Hiroshi Kono Violin – Tokyo 2026

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Handmade violin from Tokyo, Japan. This violin is made very well and light in weight. The gentle arching on the top plate allows this violin to project and have power. The violin has choice tonewoods, and the spruce top has an even grain. The maple of the one-piece back is what I call quilted. Very beautiful but remember it is always about the sound. The varnish is tastefully antiqued with a distressed pattern on the top and back. Here in our workshop we have done all the set-up of the instrument. The body is made for us and then we cut and custom fit all the parts. The violin received a set of pegs cut in a heart model English style with an ebony pin on the end, chin rest, rework of the ebony nut, new soundpost, and a handmade B grade Despiau bridge, which is a 200-year-old plus piece of French maple. Violinist Joshua Bell has many of his students purchase this violin to grow with. It has the sound he is looking for, that a serious musician will like with an unexpected price. The custom setup is what makes these violins jump.

Corpus 356.0 mm., Major Width 198.0 mm., Minor Width 162.5 mm., Rib Height 30.0 mm.

The sound on the Kono is fantastic in my book. It is lush, rich, and powerful. Beyond expectation in goodness on the lower strings. Occasionally, I come across a new gem that has a sound that I like to play on our worship team at our church. This violin sounds great, maybe it will be here for a few weeks longer for me to use in worship. You can’t go wrong with KONO. It has great bones, very light in weight, and has a great sound. This violin stands out in sound and would also fit well for a player who is a serious fiddler. The A and E are just as nice as the bottom, or even better. The top is sweet with strength. The violin has a slight edginess to the sound. This helps unleash the power and life in the top strings and produce the overtones. The violin also speaks very well at the ppp dynamic level. The instrument is so easy to play, and again the response is very good. This violin checks all the boxes for the intermediate, more serious player looking for a great sound, tastefully antiqued in its varnish, and performance above its pay grade.