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^om

JAMES

M. FLEMING.

THE

FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE

A MANUAL
OF INFORMATION REGARDING

VIOLINS, VIOLAS, BASSES

AND BOWS

OF

CLASSICAL AND MODERN TIMES

TOGETHER WITH

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES AND PORTRAITS OF THE MOST

FAMOUS PERFORMERS ON THESE INSTRUMENTS

BY

JAMES

M.

Author of "Old Violins and

FLEMING
their

Makers, ^-c,

cS-c.

SECOND EDITION

ILLUSTRATED
With Facsimiles of

Violin Tickets

Honbon
HAYNES. FOUCHER & CO., 14. GRAY'S INN ROAD
1892

PKINTED BY
E.

SHORE AND
3,

CO.,

TYPE-MUSIC

AND GENERAL PRINTERS,

GREEN TERRACE, CLERKENWELL, E.C

Music
Library

PREFACE.
The Reader who may
Guide

some value
not for

me

be interested in the subject of this

hope, find the contents of the book to be of

will, I

him

to

how much,

to say.

if

any, more than usual,

is

hardly a maker of any import-

ance, from the earliest to the latest, about

whose work, something

number

or about

these pages, while a very

more ordinary class of craftsmen

points of their work briefly elucidated

of the

have had certain

in a

whom,

fresh in the matter of descriptive

may not be gleaned from

detail

large

may, without

think, however, I

egotism, state that there

is

manner calculated

to be helpful for purposes of

identification.

Everything

in the

book has been,

to

employ a common

phrase, brought up to date, and although, as a matter of

duty to

my

The Fiddle

readers and to myself,

have, in

writing

Fancier's Guide, consulted and collated

afresh, with great advantage, every source of information

known

to

me,

think

may

yet fairly claim that the

which have been tabulated throughout, are very

largely those of my own observation and practical
results

experience, and where these have failed me, the

of the authors on

whose assistance

have drawn,

names
will

found duly recorded in the body of the work.

J.

M.

London, 1st October, 1892.

182S557

FLEMING.

be

CONTENTS.
CHAPTER

PAGE

I.

The Bow and Cruth

CHAPTER
The Bow and Cruth

(continued)

..

CHAPTER
The Cruth and

and

..

..

..

New

18

Violins

CHAPTER

IV.
.

CHAPTER

25

V.

Classical and Post-Classical Makers

..

..

..

CHAPTER
Bow Makers

. .

CHAPTER
Violinists

. .

. .

CHAPTER
Basses and Bass Players

. .

30

VI.

Second Series of Classical and Post-Classical Makers

Violin

12

III.

Viols

CHAPTER
On Old

II.

135

VII.
.

. .

. .

230

. .

. .

244

VIII.
. .

IX.
. .

. .

301

LIST OF PLATES.
PAGE
Corelli

249

Tartini

254

Viotti

266

Nicolo Paganini

274

Louis Spohr

279

OleBull

283.

Henri Vieuxtemps

293;

John Tiplady Carrodus

Martin Meliton Sarasate.

296
298-

THE

FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE

CHAPTER

I.

'^hc ^olu anb Cruth.

THE

Arabs have a saying that the best discourse

is that which is " short and clear."
No doubt
they mean " clear and short." That is, at least, how
I

should prefer to understand the apothegm

lucidity

and brevity afterwards, in as far as

be possible. In whatever order they appear,
first,

both virtues
of

this

sincere

them

my

may be found

manual, but

by beginning

at

shall

the

once

make,

at

presence
the

any
of

may

trust

method
rate,

one

consideration

a
of
of

subject.

Eleven

years

ago,

then, in

my

when

writing

work on

the

by referring to what
view, the more important factor in

history of the violin,

was

secure

to

effort

illustrated in the

it

began

dealing with the antiquity of the instrument, namely,,

the violin bow, and

pointed out that the hard and fast

conclusion which then prevailed with regard to the age

of this adjunct

was not altogether a very philosophical

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

GUIDE.

Writers of eminence, who, at that time, might

one.

he said to represent the literary view of the subject,

had stated that it was then proved that the Greeks

and the Romans were not acquainted with the use
of bowed instruments.
tions

which

thorough as to justify

suggested that the investigaconclusion had not been so

to that

led

its

expression in these absolute

some evidence in support of my

conception that more proof of the bow's antiquity
might be available if due care were observed in
seeking it.
Since then the question has been in some
measure revived, and it is now admitted that the
terms, and

Greeks and
about the

offered

Romans probably

and were very

to

likely practically

From subsequent

uses.

me

did

know something

archaic representative of the fiddle bow,

acquainted with

investigations,

confess

its

it

is

almost impossible to believe that they could

tion the

when we take into consideraantique monuments in existence which display

figures

of

have been ignorant of

it,

musicians with stringed

instruments

and

rods in their hands, the latter of which could be of

little

that

or

no use to them

which the

The evidence which

was a drawing
an

implement

in

any capacity other than

bow has

violin

from

to us.

offered

an

on the above point

Etruscan vase, in which

an early bow w-as

like

placed

across

the strings of a musical instrument, and in calling attention to this drawing,

so close
hair,

to

said that the

bow was

the strings as to appear as

and that

it

if it

placed

had no

might on that account be claimed

as a kind of plectrum, with which the ancients were

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

understood
then that

twang the

or

strike

to

if

strings.

we remembered how Paganini

said

reported to

is

have played exquisitely with a rush on the occasion of a

contest which he

would be no

had with a young man

difficulty in

have excited the vibrations of

came

contact before hair

their strings

to be used.

the publication of this view,

a highly probable

that

had the

depict

who

artist

hardly have placed

have shown
position in

it

bow,

is,

is
I

now admitted
may here em-

the strings,

striking

he would

them, but would probably

The

hanging parallel to the instrument.

which

this

implement

strings at the very place

his

year or two after

then expressed by pointing out

across

it

may

by a similar

decorated that vase intended to

plectrum for

it

explanation.

phasise the view which

Italy, there

appears to have been

it

accepted in a tentative manner, and

as

in

supposing that the ancients

in

my

found across

is

the

where the musician would use

view, evidence of a conclusive kind

acquainted wdth, and

method of producing musical sounds by

that in those times, they were

practised, the

means
do not

of continuous

see

friction

how evidence

decisive, for the

over

strings.

Indeed

of this kind could be

more

Greeks were under the most stringent

laws with regard to the reproduction, in the domain of

art,

of instruments

which

were

in

established

use.

Artists were not allowed to invent forms which did not

actually

exist.

They were

not

permitted

to

make

innovations or alterations pictorially in the instruments

which they represented

special

branches " being actually

Plato informs us.

B2

made

mention of ".musical
in the

law of which

In the scene depicted on the \'ase

THE FIDDLK FANCIER

-j.

referred to there are

GUIDE.

two musical instruments

each side of the principal figure.

one on

In this case they

indicate the profession of the person

whom

they flank,

and the personage represented on the cup to which I

refer was Chironeis, a learned Greek musician and
scientist.

Since these views were expressed in 1881, the ten-

dency has been

on similar

to pursue the subject

and even the mounds of Nineveh are now, and

supposed

rightly,

the

same

to yield their

direction.

Whether

it

quotum

lines,

think

of evidence in

will ever

be possible to

bridge over the gulf which separates the eighth or ninth

century of the Christian era from the time of the

fulfil-

ment of Jonah's prophecy and bridge it over in such

a manner as will yield a firm footing to the historical
inquirer

say, but I

sure

it

may not be at
am very hopeful

the present

it

will

come

all

the

moment easy

of such a solution,

more quickly the

and

to

am

less people are

anxious to have their personal theories and fads accepted

at all cost

mildest

and

at every hazard.

instances of the

results

towards a preconceived idea

As one
of

of the very

unconscious

may here quote

from an old Welsh poem which has been printed

\olume

entitled " Musical

bias

a few lines
in

and Poetical Relics of the

Welsh Bards," by Edward Jones (1794) for the purpose of

showing that the early Welsh Crwth or Cruth was played
with a bow. The precise date of the composition of the
poem is not known, but the name of the author is, and it
is supposed by those who claim to have a knowledge of
Welsh literature, that the \erses were written in the
fifteenth century.
The poem contains a detailed account

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

of the instrument, but four lines will be sufficient for

my

purpose.
"

A fair coffer with a

A finger board and

bow, a

girdle,

a bridge

its

price a pound.

has a frontlett formed Hke a wheel

With a short-nosed bow across."
It

Now

comment on

these lines by a distinguished

by no means certain to the
unbiassed enquirer that it (the bow) is alluded to in the
above description of the instrument. The bow which is
mentioned may possibly refer to the curved shape of the
the

writer

that

is

frame."

