Entire Town to Keep Mum

Italian Mayor Deploys Cops, Urges Entire Town to Keep Mum to Save Violin's Sound
© Flickr / Rick Shinozaki
Europe
21:59 19.01.2019(updated 22:23 19.01.2019) Get short URL
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In the birthplace of renowned 17th century instrument master craftsman Antonio Stradivari, a museum and a group of sound engineers are busy with a unique project requiring almost total silence. But it isn't as easy as one might imagine, practically requiring a whole town to hold its breath.

The mayor of the Italian town of Cremona, the home of some of the world's most sought-after instruments, and former workshop of Stradivari, has made a seemingly odd request of residents: that they keep quiet.

Residents have done their best to keep noise at a minimum, but things haven't always gone off without a hitch. During one recording session, Florencia Rastelli, a barista at the town's Cremona Chiave di Bacco café, accidentally knocked over and shattered a glass. "I was like: Of all days, this one," she recalled. "Even a police officer popped in and asked me to keep it down. I was so embarrassed."