In present day Montreal, a famous Nicolo Bussotti violin, known as "the red
violin," is being auctioned off. During the auction, we flash back to the
creation of the violin in 17th century Italy, and follow the violin as it makes its
way through an 18th century Austrian monastery, a violinist in 19th century
Oxford, China during the Cultural Revolution, and back to Montreal, where a
collector tries to establish the identity and the secrets of "the red violin."