"it

is

If the first line

were the only one

in

which the

word "bow" occurred, I could understand how one

might maintain that it was a reference to the shape of
the

instrument,

supposed
passes

my

to.

but

how

the

fourth

comprehension.

confess

clear an account of a primitive fiddle

put in English words.

is to

If literary

it

seems

bow as

writer

to

me

as

could well be

evidence of that kind

may

be rejected, or even discredited, one

reject

could be

line

be a repetition of the same description

as well

everything that has ever been written by any

in

any country of the

world.

am

inclined to believe that the author of the above

almost

comment

had forgotten all about the details given in the poem,

and had turned to the first line only when penning his
curious remark.

There

is

no mistake

in the translation,

as even a reader accustomed to very old English will

see on comparing

it

with the original

" Prennolt teg

bwa

a gwregis,

Pont a bran, punt yw ei bris

Athalaith ar waith olwyn,
A'r bwa ar draws byr ei drwyn,
;

etc."

THE FIDDLE

It

FAN'CIER S GUIDE.

would
might have

SO happens that the rejection of this evidence

not, in this case, be of great importance, but

been, and at any rate,

evidence, howe\er slight

says, " sure enough, in

of fiddle, said

it

way to deal with

The same author

not a right

it is

may

it

be.

Wales they found

by the natives

a curious sort

have been

to

in use

with

them from time immemorial, as people always say when

they possess something peculiar, the origin of which

they are unable to trace.

The supposed high

enhances to the people the value of their

relic,

antiquity
especially

it admired by foreigners and learned antiSo much for the claim of poor Wales. Just
previously the same distinguished writer had given an
illustration of a Burmese " Thro," which happens to be a

if

they find

quaries."

very near approach to violin form, and which appears to

have been unearthed from a book of travels (Embassy

to

Ava

in

the year

The

1795).

only evidence which

adduced in support of the conjecture that this instrument is of Burmese invention, or, at least, not a repro-

is

duction from a European model,

it

to

who was

is

the statement of the

Embassy. " I at first imagined

had been of European introduction, and brought
but I was assured that
Pegu by the Portuguese

person

it is

of the

an original instrument of the country."

This simple

statement of a traveller, together with the circumstance

that the
tive

Burmese name " Thro

from a Sanskrit root

" is

sarva,

said to be a deriva-

which means " entire

or " universal," and from which a

number

of

"

Indian

musical instruments have received their names,

is

accepted as evidence that the Burmese fiddle

ancient

and indigenous

to the country in

is

to

be

which a member of a

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

diplomatic mission saw

year old Welsh

existence
" people

while a three or four hundred

it,

poem minutely

then in existence

describing an instrument

to be rejected as evidence of that

is

no reason whatever^unless

for

always say

be that

it

when they

these things

possess

something peculiar, the origin of which they are unable

to trace "

the Burmese people, of course, alone excepted.

I merely mention this to show how lightly scientific

modes of reasoning weigh sometimes with cultured minds,
and how utterly unreliable are the conclusions which are
If the circumstance that the
drawn in such fashion.
name of the Burmese " Thro," derived from a Sanskrit
" entire "
" universal " be
or
root sarva, meaning

considered an

element

evidence pointing to

sufficiently

weighty to make

Oriental origin,

its

why

should

Welsh Cruth in a much more direct

Hebrew participle Cruth signifying " cut "

hesitate to trace the

manner

to the

or " engraved

but suppose

"

It

do so

merely to show

how

has never been suggested before,

in this

easy

it

Fiddle Fanciers's Guide

is to work out a plausible

conclusion on paper with the aid of etymology.

ancient

Eastern lyre had

engraved to imitate the

who had

their letters

largely from the

it

chelys

Romans
the

same

{x^Xi<i)

called

it

creature,

an arched

back

shell of a tortoise.

if

cut

The
and

The Greeks,

not their literature and sciences

cities of the plain, seeing this, called

their

name

testudo,

and

for

which

is

a tortoise,

the Latin

also, secondarily, for

and the

name

for

any stringed

Now,
is of an arched character.
how is it that the Anglo-Saxons and the Welsh, alone
among all occidental peoples, retained the original Hebrew
instrument whose body

THE

F1DDI.I-:

FANCIKR

GUIDE.

word in almost its primitive phonetic purity for that the

two words are identical I have not a doubt ? The AngloSaxon word is Cruth, and the Welsh Crwth, in old French
In old high German cJirota, whence it degeneCarotk.
rated to chrotta, from that to

hrotte,

intermediate modifications, such as

thence to

with

rotte,

and the English

There are besides

crotta,

it ultimately became rote.

some dozens of different forms of the same word and
degenerations, such as the Irish emit, kruith, and the

crowd, until
these,
its

Cornish kroud.
Provincial

In Halliwel's " Dictionary of Archaic and

Words

" cyond

and

crouth are

signifying a fiddle, while the verb crowd

thing across another, to

more than merely

make

is

found as nouns

"to move one

a grating noise."

It

is

interesting in this last connection to

note that the old

Hebrew

almost identical

in phonetic

verbal root ghvad or ghroud

power and meaning.

signifies " to scrape " or "scratch."

is

It

Suppose we go a

little further and point out that long before the Greeks
and Romans knew anything about the British Isles, the
Canaanites (Phenician) had colonised a considerable
portion of the mainland, and were busy working its
mining resources.
The Cassiterides islands were no
doubt known to the later Greeks by name, but Diodorus

Siculus confesses that he did not

He had
early

Phenicians had gone.

reasons which
cogent have
relinquished
scholars

know where they

were.

merely heard of them as places to which the

for

Although some
do not appear
the

notion

modern

to be very

that

the

Cassiterides of these Canaanitish settlers are the Scilly

Isles off the

Cornish coast, Cornwall

itself,

and

all

the

southern district teem with etymological reminiscences

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

(.)

They

of these almost prehistoric colonists.

designations

are

The Taff, the Tawe,

names of rivers at

day.

baptised

by which they squatted, giving them

which have come down to our own

streams

the

the Teiffy, the Tavy these

the " end " of the land, and

all

Te

are formed from the Phenician Tauv, Tav, Tau, or

the

of

letter

final

Hebrew alphabet

ancient

the

and signifying a mark,

There

or boundary.

limit,

is

at the extreme limit of farther India another river socalled

by the same colonising

race, namely, the

and we have another instance of

Scotland, drains

the

it

Grampians. In addition, we have

We

a river.

Tavoy,

Tay, which,

boundry

Southern

the Yore, and the Yarrow

in the

line

North the Yare,

in the

modifications of "

all

and how well they named

and observes

this last great

visits

the steady

manner

Southend,

which the great

in

still

performs the duty which earned for

title

has

now

thousand years.
carrying the "
the matter of
as

borne,
It is

for,

it

may

" melting

still

be,

away

" the

have

said,

and

the

teems with

words
does

all

this point

to

In
the

these ancient

nearly identical with ancient Hebrew.

Phenician

the
four

land

London clay " in solution out to sea.

names in almost their original purity

dialect

What

it

three or

Hebrew
is

may

stream

Heme Bay or

estuary

country,

Yevi,"'

have the Plym, the Tamar, the Thames

be realised by anyone who

it

in

of the

or

Canaanitish

That the Cruth is

?
Most certainly

the progenitor of our present violin

that,

and nothing

in the matter.

Of

less

if

etymology

is

to

have

its

say

the score of spellings in which this

musical instrument's

name

is

to be

found throughout

THK

lO

FIDDI.K FANXIKR S GUIDE.

Europe and Asia the purest is that still current in the

British Isles, and all the others are corruptions of it.
Charuth, C'ruth or Cruth

is

the

Hebrew

and Crwth the British and Welsh.

the

Irish,

French.

Caroth, old

Hebrew word
Scottish

is

word

Chrotta, Crotta

The

Chrota, Latin and German.

Cruth

form.

Kruith and Cruit

and

sound of the

initial

a strong gutteral like the ch in the

loch,

ox in the

G er\m.n

hoch.

