Rare Violins

What Rare Violins does

Rare Violins of New York is a privately held, founder-owned violin dealership and restoration firm established in 2002 by Bruno Price and Ziv Arazi, operating from Carnegie Hall Tower in Midtown Manhattan with a team of approximately ten professionals. The firm acquires, sells, brokers, and lends rare stringed instruments — primarily violins, violas, cellos, and bows from the 17th through 19th centuries by makers including Antonio Stradivari and Giuseppe Guarneri del Gesù — to elite professional musicians, high-net-worth collectors, and foundations. Its product portfolio spans a curated Currently Available inventory, a Notable Sales track record of multi-million-dollar transactions, an in-house restoration workshop led by a Head of Workshop and dedicated restorers (including a bow restorer), written insurance appraisal services, and proprietary investment-advisory services underpinned by the Violin Market Index.

The firm's go-to-market is relationship-driven and consultative: transactions are conducted by appointment only at its high-security New York office, pricing is bespoke, and distribution is exclusively direct. Beyond one-time sales, the In Consortium program functions as a two-sided platform that connects instrument-owning benefactors with emerging musicians through loan arrangements, providing insurance, maintenance, and artist matching — a recurring-revenue and pipeline-building layer on top of the core dealership. Monetization combines event-driven transaction commissions, professional services fees for restoration and appraisal, and platform/management fees from the consortium program. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed.

Competitive positioning rests on authenticated provenance, the founders' backgrounds as former professional musicians, a specialist workshop, and accumulated market intelligence embodied in the Violin Market Index. The customer base is concentrated among a small number of internationally renowned soloists, collectors, and philanthropic patrons, giving the firm an episodic, high-value revenue profile rather than a volume business. The firm operates without disclosed institutional investment or parent-company affiliation, retaining full founder ownership and control.

Name

Rare Violins

Legal name

Rare Violins of New York

Website

https://rareviolins.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Rare Violins of New York is a boutique, founder-owned dealer and restorer of rare historic stringed instruments (Stradivari, Guarneri del Gesù, and other 17th-19th century makers), serving elite professional musicians, collectors, and foundations through sales, restoration, appraisal, and the In Consortium loan platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fine Stringed Instrument Dealership

NAICS

Musical Instrument and Supplies Retailers (459140), Musical Instrument Manufacturing (339992)

SIC

Musical Instruments (3931)

akta.pro primary industry

Musical Instrument Retail (Guitars, Keyboards, Drums, Band/Orchestra) (CRALAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Instrument Repair, Maintenance & Luthier Services (CRALAEAF), Used & Vintage Musical Instruments Retail (CRALAEAH), Instrument Parts, Repair & Maintenance (Luthier, Tech Services, Spares) (MPAIAJAG)

Keywords

• Rare stringed instruments
• Violin dealership
• Instrument restoration
• Violin appraisal services
• Fine instrument brokerage

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Instrument Sales: Revenue generated from buying and selling rare violins, violas, cellos, and bows. Instruments include authenticated Stradivari, Guarneri del Gesù, and other historically significant makers from the 17th-19th centuries.
2. Restoration and Tonal Adjustments: Workshop services providing restoration and tonal adjustments for stringed instruments, maintaining the sound quality and condition of fine instruments.
3. Appraisal Services: Written appraisals for insurance purposes, including detailed descriptions and valuations informed by current market conditions.
4. In Consortium Program: Platform connecting instrument owners (benefactors) with deserving musicians through loan arrangements. Generates value through reduced ownership costs for benefactors and provides artists access to exceptional instruments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Rare Violins of New York acquires, authenticates, and sells rare violins, violas, cellos, and bows from 17th-19th century masters including Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesù, working directly with professional musicians and high-net-worth collectors. The firm operates an in-house restoration and tonal adjustment workshop staffed by trained restorers and a dedicated bow restorer, and provides written appraisals for insurance purposes. It also runs the In Consortium program, a platform connecting instrument benefactors with deserving musicians through loan arrangements supported by insurance, maintenance, and artist matching.

