There is a wonderful story about the cellist on this recording, Christine Walevska. When she was eight she got a child sized cello from her father, who happened to deal in instruments. It was an exquisite instrument, and quite old. There are not many 1/8 sized cello’s around of this quality, and the child really liked it and started playing. She played it until she grew out of it, something that happens with a cello this size.
Some years later the instrument got stolen, and for 40 years it was lost. Walevska told about it in an interview. Then there was a family with a small three years old child that was playing the very same cello. It had a label inside, attached by the maker: Pour la petite Comtesse Marie 1834. They looked it up on the internet and found the interview, and decided to write an email to what turned out to be the real owner. They had no idea it was stolen.
Walevska went to visit the family, where she saw the child, Starla Breshears. She was a child prodigy, and seeing her play so naturally made Walevska decide to let her keep the instrument until she in turn would grow out of it. She mentored her for a while, and Starla is now winner of international prizes.
I suppose the cello is back in the hands of Walevska.
Read the story in more detail on the website of the Los Angeles Times.