By

variety

became a strong aspirate,

and then we have on the Continent of Europe hrotta
and hrota. Still further softened it becomes rotta, rota,

of vocalisation this gutteral

rotel, roet,

and has about a dozen other changes, among

which are

rotteh, rote,

But

in

iriote, rott,

whatever forms

this

corruptions of the primitive

rotha, rothes, rotten.

name appears they are all

Hebrew word Cruth, instead

of Cruth being a corruption of Chrotta.

That

is,

as

it

appears to me, the conclusion to which etymology points

and

in a

very decisive manner.

With regard

bowed

to the actual delineation of these

instruments in historical records there are, in existence,

manuscripts
centuries

dating

which

from about the tenth and eleventh

contain drawings of them in various

forms called the crowd, the crout, and

architectural edifices

sculptures of

rote,

dating a century or

them are found, but

it

is

and on

two

later

a mistake to

suppose that the dates of these manuscripts and sculptures indicate in even the vaguest

manner the time

or

period of the instrument's introduction to use with the

people

This

is,

among whom it is found thus commemorated.

however, a common error, and many writers do

not seem to realize that before such musical instruments

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

II

could in those old times become conventionalized decorati\e adjuncts of architectural structures

connected with edifices erected

worship

they must

people's

for

life

immemorial

ages

especially when

purposes of religious

have been part and parcel of the

one

might say,

a phrase to which

some

if

not from time

of us object for

no

reason, but which, in the circumstances, is

particular

Although

accurate.

strictly

for

respectful

on that

terror

look

with a kind of

magnificent

hyperbole

of

Michelet's where he describes the sixteenth century as

extending " from Columbus

nicus to Galileo
of heaven,"

to'

Copernicus, from Coper-

from the discovery of the earth to that

would point out

in

somewhat

of the

same

and epigrammatic form, that

spirit,

but in

these

drawings and sculptures of the tenth, eleventh,

twelfth,

and

less beautiful

and thirteenth

fiddles

of

all

centuries, with their fiddle bows-

sorts 'and

sizes,

indicate

objects which have lent themselves in this

that the

way to

schools

of decoration or, folk-lore treatises, have been in existence

and

familiar to the people for ages before the time of the

who wrote about them, or the Cathedral

who used them. They are of little or no use

chroniclers
builders

either in fixing the comparative age, or in tracing the

development of any one of them.

valuable

monuments

of their

They

in

their

appearance

results of selection

the

matter of

are

almost

merely

but are not

existence,

The changes

evidence capable of fixing priority of use.

found

are

certainly the

on the part of the decorator, and,

manuscripts, the differences

indicate the limits of their writer's research.

in

probably

CHAPTER

II.

^1\C ^Ob) anb CUvuth (continued).

THE
is

known

earliest

literary reference to the crnth

contained in two well canvassed lines of a

LatiA poem written by Venantius Fortunatus, a bishop

of Poitiers

the

capital of the old

and which

Poitou,

now

is

called

French province

Vienne.

This rather important poet

fancier's

point of view

of

the department of

was born

from

in

fiddle

the year 530.

near Ceneda, in the vicinity of Treviso, in Italy, and

died early in the following century at Poitiers.

two

lines,

which have

for

many

The

years afforded oppor-

tunities of discussion to musical antiquarians, occur in

an ode to be found published

called

" Venantii

follows

"

Romanusque

in

a volume in

Poemata."

Fortunati

lyra plaudat

They

161 7,

are as

Barbarus harpa,

tibi,

Graecus Achilliaca, Chrotta Britanna canat."

The passage has been

be referred to

translated

in

later on, but, in the

take one rendering which

is,

several

meantime,

ways
w^e

to

may

perhaps, the least faulty.

" Let the Roman praise thee on the lyre, the Barbarian on the harp,
The Greek on the Achilhaca, and let the Britan Crouth sing."

What
It

is

That

the Achilliaca

was

is

not

certainly

known.

supposed to have been the Cithara, or Cyther.

is,

however, of

little

importance to us at present.

THE BOW AND CKUTH.

except

as

What we

a passing matter.

concerned with

is

1 3:

are

by the words, " Chrotta Britanna canat."

word, taken along with

context,

its

Cruth sang, appears to

l>ritish

dispute.

Why

chiefly

that portion of the extract formed

me

That

this

that

the

means

to be quite

beyond

should have described the

the bishop

cruth as a singing instrument has been explained by

Welsh commentators

as

complimentary allusion

to

performers,

the excellence of the technique of British

and people have made merry in gentle fashion over

them to be an interpretation having

Avhat appeared to

about

it

a soupgon of egotism.

any particularly good reason

because

it

appears to

\ery natural

one

me

for

do not think there

banter of this kind,

was a

that the conclusion

to draw,

is

although

do not think

was the correct one. When His Grace of Poitiers

was writing poetry he would doubtless choose his
similes much after the manner of his kind when
seeking to describe some distinction either of appearit

ance or
employ,

He

effect.

or

did

compound,

not

scruple, for

term

the

example, to

" Achilliaca,"

describe the Greek instrument, although for

it

to

there

were already then at his disposal one or two names

which would have been clearly enough " understanded
of the people "

such as

Cithera or Chelys.

just possible that he thought the

derived from " Achilles," and

the

instrument

on

that

But

term "chelys

made

account

it

" to

new name

although

is

be
for

such

dreadful supposition should perhaps be advanced only

with the greatest diffidence.

But a scholarly man

like

Fortunatus, having such an impression on his mind.

THE

14

would

I'ANCIER S GUIDE.

1-IUDLIi

undoubtedly seek

to

what he conthe name, and en-

discredit

be a corrupt form of

sidered

to

deavour

to restore

it

to a closer relation with its origin,

well have, instead of " Chelys,"

and hence we might

mediaeval substitute, " Achilliaca," which nobody

the

except Venantius Fortunatus appears to

about.

That

not the

is

time in the history of

first

new name suddenly

musical nomenclature where

appears in a well developed

literature,

no trace can be found either before or

instance of

Achilliaca "

**

to sing."

any one

may mean, we know

Now

it

and of which

after the solitary

At any

materialisation.

its

*'

know anything

rate,

means

does not appear to have struck

numerous commentators on

of the

whatever

that canere

this precious

why he used this

term to describe the cruth, if he does not mean that
the sounds emitted by that instrument when played
couplet of the bishop's, to enquire

were continuous sounds such as are characteristic of

the voice in

bishop

is,

singing.

In

words,

other

think the

of set purpose, describing the sounds of

instrument played with the bow.

this belief

am

an

supported in

by another circumstance which also appears

have entirely escaped the notice of those who have

engaged in this discussion. Fortunatus does not say
to

" Let the

Romans

extol thee

on the

lyre," etc.,

general fashion, but in quite a particular manner.

is

indeed very

much concerned

does not employ

enough had

his

laudare,

wanted

be accurate.

He
He

which would have suited well

purpose

merely been to invoke the

unanimity of nations and races

He

to

in

in their musical praises.

to indicate their methods,

and therefore he

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

used

" Let

plaiidaye.

Romans

the

(applaud)

praise

thee (by beating, striking, plucking, twitching, twanging

by

any kind of percussive action whatever) on

the lyre, the Barbarians on the harp, the Greeks on

the

He

and

Achilliaca,"

"

the

let

British Cruth

could not well have been more explicit,

to

clap,

to

signifies

secondarily,

beat,

applaud

to

to strike,

that

in

sing.''

Plandare

stamp, and,

to

and

fashion,

this

mediaeval writer seems to be most emphatically specific

in his choice of

words

to describe the

marked

distinction

between the instruments which were struck or twanged,

and the British or Breton cruth which was bowed. It is

rather a curious thing that several translations have been

made which appear to go pretty wide of the

For example, M. Vidal renders it as follows:
"
le

Le Remain t'applaudit sur la lyre, le Barbare sur

le Grec sur la Cythare."

original.

la

harpe

et

crouth breton,

This, in English, would be

"The Roman praises thee on the lyre, the Barbarian on the

harp and the Breton Crouth, the Greek on the Cithara."