Product overview

Rare Violins of New York is a leading international violin firm and dealership established in 2002 by Bruno Price and Ziv Arazi, located at Carnegie Hall Tower in New York. The company specializes in the acquisition, sale, and restoration of rare stringed instruments—primarily violins, violas, and cellos from the 17th and 18th centuries, including instruments by Antonio Stradivari, Giuseppe Guarneri del Gesù, and other master makers. The product portfolio comprises the Notable Sales Program (selling exceptional instruments to collectors and musicians), the Currently Available collection (actively marketed instruments), Restoration & Workshop Services (conservation and tonal adjustments), Appraisal Services (for insurance), Investment Services using the Violin Market Index, and the In Consortium Program (connecting instrument owners with deserving musicians through loan arrangements). The firm also deals in rare bows by makers such as Dominique Peccatte and François X. Tourte.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Currently Available Instruments Curated actively marketed collection of violins, violas, cellos, and bows currently for sale, including works by makers such as G.B. Guadagnini, Tommaso Balestrieri, G.B. Ceruti, Giovanni Paolo Maggini, J.B. Vuillaume, David Tecchler, Giovanni Grancino, and bow makers Dominique Peccatte, Nicolas Maline, François Peccatte, Eugène Sartory, and François X. Tourte.
• Restoration & Workshop Services Expert restoration and tonal adjustment services for stringed instruments, performed in-house in the firm's workshop by trained professionals including Head of Workshop Tatsuo Imaishi and restorers Sibai Huang, Nicholas Gerald, Veronica Vaillancourt, Hannah Landergan, and bow restorer Chase Maggiano, following the principle of thoughtful conservation.
• Appraisal Services Written appraisals for insurance purposes, including detailed descriptions of instruments or bows with valuations informed by current market conditions.
• Investment Services & Violin Market Index Comprehensive support for instrument investment including market research using the firm's proprietary Violin Market Index, acquisition guidance, maintenance, and eventual resale services.
• In Consortium Program Platform enabling benefactors to loan rare instruments to deserving musicians, with services including insurance, maintenance, and artist matching to reduce ownership costs for benefactors while supporting emerging talent.

Named customers14 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• In Consortium Program - Benefactors and ArtistscoreOthersIn Consortium is a proprietary platform connecting instrument owners (benefactors) with deserving musicians. Benefactors loan their valuable instruments to artists, reducing ownership costs while generating visibility and supporting emerging talent. The firm provides comprehensive support including insurance, maintenance, and artist matching services.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Beare's International Violin Society: A fine-instrument dealer and society working with rare Stradivari and Guarneri instruments, providing dealer, restoration, and artist-loan services. Directly comparable to Rare Violins across inventory curation, conservation, and artist matching.
• Florian Leonhard Fine Violins: London-based dealer and luthier specializing in fine violins, violas, cellos, and bows with an in-house restoration workshop. Directly comparable in offering rare instruments and conservation services to professional musicians and collectors.
• Ifshin Violins: Multi-generational violin shop offering sales, rentals, and restoration of fine and student instruments. Comparable as a dealer-restorer business model, though with broader positioning across student through professional segments.
• J&A Beare: One of the world's longest-established dealers of fine violins, violas, cellos, and bows, headquartered in London with a restoration workshop. Directly comparable to Rare Violins in dealer-plus-workshop business model and elite clientele.
• Brompton's (Bromptons at Christie's): Specialist London dealer of fine violins, violas, cellos, and bows affiliated with Christie's, offering brokerage and valuation services. Comparable in clientele, instrument category, and deal-making approach.
• Reuning & Son Violins: Boston-based dealer of violins, violas, cellos, and bows with a long history and restoration workshop. Comparable as a North American fine-instrument dealer offering sales, restoration, and appraisal services.
• Tarisio Auctions: The leading auction house dedicated specifically to fine stringed instruments and bows. Comparable because it competes for the same consignors, buyers, and headline instruments that anchor Rare Violins' Notable Sales program.
• Peter Zaret & Sons Violins: Established New York-area dealer specializing in violins, violas, cellos, bows, and restoration. Comparable as a US-based fine-instrument dealer offering similar sales and workshop services to professional musicians and collectors.

Broad incumbents

• Sotheby's: Global auction house that handles fine musical instruments among many other luxury categories. Comparable to the extent that it competes for consignments of headline Stradivari and Guarneri instruments, but operates at vastly greater scale and breadth.
• Christie's: Global auction house with a dedicated musical instruments department that competes for the same consignors and buyers. Comparable at the transaction level for high-end instruments, but not specialized like Rare Violins.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rare Violins