Q: A rare 1715 Stradivarius violin recently was stolen from a concert musician in Milwaukee. The violin was on loan to the musician. How does that work? Is it a common practice to lend musicians a violin that is worth millions?
— William McKee Jr., Flowery Branch
A: A wealthy benefactor sometimes will buy an expensive instrument and then loan it to an accomplished musician for them to play. "Not many musicians – even very successful ones – could afford to buy a really fine violin," Simon Morris, of J&A Beare, an instrument dealer, told The Guardian, a British newspaper, last fall. Morris called it a "very satisfying symbiotic relationship." He added: "As well as the financial investment, they benefit from a personal relationship with the player, from the satisfaction of asking them to play private concerts for their friends." A Stradivarius in question, known as the Lipinski Strad and valued at $5 million, was stolen after a concert in January, but was recovered by authorities earlier this month. An anonymous patron loaned the violin to Frank Almond, the concertmaster of the Milwaukee Symphony, in 2008.
Q: How many cities does California have? Is it the state with the most cities?
— Elmer Corpuz, Waipahu, Hawaii
A: California had 459 incorporated cities, according to the 2010 U.S. Census, and 21 incorporated towns for a total of 480 incorporated municipalities. But states have different names for municipalities. Several other states had more incorporated cities, including Texas (956), Iowa (947), Minnesota (854), Missouri (636) and Kansas (627). Other states have incorporated towns, villages and boroughs, such as Pennsylvania. In 2010, it had 965 incorporated boroughs, which usually are smaller than a city, and 58 incorporated cities.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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