Why
clearly

he should have so translated

come

suppose that

out.
it

hope

it

is

was merely not

not
to

it

does not very

uncharitable to

seem

to

copy M. Fetis, who had previously translated

"

Le Romain

cithare, le

This

la harpe, et le

English, would be

"The Roman

literally

thus

t'applaudit sur la lyre, le Grec te chante avec la

Barbare avec

in,

it

crouth Breton."

praises thee on the lyre, the Greek sings to thee

with the Cithara, the Barbarian with the harpe, and the Breton
crouth."

l6

THK FIDDLE PANCIKR's GUIDE.

M. Fetis'
M. Vidal's.

translation

which runs

We

quite

is

as

unsatisfactory as

have another \ersion

froni

Herr Abele

" Der Romer lobt dich auf der Leier, der Barbar singt dir mit der
Harpe, der Grieche mit der Cyther, der Britannier mit der crouth."

This becomes, in EngHsh

" The Roman praises thee on the lyre, the Barbarian sings to thee
with the harp, the Greek with the Cyther, the Briton with the crouth."

Then we have
of Fortunatus
" Let the

EngHsh, direct from the Latin

in

Romans applaud

thee with the lyre, the Barbarians with

the harp, the Greeks with the cithera;

confess

original.

Hke none of these.

made without

ha\ e been

let

the British crouth sing."

They

appear to

all

a careful consideration of the

take the liberty of offering another trans-

lation which,

imagine,

is

more

words,

faithful to the

construction and intent of the author.

"

To

thee the

Roman

strikes the lyre, the

Barbarian the harp,

the Greek the Chelys, and the British Crouth sings."

At the
like

risk of being considered a little prosy,

to point out

meaning

that

the

literal

of the mediaeval bishop

and

who

fully

should

extended

died just

when

the Latin tongue had ceased to be a living language

is

as follows, with those words added which poetic usage

elided from his verse.
"

The Roman

the lyre strikes to thee, the Barbarian (strikes to

thee) the harp, the

Greek

(strikes to thee) the Chelys,

and

(to thee)

the British Crouth sings."

And now
for

it

certainly

have done with

is

this

valuable couplet

valuable as evidence of the existence

THE BOW AND CRUTH.

of the

bowed form

of the cruth as early as the sixth

when we reahse

century in Hterature, and

literary

and architectural witnesses

lence of forms

are

long prior

found

themselves

to

representation

the

of

is

that these

testify to the preva-

the

when they

periods

the witness

in

importance of their evidence

box,

the real

enormously enhanced.
crouth

or

trithant,

three

was found in
a manuscript of the eleventh century in the abbey of
Saint Martial of Limoges. That manuscript would not
be a register of new inventions any more than the
bishop's reference to harps and lyres indicated new
stringed

crouth,

instruments.

It

played with a

is,

bow,

however, a far cry from the sixth

to the eleventh century, but the instrument, nevertheless,

existed during

later period.

all

that time

The Welsh

and down

to a

much

cruth only went out of use

with the death of John Morgan, of Newbury, in the

island of Anglesea, in the end of the eighteenth century.

He was

alive in 1776.

have

previous work,

indicated

that

evidence of the cruth having been played with a

bow

in

also,

as early as the tenth century in Wales, might be found

in the prizes

awarded

king of Cambria
first,

who

to musicians

by Howell Dda, a

reigned from 904 to 948.

The

second, and third prizes consisted respectively of

harp, a cruth, and a

recognised

in

these,

bagpipe.

representatives

methods of producing musical sounds

have thought
of
for

the

various

purposes of

melody and harmony, namely, the harp by percussive

sounds, the cruth by bowed sounds or continuous
friction,

and the bagpipes as representing the wood wand.

CHAPTER
^hc

AFTER

the

literature

III.

(Eruth anb Diols.

early

and the

Cruth

period

Fortunatus,

of

arts are, for nearly five

hundred

years,

almost silent about this primitive instrument.

But

had not disappeared during that time.

it

contrary,

was

it

quite as

much an item

Occidental nations in the eleventh century as

in the sixth

quite as familiar to them,

On

the

in the life of
it

had been

and found

to

be

quite as suitable as the decorative adjunct of a monk's

manuscript as

it

had been deemed

fitting to

adorn a

illuminated work of

the

eleventh century already referred to and which

was

poet's

line.

In

the

Latin

discovered at the abbey of Saint Martial of Limoges,

but which

is

now

in the

National Library of Paris, the

body of the three-stringed Cruth or Cruth

not imlike that of a Guitar,

trithant, is

having three strings led

over a bridge from one end of the instrument to the

and having no neck nor fingerboard, but a somewhat large oblong opening on each side of the strings, so
as to permit the hand to pass through from the back in

other,

order to stop them.

Coeval with

the eleventh century

we

find

this

cruth trithant of

a large variety of stringed

perhaps on
appear to many

instruments played with a bow, and which

account of their irritating multiplicity

to

have claims to separate

different origin.

classification as of distinctly

have grave doubts of the necessity

THE CRUTH AND

VIOLS.

I9

such a classification, but the pages of a brief manual

for

the present, which

like

modern

saying

with

myself

here
cruth

the

that

medium

of those opinions.

detailed expression

conviction

chiefly concerned with the

is

hardly a suitable

violin, are

progenitor of the

that

the

and that

violin,

content

harbour

still

through

more

for

will

viols

is

the
the

have found no

reasons adduced in any quarter sufficiently cogent to

change the tendency of

but that most results

this belief,

of subsequent research have, on the contrary, tended to

confirm

it.

fairly dealt

have shown,

was played with

doubt

think as clearly as words

with can, that the Cruth of the sixth century

seeing

a bow,

and there

everyone

almost

that

the cruth of the eleventh century

ment.
notice

And now
the

fact

my

want

that

very

is

room

agreed

is

for

that

a similar instru-

is

readers particularly to
period

for

little

of

hundred

five

years there has not been found a single literary refer-

ence

to,

or

artistic

reminiscence

of,

instrument

this

between the two dates over the whole area of the then
civilised world.

am

not concerned at present with

the reason for this temporary oblivion,

asking an interest in
enquiring
to

if

be chary

it

am

merely

as a fact, for the purpose of

such a fact as this should not teach us

in

drawing

conclusions.

Should

it

not

inoculate us securely against the inroads of the fever

for

innnature classification

certainly think

Here we have a popular instrument

it

should.

existing through a

period of five centuries without the slightest reference

to

it

being found in any literary or

of the period intervening these

02

monument

artistic

two dates

We may

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

20

when we

well pause

GUIDE.

are asked to believe that certain

known

at

no trace of them has been found

in

other instruments were not

all,

merely because

literary or artistic

In face of a circumstance like this,

remains.

shall

not venture at present to follow too dogmatically any

particular

of

line

classification

ancestry of the violin.

all

will

dealing with the

in

merely point out that among

show

the forms which have been marshalled to

kinship to the

monarch

their

of string instruments, not one

of the earlier species has a sound-post except the old

That circumstance alone

viols.

to prove

their direct

although

it

had no sound post

we now understand
post,

certainly

it

is,

in

my view, sufficient

descent from the cruth, which,

that term,

had one

foot of the bridge going

in

in

the sense in which

namely a movable sound

principle

through the

the

left

long,

left

sound hole and

being supported on the inside of the back.

The

only other instrument which has been set up

with any particular claims to notice

the violin

although

the rebab.

is

may

it

It,

however, had no

ancestor of
sides,

and

be called a contemporary of the cruth

seeing that illustrations of

as the ninth century
lightly

as the

passed over.

Its

it

have been found as

am

afraid its claims

back
must be

far

form was that of a heart-shaped

block of wood, hollowed out and narrowed towards the

handle.
strings,

word

It

and
is

sounds."

had, at different times, one, two, and three

its

name rebab

quoted
I

as

supposed to

meaning

be an Arabic

" emitting

think this derivation

is

melancholy

mistake.

The

word rebab is, I fancy, an Arabic variation of the old

Hebrew word " lebab " the Hebrew letters r and

THE CRUTH AND

" Lebab "

being interchangable.

and
if

VIOLS.

21

signifies

the heart,

appears to have had also the meaning of " hollow"

it

we may

follow Gesenius and Principal Lee.

It has,
the meaning of " hollow-hearted " an epithet

further,

which admirably describes the primitive form of the

rebab.

