a musical instrument sale in New York in April, so maybe go through their ‘auction estimate’ online thing, and/or contact their Chicago office.
Or you can save all this hassle, and give it to me
Sounds like you should have it valued for insurance purposes anyway until you sell it. Perhaps your insurance company could recommend someone? And if it is worth a significant amount and you sell it, are there going to be tax implications? Perhaps it might be better to hang on to it and hope for a musically-inclined nephew, niece, or grandchild to whom you could gift it?
If you’re insuring it, do it through a firm which specialises in cover for musical instruments (Allianz Cornhill is the common one in the UK, no idea about America).
My wife just bought a decent fiddle ($6G neighborhood) and dealt with several dealers in the Chicago area. I know very little of what went on other than to realize that the higher end string market is unlike any market I’ve ever dealt with!
Suffice it to say, you will want to speak with and get quotes from a number of dealers. You can find quite a few Chicago-area dealers from a web search. Some of them have websites which can give you some impression of them. I believe some might offer rough ballpark appraisals based on photos.
I saw a couple of on-line tutorials on “How to buy a violin.” I would imagine much of what they say about dealers would be relevant to someone selling one.
You’re right, Dinsdale, that it’s worth seeing more than one dealer. However, for somebody not familiar with the field, it’s hard to know what to make of them. If the provenance of an instrument is unknown, which is often the case, then they may well have vastly-differing opinions. And if you just go with the highest valuation, you might find that it simply won’t sell.
Getting an individual recommendation is the best option. Long Time First Time’s been given one contact in Chicago, and that’s the best starting point for finding a dealer (if they aren’t one themselves).
Heck, I plead even more ignorance about the fiddle market than I do music theory - and that’s saying a lot!
Just saying my wife dealt with a good number of what appeared to be the bigger names in the area, and got distinctly different opinions of them. A couple just struck her as unpleasant people she did not wish to do business with. I remember one impressed her as being more interested in bragging about themselves and dissing everyone else, than figuring out what was best for her. They had tremendously different policies concerning loaners and such. Also, folks would vary TREMENDOUSLY in their prices. One thing she learned quickly was to deal with folks who were exclusively fiddle makers and dealers, instead of any more comprehensive music stores. And a bit of research will reveal that a couple of major players have - um - left some very unhappy customers. Not saying every customer of theirs will be displeased, of course, but something you might want to consider. It is overall a small community, and for the most part they sappeared respectful of each other.
It took her maybe 5-6 dealers before she really felt she had a handle on what the market was like. After 5 or 6 she had identified a couple that she liked dealing with, who seemed to have excellent reputations, and had instruments she liked. So it was one of those things where she had to do a certain amount of comparison before she could make an intelligent decision. But then, after she hit that point, she figured she was ready to make a decision because the alternative would be to make shopping for a fiddle a neverending exercise.
Also to note - Chicago is a tad bigger than Lafayette. I know my wife dealt with guys down on Michigan Ave, and in the NW burbs. She found it hard to deal with more than 2 dealers on any day. And most of these guys had somewhat irregular hours. So a bit of planning could make LTFT’s trip to Chi quite a bit more pleasant and rewarding.
I know the type, and often that impression is the correct one!
This is an unavoidable situation, and it’s one which the OP is likely to encounter.
Trouble is, these are being priced as antiques, and at the same time not being sold to a collecting or investors’ market. So while it’s true that an instrument’s value is simply what people are prepared to pay for it, making an accurate estimate of this is bloody difficult!
[quiote]One thing she learned quickly was to deal with folks who were exclusively fiddle makers and dealers, instead of any more comprehensive music stores.
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I could not agree with you more.
Yes, if you don’t know the state of play beforehand, it does unfortunately take this much perseverence. But I’m glad it paid off in the end.
If you are willing to ship your violin out for an appraisal, the leading maker and appraiser of violins on the East Coast is Horst Kloss of Massachusetts. His website is http://www.klossviolins.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=kloss.services
Mr. Kloss is a man of sterling repute and you couldn’t be in better hands.
For a violin which is potentially of some value, my only advice would be DON’T! Even if it’s packed suitably (not an easy task for the layman), there’s still an inherent risk in handing it over to any shipping firm.
Don’t know your tax situation, but a genuine donation to a well respected school of music might be the way to go. The full value of the instrument (and they can give you one) is allowable as a tax deduction. It will be faster than a long process of looking for a buyer, and you have the additional benefit fo becoming a patron of the arts.
Horst Kloss’s workshop is in Needham, a short ride by train or car out of Boston. Just make sure your daughter calls for an appointment. He’s not always at his workshop because he teaches violin making at the University of New Hampshire
