Forging a cello from pieces of wood demands its own form of virtuosity

While the small northern Italian city of Cremona is considered the world’s cultural centre for the production of stringed instruments, this video from the YouTube channel ProcessX shows that there is at least one outpost far from Europe where the craftsmanship is no less meticulous, and the results no less exquisite. The film documents the work of the master luthier Takao Iwai in the Japanese city of Hirakata, who named his workshop after Cremona, where he learned his trade. Shot over the course of six months, the piece provides a close look at the combination of mastery and dedication, of forceful and precise movements, required to transform pieces of wood into a world-class cello.

Via Open Culture