The

earliest

known

ment which seems

illustration of a viol

me

to

descendant of the cruth

"

The

First

Book

the

instru-

to be clearly the only direct

is

contained in a work entitled

of Songs,"

and printed

at

Verona

in

This illustration will be found reproduced in No. 5

1 49 1.
of " The Violin Monthly Magazine,"
The instrument
is

a five-stringed viol having, in addition, two deep-toned

strings under or outside of the fingerboard

for a

and apparently

purpose similar to that which the two detached

strings

of the

Welsh Cruth

latter instrument, are

fingerboard.
early viol

is

serve, but which,

on the

placed on the opposite side of the

most interesting feature of

this

very

found in the circumstance that although

it

we now know them it possesses

an approximation to what we are familiar with as the
Brescian violin corner. I am quite sure that we cannot
has no middle bouts as

in

every case depend on the entire accuracy of these

them many little details

absurd, but in their main features, and
think they are quite trustworthy, and

early drawings, for

which are visibly

in their outline I
in

this,

find in

the very earliest

instrument, there
to

we

\-iolin

form

position of the

and the position

is

in

known

illustration of

such an

a clear and unmistakable approach

the

rounded end, the corners, the

sound holes
of the

in

relation to the corners,

bridge in relation to the sound

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

22

There

holes.

GUIDE.

also a tail piece to this viol attached to

is

the end of the instrument in precisely the sfime fashion

as

many

old specimens of tail pieces are

In addition there

is

in this

feature,

which must not be overlooked.

board

quite a long

is

attached.

still

drawing a most important

The

finger-

and broad one, and displays no

frets.

A drawing of this kind having such a striking resemblance

and found

to violin form,
in

49 1

work published

in a

in

Italy

long before we have any historical trace of lute

or viol makers anywhere, should dispel for the present

all

the hazy speculative notions regarding the post-historic

Arabian origin of either the

by

side with this vic^ there

like the

ment
It

is

modern

violin

bow

violin
is

or the bow, for, side

the drawing of a

in principle

and

in

bow

as could well be expected in so early a specimen.

little

longer than

mechanism shown on

the instrument

and has a

the stick quite evidently for the

purpose of increasing or decreasing the tension.

is

bow might even have

The

backward curve when

a relaxed condition as the hair in the drawing
represented to be tight while the stick is drawn

original
in

as

measure-

straight.

In view of

all

this, in

the picture of a viol

coeval with the cruth, and almost identical in style

and
it

stringing with

appears to

me

known forms

difficult to

of the latter instrument,

avoid at least one tentative

conclusion, namely, that the " First

Book

of

Songs

" of

Augurellus temp 1491, confirms in a singularly cogent

fashion

was

my

previously expressed opinion that the cruth

the progenitor of the violin.

Subsequent to the publication of the above work, one

or two musical treatises

came from

the early printing

THE CRUTH AND

presses,

and

VIOLS.

found illustrations of viols of

in these are

come

various shapes, until 'we

entitled "

the large work

to

Athanasius Kircher issued from the

and

23

Roman

The

Musurgia Universalis."

of

press in 1650,
illustrations

of viols in this

book represent

present day.

In every point, these illustrations conform

to

our- present

violin

and

outline

large and

He

model.

They

Chelys major and Chelys minor.

instruments

form as

small

having

it is

calls

at the

them

are four-stringed

volute and scroll

The shaping of the

same as we have them.

precisely like our present violin.

neck and fingerboard

The

is

much

the

outline of the instruments almost exactly corresponds

to that of our violin.

The design

*of

the sound holes,

and the placing of them are what might well be called

We are only shown the

identical with our methods.

front of the viols, but the shading round the margins,

combined with that on the fingerboards, and the evident

curve of the bridges, plainly indicate the nature of the
arching to be broad and long.

Kircher, in describing

these instruments, says that the larger one

was commonly

and that it had at the utmost four strings.

That the stopped portion of the strings was a third part

called violone,

of their whole length, he further adds, with regard to the

violone, but, in describing the lesser " Chelys,"

he
at

calls a

the

noble instrument, he says that although

most four

the fourth octave.

board than
is

is

strings,

one can

which
it

has

ascend as far as

This implies a much longer finger-

shown

in the drawing, which, for the rest'

remarkably accurate in

only other point in which

its

its

general features.

The

absolute faithfulness might

be questioned would be the indication of the precise

THE FIDDLE FANXIER's GUIDE.

24

spot in which the bridge

is

placed.

With us

it

occupies

a position between the notches in the sound holes, but in

Kircher's drawings the bridge stands just a

tail piece.

flat

or

There they

slightest importance.

head

to tail,

and

nearer

felicitous

outlines,

similar crude scrolls

fingerboards.

are, vioHn

forms from

at the present time instruments claiming

to be violins are sent out into the

to

little

Whether the backs of these viols were

arched in the same way as the fronts, is not of the

the

What,

world with similar

similar heavy-looking sound

and
if

volutes,

in-

holes,

and almost as stinted

any, particular individual can claim

have been the inventor or designer of

will

be considered in another portion of

here

it

this violin
this

form

book, but

may be said that it can be traced in various ways

many models and fanciful variety of outline back
viol of 1491, and that the violin, as we have it,

through
to the

also

actually

printed.

existed

long before

Kircher's book

was

CHAPTER

IV.

011 (Dlb anb 4^ctD IDiolins.

BRESCIA

and Cremona

centres
fancier
it

that

of

is,

should be

interest

no doubt, the chief

are,
for

the

intelligent

the fancier of old fiddles.

so,

for,

If

although there are

fiddle

not so,

it is

many

other

places where fine fiddles have been produced in times

past, the great majority of these places are
fine

instruments of

knew what

much

to look for,

the

same

class

and where

still

if

producing

people only

to look for

it

but

there are no places in the world producing violins

of

same high character in all respects as those which

have come down to us from the great masters of the
Cremonese and Brescian schools, and here it may be, I
think, just as well to say a word or two about new fiddles.
the

It is,

undoubtedly, a general opinion current

among

pro-

and amateur players that new violins are usually

That means that the tone
neiv in the matter of tone.
These are really
is " woody," " hard," or " metallic."
fessional

the only terms that

defect.

Now,

may

properly describe the supposed

that opinion

is,

in regard to the vast

of ordinary trade violins, perfectly sound,

bulk

and these three

terms very accurately portray the kinds of tone which

new

violins

of the

trade

class

possess.

Curiously

enough, the same three terms will exactly describe the

tones of ninety out of every hundred fiddles of the old

type to be found in the market at the present time.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

26

am

speaking

and

thirty

now

principally of

pounds downward

from twenty-five

iolins

to eight, six, five, four,

and

These sums are freely given for

common, old rubbish, such as are really only fit to be
broken up when compared with new instruments at
similar prices.
The reader will observe that I have
even fewer pounds.

said ninety out of every hundred

way

of indicating the proportion of

rough and ready

bad

to

good

instru-

mean not intrinsically

And by
bad, but bad by comparison with new instruments at
equal prices. It is now going on for half a century since
"

ments.

began

to take

bad

"

here

an interest

to

time than

much

that

apparently fixed

the

people to have an

old fiddle at all

want a

they

in violins,

me more

of the subject have caused

and few aspects

surprise from time

determination of

hazards.

beautiful

old

It

is

violin,

not so
or

an

exquisitely toned old violin, for these distinctions cannot

generally be promiscuously secured at such prices as they

are willing to give, but they want an old violin, because

they consider that

excellence.
this.

its

age will be a kind of guarantee of

Few notions

Age guarantees

its

could well be more absurd than

nothing, except the possibility that

there will be a few cracks here and there in the

wood

of the instrument, a few square inches of varnish rubbed

off,

two in the ribs, a scroll defective on one

some such indication of abuse or wear, but age

a fracture or

side, or

guarantees

nothing

with

regard

manufacture or quality of tone.

originally been a

good

violin,

excellence

to

If the

instrument has

with a good quality of tone,

age and use undoubtedly improve that

manner which no person

of

quality in

scientific or unscientific

has

ON OLD AND NEW VIOLINS.

