"Are 'mastery of the violin' and 'Violin Mastery' synonymous in my mind?
Yes and no: 'Violin Mastery' may be taken to mean that technical mastery
wherewith one is enabled to perform any work in the entire literature of
the instrument with precision, but not necessarily with feeling for its
beauty or its emotional content. In this sense, in these days of
improved violin pedagogy, such mastery is not uncommon. But 'Violin
Mastery' may also be understood to mean, not merely a cold though
flawless technic, but its living, glowing product when used to express
the emotions suggested by the music of the masters. This latter kind of
violin mastery is rare indeed.
"One who makes technic an end travels light, and should reach his
destination more quickly. But he whose goal is music with its
thousand-hued beauties, with its call for the exertion of human and
spiritual emotion, sets forth on a journey without end. It is plain,
however, that this is the only journey worth taking with the violin as a
traveling companion. 'Violin Mastery', then, means to me technical
proficiency used to the highest extent possible, for artistic ends!"