How string quartets travel

<p>When string quartets travel, they don’t check their instruments. Who, after all, would trust a Stradivarius violin that dates back to 1702, to cargo?</p><separator></separator><p>That violin belongs to Daniel Phillips, one of the four members in the Orion String Quartet. Todd Phillips, the brother of Daniel, plays on a Stradivarius violin that was made in 1732. Violist Steven Tenenbom performs on a Gasparo da Salò instrument from 1560, and cellist Timothy Eddy owns a Matteo Goffriller instrument from 1728.</p><separator></separator><p>Jonathan Swartz, coordinator for ASU’s String Quartet Residence Program, and himself a violinist, said the violin and viola players usually put their instruments in the overhead bin in an airplane.</p><separator></separator><p>But cellists such as Eddy have to pretend that their instrument is a true traveling companion and buy it a seat. The only question is whether the cello would prefer an aisle or window seat.</p>