27

as yet been able satisfactorily to explain.

great

many

people have, from time to time, advanced more or less

plausible reasons for this important betterment of violin

tone

through

and

treatment

kindly

the

beneficent

influences of the lapse of years, but the best of these

merely careful examinations

explanations are
researches into,

have nothing to
tone,

but

concern

his efforts of

daresay

the constitution of one of the eternal

were

himself involved in

not be found quite so hard a task to

it

will

be accomplished in a trustworthy

manner under present

it

existing

or

about subjecting to

set

the causes of improvement in violin tone,

do not think

as

production

work and experiment, which would render

little use to his fellow man, and although
will

it

investigate

and

of

he would probably find

conditions of

its

were to

scientist

practical analysis
verities,

of,

phenomena which
do with the question of improvement of

only
If a

quality.

mechanism

the

a box,

in

technical terminology

and more or

is

together,

a few choice selections from a

and sprinkle them, with a little ink

less taste

sheet of paper

To shake

limitations.

one

and

skill,

way

of explaining this

over the surface of a

curious

phenomenon and a good many other much more

important phenomena, be it said, without offence but it
It
is never resorted to by genuinely scientific writers.
is

the stock-in-trade of the secondary hand, who, having

nothing particular to say, but, convinced

that he

must say something

for his

in

deadly earnest

own

preservation,

rushes with a sensation of fierce hunger in his Hterary

stomach, and clutches at the

worker

who has modestly

little

store of

placed

some

patient

the results of his

THE FIDDLU FANCIER's GUIDE.

28

research before the world in some out-of-the-way corner

Lucubrations of

of the country.

kind are valueless,

this

because they are generally compiled by those

in a very superficial

who

only

manner understand what they are

who indeed do not always appear to

comprehend the precise meaning of the terms they cull
from the works upon which their efforts are based.
writing about, and

Many

felicitous instances of this

dence

in

kind of misplaced confi-

what are frequently considered quite legitimate

authorities might be quoted, but this

Now, whatever may be

them.

or innumerable

of

this

hardly the place for

is

the cause or causes

in a violin's tone, the general reader

any instrument possessing

it

in a

may rest

There

after.

is

assured that

marked degree

now

bination with those excellences which

the better classes of

modern work,

be well looked

will

always, of course, the chance of a fine

coming

but a " moderate

within reach at a moderate price,

is

not

now determined by

the figures employed,

but by the quality of the instrument to be sold.

pounds may be a moderate price

pounds may be a
But it is now one of the

thousand
another.

instrument of good quality and

maturity of tone so

pounds.

com-

in

characterise

old violin of the second, third, or fourth rank

price "

few

improvement through age and use

And under

much
that

for

one

violin,

moderate

Forty

and two

price

for

rarest things to find an

finish,

having that round

desired, at anything like forty

and down

to

five

pounds,

if

buyer only knows how to choose, modern instruments

will

put old ones entirely out of court.

unhesitatingly,

which one

and with regard

violin

say this

to almost e\ery point in

can excel another.

The

difficulty is in

ON OLD AND NEW VIOLINS.

29

In the matter of tone and capacity

the choosing of them.

there are hardly two vioHns aHke, and one does not meet

many

a great
It

people

and

are really good judges of tone.

tea-tasting,

like

which no amount of training seems

for

Many grocers'

good substitute.
a

who

appears to be a faculty something

tell you
hand on a small

assistants could

sound tea by closing their

fairly

be a very

to

quantity, and others could indicate a similar quality

scanning the

roll

of the

leaf,

are the result of an experience which might

No man

by

but standards of that kind

fail

any day.

during this century had better opportunities of

training himself in the matter of proper violin tone than

the late

J.

B. Vuillaume of Paris, and few

men have spoken

with a calmer assumption of supreme knowledge than

he,

and yet few

was about

to say not

any

have been

so thoroughly hoaxed on this subject as he was.

made

in a great

ently

He

splendid violins with a most excellent quality of tone

many

instances, but he did not

although he

when he heard them.

who think of laying

professed to

know

differences

My advice to all readers of this Guide

out

five, ten, fifteen,

twenty-five and thirty pounds on a violin,

sound,

know appar-

the

new instrument

twenty, or even
is to

purchase a

unless, of course, they have some

exceptionally rare opportunity of getting one of the finer

old ones at the

same money

chance which

is

not

And if they have no knowledge themwhat a violin tone should be, let them seek
the services of someone who does know.

likely to occur.

selves of

CHAPTER
Classkal anb

Jpost-dassical

THEarrangement

reader will

turn

to

following

found

name

alphabetical
will

of the maker,

possible

it

to

There

differentiate.

number about whom

is

be able

and
I

find

have
very

or nothing can be said,

little

and these have been excluded from

in

He

iltakcrs.

explained such points of his work as

^there

large

the

find

Violin

easy of reference.

once to the

at

V.

this

list,

and given

one later on, but the latest particulars are given in

cases where any particulars were available,

all

have ex-

cluded certain names which are found in tickets in old

violins sold at the present day,

time,

am

because in the mean-

inclined to the belief that they are absurd

Such names

concoctions of violin dealers and others.

Raccomodes, Revisto, Renisto,

are

etc.

have seen

Renisto gravely described as a pupil of Carlo Bergonzi.

To me

when they

names

these

all

suggested in the

appear

to

following fashion.

repaired a violin,

be

concoctions

Italian

makers,

have occasionally put

in a

ticket intimating that circumstance as follows, generally

in

handwriting, but

da

rtie,"

now and

in our idiom, " overhauled

by me."
which is,
this

again printed, " Revisto

This means

followed by the repairer's name.

I
I

have seen a

by me,"

ticket of Carlo

think, reproduced

expression,

literally,

" Revisto

da

somewhere

me

" revised

Bergonzi's

containing

Carlo

Bergonzi."

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Sometimes these inscriptions are not very legible, and

daresay an enterprising man coming across one of
1

the half erased tickets,

and

not,

perhaps, acquainted

with Italian, might readily think Revisto was a maker's

name and that da meant, in this case, " from " and not
" by."

could conceive him, then, in the interests of

his art, getting a

few tickets printed to put into violins

which he was absolutely certain were made by the same

Having accomplished this, these tickets might,

hand.

become

in their turn,

and some other

and feel that
society, and hence we

partially illegible,

dealer might very readily misread v for

he also had a duty to perform to

have

At any rate

Renisto.

this is

my

present view with

regard to these names, but, of course,

to

change

it

n,

am

quite open

on proper evidence being adduced that

who were fiddle makers,

There are many queer names in the

persons bearing them, and

really existed.

world.

ha\'e

same opinion with

the

regard

to

"

Raccomodes," which appears to be a corruption of

the French participle raccommode, and which signifies
" repaired."

Acevo

and

have

Sapino

fabricated names,

and

long

been

suspected

have not included them

as

either.

They were at one time supposed to have been pupils of

Cappa. The first name appears to be a corruption of
acero which, in Italian, means maple, and sapino means
pine, the two woods
Of course we have,

of

which a

the owners of which both

fiddles,

mystery

violin is generally

in this country, both these

work

in

wood, the one

the other in furniture, but there

in

addition

made.

names,

attached to Acevo

is

an

and

air

in

of

Sapino

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

32

ground

GUIDE.

and there seems to be

supposing them to be the names of

which has never been

little

for

dispelled,

actual makers.

Acton,

W.

vi^ho

made

for

good

very good

Wamsley and afterwards

Model Amati.

Peter

Albani, M., Botzen, 1621

Good

17271807.

for himself in Piccadilly.

maker.

of our

Violins.

AiRETON, E., London,

maker

One

Contemporary.

J.

native makers.

1673.

An

old Tyrolese

tubby Stainer model.

quality, but

Albani, M., Botzen, 1650

1712.

Son

of preceeding

maker.

Totally different style of work from that of his

father.

In some cases

it is

really of a very high class,

and might very readily be mistaken

for

Cremonese work.

Beautifully figured wood.

Albani, M., Gratz.

know nothing

Albani, P., Cremona, 1650

He

of this maker.

is

1670.

supposed to

of this maker.
I

know nothing

have been a pupil of

made instruments

Nicolas Amati, and to have

of that

model and of good workmanship.

Aldric,

1792

Paris,

1840.

Some

the

of

work

of

praise.

He made

beautiful copies of Stradivari, not only in

model and

this

maker

arching, but in

some cases succeeded

Cremonese quality of tone

His varnish

is

highest

for the

calls

in

getting the

to quite a marvellous degree.

sometimes very

looking, but one might say

it

spiritless
is

and common-

his only defect.

The

heads of his violins are strong and massive-looking, and

finely designed.

The

irregular in width,

grain of the belly

which

in

some

is

sometimes

people's eyes indicates

carelessness in selection, but the tone

tells

a different

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

His sound holes are

tale.

