The emperor's new viola: a 1938 instrument makes its way from Little Rock to Tokyo Imperial Palace

Between Tuesday, May 21, and Monday, May 27, 2019, a viola inscribed with the initials “IA” made its way from a quaint 1880s carriage house in Little Rock’s Quapaw Quarter to the hands of Japan’s Emperor Naruhito, a gift from President Trump on the occasion of Naruhito’s ascent to the Imperial Chrysanthemum Throne. Joe Joyner, who operates the full-service Little Rock Violin Shop from within that carriage house, described the instrument’s diplomatic voyage as follows, in a post on his Facebook page:

“On April 30, I heard a news story that Japan’s Emperor Akihito was stepping down and that his son, Naruhito, would be taking his place. Twenty-four hours later I received a call from the U.S. State Department seeking an American-made viola to give as a diplomatic gift. Shortly after this call, I began seeing news stories about Japan’s new Emperor Naruhito being a violist. … Nearly a month later, I can now say that last week I sold the Emperor’s new viola, an instrument made in 1938 by Ivan W. Allison of Charleston, West Virginia. The instrument was presented to Emperor Naruhito by President Donald Trump today. God I love my job.”

We talked with Joyner about the viola and his shop’s work to prepare it for the imperial violist.

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https://arktimes.com/news/qa/2019/07/02/the-emperors-new-viola-a-1938-instrument-makes-its-way-from-little-rock-to-tokyo-imperial-palace