Edition 2026 · 11–20 December 2026
For ten days, from 11 to 20 December, Cremona celebrates the violin and the people who make it.
In the city of Antonio Stradivari, the art of violin making has been passed down from master to apprentice for almost five centuries. In 2012, UNESCO recognised traditional violin craftsmanship in Cremona as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Today, the city’s violin makers continue this tradition, crafting violins, violas, cellos and double basses by hand, one instrument at a time.
The first edition of Cremona Violin Week offers an opportunity to discover this remarkable heritage at first hand, in the very places where it is kept alive. Over ten days, concerts, workshop visits, performances featuring historic instruments and a photography exhibition across the city will bring the tradition to life, from the Museo del Violino to the squares of the historic centre, amid Christmas lights and markets.
The Il Suono di Stradivari performances offer the opportunity to hear the Museo del Violino’s historic instruments played live. Performances are scheduled for noon on 12, 13, 18 and 20 December at the Giovanni Arvedi Auditorium. For further information, please consult the museum’s admission details. A photography exhibition across the city explores the world of violin making through portraits of the makers, scenes of work at the bench and close-up views of the instruments. Short live performances will also take place at the Christmas markets throughout the festival.
Violin makers taking part in the Open Workshops initiative will welcome visitors into their workshops. Discover how a bowed string instrument takes shape, see the materials and tools used at each stage of the process, and meet the craftspeople whose skill and experience bring each instrument to life.
Visits must be booked in advance by contacting the Consorzio Liutai secretariat by phone on +39 0372 463503 or by email at info@cremonaviolins.com.
The programme is being updated. Check this page for event times, venues, admission and booking details.
Cremona Violin Week will be officially presented at 5.30 pm on the Festa del Torrone stage in Piazza del Comune. Violinist Isaac Meinert will perform as the lights dedicated to the festival are switched on beside the Cathedral’s Bertazzola.
Free entry
The Stauffer Foundation opens the festival’s musical programme with a concert at the Giovanni Arvedi Auditorium in the Museo del Violino. Admission is free and advance booking is required. Please follow the Stauffer Foundation’s booking instructions.
Free, booking required
The Il Suono di Stradivari performances offer the opportunity to hear the Museo del Violino’s historic instruments played live. For further information, please consult the museum’s admission details.
Pepe Rivero Quartet & Rubén Darío Reina headline the opening concert of Cremona Violin Week at 8.30 pm in the Giovanni Arvedi Auditorium at the Museo del Violino. Admission is free with advance booking at info@cremonaviolins.com.
Free, booking required
The Il Suono di Stradivari performances offer the opportunity to hear the Museo del Violino’s historic instruments played live. For further information, please consult the museum’s admission details.
On St Lucy’s Day, Cremona celebrates the violin with a programme of special events. The day opens with a performance of Il Suono di Stradivari (The Sound of Stradivari) at the Museo del Violino, followed at 3 pm by live music from the Bertazzola in Piazza del Comune, between the Cathedral and the Christmas market. The Open Workshops initiative also gets under way. At 8.30 pm the day closes with the Vertical Concert in the Cathedral.
Free entry
The scaffolding set up inside the Cathedral for the restoration of the rose window area, which brings you close to Pordenone’s frescoes, becomes the stage for a concert where music, painting and architecture meet. A listening experience built at height, offering an unusual view of the Cathedral’s artistic heritage. Admission is free.
Free entry
The Il Suono di Stradivari performances offer the opportunity to hear the Museo del Violino’s historic instruments played live. For further information, please consult the museum’s admission details.
Cremona pays tribute to Antonio Stradivari on the anniversary of his death on 18 December 1737.
The Il Suono di Stradivari performances offer the opportunity to hear the Museo del Violino’s historic instruments played live. For further information, please consult the museum’s admission details.
With the contribution of
In collaboration with
Cremona Violin Week is part of “Cremona, World Capital of Violin Making”, a project supported by Regione Lombardia and delivered in collaboration with the Cremona–Mantua–Pavia Chamber of Commerce, the Province of Cremona, the City of Cremona, the Stauffer Foundation, the Consorzio Liutai “Antonio Stradivari” Cremona, the Museo del Violino, Teatro Ponchielli and CremonaFiere.
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