His arching

pot-bellied.
full

His

height.

finest

prettily cut, but just a little

is

might be played along with

much by

and

\'ery fine,

varnish

is

brown, and a perfect specimen of

not suffer

33

many

his ribs of a

of a dark
this

reddish

maker's work

a fine Stradivari and

the comparison.

Alletsee, Paul, Munich, 1726

1735.

A very artistic

some respects chiefly in matters of design an

Sometimes has beautifully grained
original worker.
wood, such as even A. and H, Amati might have been
and

in

proud

Made large instruments

German letters " Paulus

of.

generally in

macher

mostly.

Tickets

Alletsee Geigen-

in Miinchen."

Amati, Andrea, Cremona, was the founder of

family of violin makers.

known.

It is

The date

of his birth

is

this

not

conjectured that he was married to his

wife in 1554, and that his sons Antonio and

Hieronymus were born in 1555 and 1556, respectively.
By this marriage he had also a daughter, Valeria, who
was herself married for the first time on 3rd May, 1587.
This is the earliest fixed date regarding the Amati family
that has been ascertained from documentary evidence.
The father, Andrea, was married a second time in 1609,
and of this union was born another daughter, Candida,
who did not survive a month. Of the work of Andreas it

first

is

only possible to speak in very limited fashion.

have

only seen two specimens which could claim to be from

his hand.
'cello

One was

which,

Charles IX.

it

the famous "

is said,

It is

King Andreas Amati

was presented by Pope Pius

''

to

a magnificently decorated instrument

with somewhat narrow but finely finished margins, and

THE FIDDLE FANXIER

34

S GUIDE.

having beautiful golden-brown varnish over wood of which

it

is

not very easy to see the quality, or to say anything

that could not be said of

Betts.

The

its

very clever copy by John

purfling certainly

of exquisite quality,

is

but there does not appear to have been the same care in
selection of wood
The second was another

the

as

makers displayed

of the

same

me

the outline of which did not strike

larly good.

suite,

later on.

but a violin,

as being particu-

maker are scarcely

Instruments by this

known, and are chiefly of antiquarian interest.

Amati, a. and H., Cremona. Antonius and Hieronymus
Amati were the sons of Andreas, and are supposed to
have been born in 1555 and 1556 respectively. Hieronymus died on the and November, 1630, and there is no
trace of his brother Antonius either having lived or died.

There

is

an Antonius mentioned

in the

documents of

another parish in Cremona as having died in 1595, but

those who have carried out the researches believe that

he was only distantly related

The

to the fiddle family.

instruments of this firm are of the highest merit in their

class.

They

are finished in the most perfect manner,

covered with varnish passing from a

to a beautiful golden

wood

selected

is

brown with

and

warm maple brown

a tinge of red.

The

and the

sizes

of the finest character,

The arching is
of the instruments are generally small.
somewhat high, but finely and gracefully carried
of course, nothing of the grotesque
out, and has,
All
and tubby character displayed in imitations.
the work is of a refined and delicate nature, and
harmonises well with the choice of wood, which
described as

fine,

and

delicate too.

may

be

have seen some

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

of this firm's
close.

wood

Many

of a nice open grain, but

35

usually-

it is

of their two-piece backs are beautifully-

The sound

matched, and have a clearly defined figure.

and well placed, and have a slightly

peculiar look which has given rise to certain extremely

holes are graceful,

odd

The

effects in the imitations.

sound hole being,

inner side of each

to a certain extent,

on the

rise

of the

long and graceful arch, these have a slightly misleading

appearance given to them, as

if

knockkneed, so to speak.

little

apprehension

they were in

The

that in so cutting

is

fact, just a

of this mis-

result

them

many

in

of even

the best imitations, the grossly exaggerated arch of the

copies gives

to

these sound holes quite

ludicrous

appearance in the eyes of a connoisseur, although

it

might not be so easily observed by anyone not acquainted

Some

with the originals.

of their work, like that

Andreas Amati, was painted and

decorated

unseemly

or

abused

to say.

as

The

gilded,

many might

not

think

it

H. Amati
and sweet, although

tone of the A. and

violins is generally exceedingly rich

it is

of

and otherwise

not usually very powerful.

Amati,
great

This maker was the

Nicolas, Cremona.

artist

of

the

family.

He

w^as

son

of

the

Hieronymus Amati previously mentioned, by his second

wife, Madonna Laura Lazzarini, who died of the plague
some six days before her husband, on the 27th October,
Nicolas was the fifth child of the second union,
1630.
his brothers and sisters by the two marriages numbering
He was born on the 3rd December, 1596,
in all thirteen.
and died on the 12th April, 1684, being buried in the
His work is very
Carmelite Church of Saint Imerio.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

36

rare, although

number

one would not readily suppose so from the

of instruments claiming to be original specimens

from his hands.

his father's firm,

Indeed

margins.
in

He somewhat flattened the model of

and brought the arching nearer to the
I

have seen

as quite rounded.

In work again dating forty years

before his death, the arch

is,

specimens of his work

late

which the contour of the arch might almost be described

is

quite high, but

One

That goes without saying.

of course, fine.

peculiar characteristic of his early period

in

the very pronounced

They

corners.

may

be seen

are so fully

developed that they are not unlike a dog's nose.

that

peculiarity

At any

almost disappears.

The

ceases to be so strongly in evidence.

wood, both back and

generally very

ribs, is

His varnish

wider.

brown,

through

to

is

Later,
rate,

it

figure of his

sound holes are narrow in early work, and

little

work

all his

The

full.

in

later a

a beautiful golden yellow,

golden

The model

red.

of

Nicolas Amati of the grand pattern has a distinctly solid

look about
violin is

it.

much

The width

of the upper portion of the

nearer that of the lower portion than in

the work of his predecessors in the firm, namely, A. and

H.

Their violins have a more tender,

the upper and lower portions.

is,

The sound

the main stems of their design

appear as

if

robust look,

in

holes

that

a fine specimen

drawn toward each other at

the stems.
They are, in reality almost

infinitesimally

the lower half of

parallel,

less

between the width of

chiefly because of this difference

and that delusive appearance

wisp which leads copyists astray.

is

the will

o'

the

Nicolas Amati was

married on 23rd May, 1645, to Lucrezia Pagliari,

who

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

was
of

They had nine

children,

only one followed the father's calling.

Among

his junior

whom

the pupils

as

is

37

by thirteen years.

who

resided in the house of Nicolas Amati^

evidenced by extracts from the parish records,

may be

mentioned, in 1641 Andrea Guarnieri,

fifteen

Five years afterwards, Andrea Guarnieri

years old.

not mentioned.

Then,

1653 ^^ reappears, and

in

is
is

described as being then married, and next year dis-

appears for good from the house of his master.

Amati, Hieronymus, Cremona.

Born 26th February,

February, 1740.

This was the only

1649, died 2ist

member

of Nicholas Amati's family

father's calling.

He

who

followed the

appears to have done so chiefly as

a dealer, for the styles of the instruments bearing his

name

are

of such remarkably varied character as

leave one strongly doubting that they were

all

to

made by

one man.

Ambrosi,

p., Brescia,

Rome,

what common work.

Anselmo, p., Cremona

1730.

Reputedly some-

and Venice, 1701.

Very

known about him. Described as good work.

Poor work.
AssALONE, G., Rome, 17
AuBRY, Paris, 1840.
A nephew of Aldric, already
referred to, and who succeeded to his uncle's business,

little

but not to his

AuDiNOT,

skill

or fame.

Nicolas,

Paris.

An

excellent

French

maker, born in Mirecourt in 1842, and trained by his

He was afterwards
father, who was established there.

employed by Sebastien Vuillaume (who was a nephew

of the great J. B. Vuillaume) and was in business in
Paris.

His instruments are

of great merit.

THE FIDDLE

38

AuGiERE.

FAN'CIER's GUIDE.

very good Parisian maker, established

about 1830.

Bagatella, Antonio, Padua, 1786.

as the author of a work on

Chiefly

vioHns which

known

of great

is

He was a fine repairer of old violins,

and was employed by Tartini.
Balestrieri, T., Cremona and Mantua, 1720 1772.
A very good maker indeed. Some of his work is re-

interest even yet.

markably
except

like that of Stradivari

in

almost

points,

all

Powerful and good quality of tone.

finish.

