Brothers show Newfoundland audience what $5M violins sound like

Two young violinists are in Newfoundland and Labrador for the final concert of a classical music series, and have brought two extremely expensive instruments with them.

Nikki & Timothy Chooi, who are from Victoria, BC, are the star performers at Friday's performance of Oh Brother! at the Arts and Culture Centre in St. John's.

The concert will also feature the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra.

What many people in the audience at Friday's concert may not realize is that the two brothers are using violins worth a total of $10 million.

"We just treat it like an arm, because you don't want to lose your arm," Nikki Chooi told The St. John's Morning Show.

"It's something that's always a part of us, and we always carry it everywhere."

A fortune ofstrings

Nikki, who plays a 1700 Stradivari Taft, and Timothy, who has a 1729 Guarnieri del Ges, don't actually own the expensive instruments.

They got them through the Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank program. The program allows musicians to get a three-year loan of instruments beyond their means to buy themselves but only after going through a rigorous application and audition process.

"It's a beautiful instrument, and I'm very lucky to have it," said Timothy.

"I've grown up taking really good care of whatever instrument I have, whether it's $100 or $5 million.

Oh Brother! gets underway a 8 p.m. Friday at the Arts and Culture in St. John's.

• Check out the video player above to see what the two violins worth $5 million each - look and sound like!