The music from Stradivarius violins, created by Antonio Stradivari in the late 1600s/early 1700s is widely considered the gold standard of quality sound. SciShow examines the mystique behind the instrument’s “silvery” sound and why we can’t seem to reproduce it today.

Some chemists attribute the Strad’s sound to a secret chemical mixture including salts, smoke, and various metals, while others believe that the music Stradivari created is so rare simply because of the wood’s age.

After countless studies and experiments, perhaps the real magic of this storied instrument lies in how we think about it. In other words, beautiful music lies in the ear of the beholder.