Luthier Donates Violins in Memory of Slain Journalist Daniel Pearl
Award-winning Maine luthier Jonathan Cooper has donated one of his new violins to the Mark O’Connor Fiddle Camp in memory of slain journalist Daniel Pearl, a classical violinist and folk fiddler whose love of music was commemorated on October 10, 2002 (his birthday) in a series of international concerts devoted to the promotion of tolerance. "I was very moved by his story, as were so many others," says Cooper, "and when I learned that he was a fiddler, I just thought this would be a good way to honor his memory." Pearl, a 38-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter, was kidnapped and murdered in February 2002 while investigating Pakistani links to terrorism. A longtime visitor to the popular fiddle camps in Nashville and San Diego, Cooper usually constructs a violin there so campers can learn more about the instrument-making process. Now a lucky camper will have a chance to play one of Cooper’s award-winning violins during a one-year loan program dedicated to Pearl. "There are a lot of younger kids who attend on scholarships and who are fabulous players but have terrible instruments," says Cooper, who built the commemorative violin with lutherie assistant Steve Cournoyer, "so I’m sure we’ll have no trouble finding a deserving candidate." The violin is a copy of the King Joseph Guarnieri, 1737.
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