Instrument Collector David Fulton's Book: "The Fulton Collection — A Guided Tour"

Explore David Fulton's 40-year journey into curating a collection of the world's finest string instruments

Available now, the first edition volume of David Fulton's book "The Fulton Collection" is an engaging tale of his journey into the world of fiddles, chronologically ordered by the date on which he acquired each extraordinary instrument.

With a large-format linen-bound hardcover, the book includes stunning museum-quality photos, archival material, and first-hand recollections of the instruments and their journies. Every instrument has a story and weaves a tale through the centuries and owners.

Full of musical anecdotes, historical context, insights on the craft of fine instrument-making, and autobiography, the book tells the tale of how Fulton went from tech entrepreneur to building one of the finest stringed instrument collections of the modern era.

To purchase the book, click here.

“I hope this book will help explain why I became a violin collector — clearly a form of ecstatic madness," Fulton said. "I started forming the collection in 1981, but my fascination with violins, playing violins, and violinists goes back much farther, back to my childhood. It has been the musical journey of a lifetime and the great violins, violas and cellos have served as my milestones. Along the way I’ve had many interesting experiences and met some remarkable people. I hope to take you along on that journey. ”

“This book is a treasure, not just as a resource for lovers and players of stringed instruments, but also as a fascinating and often very funny look at the life through the eyes of a most remarkable man, David Fulton," violinist James Ehnes said. "It has my very highest recommendation.”

Born in 1944, David L. Fulton grew up in Eugene, Oregon, playing the violin from an early age. He studied mathematics at the University of Chicago, and was concertmaster of the University of Chicago Orchestra while he was there. He then performed professionally with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra as a violinist.

In 1970, he founded the Department of Computer Science at Bowling Green State University, serving as Professor and Chairman for 10 years. While still at Bowling Green, he co-founded Fox Software, which ultimately gained international recognition for its database management application, FoxPro. Following the sale of Fox Software to Microsoft in 1992, Dr. Fulton served as Microsoft’s Vice President for Database Products until his retirement in 1994.

From his love and passion for violins, he began collecting fine instruments, which are listed here.