Balestrieri, P., Cremona.

Brother of preceeding.

Poor work.
Barnia, Fidele, Venice, 1760.

maker, who was established

in

Milanese trained

Venice.

Fairly good,

neat work, yellow varnish.

Banks,

Benjamin, Salisbury, 1727

our finest English makers.

and tone to many

1795.

Quite equal in

of

His margins

of the fine Italian makers.

His
and of true Nicolas Amati early style. His
'arching is exquisite, and the tone of his violins fine and
ringing.
The grain of the wood is generally remarkably
His varnish is decidedly
equal, and of medium width.
are

His edges

One

style, finish,

splendid.

corners

beautifully

rounded.

full,

rich, of a

beautiful purplish

transparent.

and grand

cherry colour, and fairly

His bigger instruments are also superb,

in tone.

Belosio, Anselmo, Venice, 1720

1780.

Santo Serafino, but a mediocre worker.

pupil of

Dull, thicker

varnish than his master's.

Barrett,

J.

London,

1714

Stainer whose model he has

1725.
much

copyist

of

exaggerated, like

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

who have

dozens of other makers

tried

indeed be said that the bulk of Stainer

exaggerated as not to merit the

at

They

all.

are

title

caricatures.

however, by no means bad.

work is,
good
breadth in it. His

of

the

Varnish

round

is

of fairly

lower turn having

a warmish yellow.

Edges

purfling not particularly good.

Bergonzi,

maker

copies are so

Barrett's

sound holes are quaint looking

a long sweep.

may

of Stainer copies

His tone

amount

quality with a certain

It

it.

39

is

A member

1747.

This

the Cremonese

artists.

Cremona,

Carlo,

one of the

finest of

1716

in fact, of the quartet

par

excellence^

Amati

known
when he was born, but he began working
on his own account in the year first mentioned, and died
in 1747.
He was a pupil of Stradivari when the latter
was doin^ his finest work, as seems to be borne out by
the grand outline of Carlo's own work, which is akin to
The
the best of Stradivari, and of Nicolas Amati.
Stradivari,

Guarnieri,

Bergonzi.

It

is

not

yet

sound holes are very pure, and sometimes approach the

style of Nicolas

Amati, except that they bend slightly

The model

outwards at the lower turn.

is

grand,

although his violins are sometimes small, being slightly

under fourteen inches.

There

equality between the upper

is

that approach towards

and lower portions of the

instrument which gives that magnificent appearance to

what is called the " grand " pattern of both Stradivari

and Nicolas Amati. His arching is flat, and his varnish
In many
of rich quality, and exceedingly fine in colour.
of his violins it is of a beautiful, rich, transparent brown
on reddish orange, and

is

occasionally rather thickly laid

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

40

In some instruments

on.

unlike the

it

has crackled

famous

of the

There

marked

the

boss of

itself

last

His

scroll

is

More properly

called.

volute,

on some

very

fine.

about the ear, or eye,

peculiarity

sometimes

is

it

the

is

over, not

all

Vernis Martin

French pieces of furniture.

old

as

manner

GUIDE.

it

would be

terminal stem, which shows

or

on each side sticking out

at the last

This

turn.

turn comes suddenly out, although the immediately

previous turn

is

almost parallel to the vertical axis

The

the volute viewed from the back.

instruments

is

generally splendidly

full,

of'

tone of his

broad, smooth,

and magnificently equal.

Bergonzi, M. a., Cremona, 1720

was a son

His work

of Carlo.

degrees, to that of his father,

1760.

This maker

not equal, by

is

but that

is

many

not saying a

very great deal against him, for his father, as has been
said,

was one

the

of

greatest

Michael Angelo Bergonzi's style

many

perhaps

him on
in

back and

front,

is

Cremonese.

employed good wood, both

and plenty of

and massive, and not so

the

however, heavy, and

would not appreciate

fastidious judges

that account, but he

of

is,

it.

His work

artistically finished,

is

solid

but there

no doubt about the quality of

his tone being of a high

His sound holes are

after his father's style,

character.

but longerof very

fair

design, but slightly unequal.

Purfling not particularly good, but his varnish

quality.
his

His outline

is

middle bouts are set

there

is

is

good

of

not so good as his father's, and

in

much

a sense of strength

deeper, but with

all

that

and individuality about

his

work which, when combined with the quality of his tone,

makes a fine specimen of his something to be cherished.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

4I

Bergonzi, Nicolaus, Cremona, 1739 1765.

Son of
Michael Angelo Bergonzi, made better finished instru-

ments than

his father,

and much after same model, but

I have been able to judge,

worse varnish, and as far as

I

do not

like

them

so well.

Bergonzi, Zosimo, Cremona, 1765. Another son of

Michael Angelo, made somewhat highly arched instruments

for a Bergonzi,

but having a pretty enough tone.

Bassot, Joseph, Paris, from about 1788.

This is
reckoned a good French maker.
Anything I have seen
of his did not strike

me

as being of very high class,

was of sound construction and the tone of good

quality.
Model somewhat high and boxy. Varnish
but

it

ordinary.

Bernardel, Sebastien

He

Mirecourt in 1802.

went

to Paris,

Phillipe, Paris.

Born

where he got employment from the famous

Nicolas Lupot at

first,

and afterwards from Charles

He

Fran9ois Gand, another famous Parisian maker.

Bernardel pere, and

called in the trade

^iolins

many

is

of his

are of a class reckoned only inferior to Lupot.

Bernardel indeed

made instruments very

his first employer, as

was

to

He

retired

6th August, 1870.

like

be expected.

highly esteemed in France, but not

here.

at

learned violin making there and

much

those of

They

are

appreciated

from business in 1866, and died on

Previous to his retirement, his two

sons Avere taken into the business, and the firm

became

Bernardel and Sons.

After his retirement in 1866, the

Eugene Gand
brothers, and the

became a partner of the two

firm was changed to Gand and

late

Bernardel Bros.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

42

GUIDE.

Betts, John, London.

He was born
1755, and died in 1823.

Lincolnshire, in

at

Stamford

This maker

and dealer has become famous chiefly through two things,

the first being his copy of the King Andreas Amati 'Cello
This copy

before referred to.

duction,

certainly a fine pro-

showing

which, besides

apparently the

is

primitive

paint in

what was

abundance, also shows the

wood, a very great advantage over the

original,

rather ancient now, and dingy-looking.

which

is

The second

circumstance was that singularly fortunate, and most

exceptionally lucky windfall

as

it

might be named

now famous "Betts

his direction of the

in

Strad," one of

Nothing

the handsomest of Stradivari violins.

definite

appears to be known about the date of this transaction,

but

occurred probably between seventy and eighty

it

Some

years ago.

person sold a violin over the counter

to one of the Messrs. Betts, in their shop at the

Exchange

No, one of the shops, probably, which at

present face the front of the

price asked,

twenty

or

shillings,

Bank

of England.

The

agreed upon, for the instrument was

the person

course, the slightest idea of

its

selling

it,

not having, of

Mr. Betts, how-

value.

knew what

ever,

him

Royal

it was, and bought it, keeping it beside

and declining very handsome offers of as
hundred guineas for it.
The story is a

for years,

much

as five

striking one, but

it

is

not without

its

parallel,

even in

John and Arthur Betts are said to have

made a copy of this Stradivari. These were descendants

recent times.

of the original John,

prolific

wood

violin

who

maker.

in the back, as

it

does not seem to have been a

This copy has very handsome

ought to have,

in order to

match

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

its original,

43

but the sound holes appear rather weak, and

the volute of the scroll just a

little

Anything

topheavy.

have seen of the original John Betts was good, solid,

square work, without any great display of taste, and
I

There was an Edward

with rather bad sound holes.

Betts,

who

did better work as far as concerns appearance.

They were both

pupils

of

employed other people

chiefly

Richard Duke, but they

to

make

for

them, and, as

can judge, a considerable quantity of rubbish

far as I

passed through their shop along with a great deal that

was good, and much

that

was

splendid,

and which

will

be referred to under the actual makers.

BoQUAY,

famous

model

Paris,

J.,

in his day,

is

high,

and

1705

One

of the best

models.

L.,

him

maker was
yet.
His

do not think much of the tone.

Berlin.

German

He was

This
like

his varnish is not bad, of a reddish

brown, tending to yellow.

Bachmann, C.

1735.

and many people

Born

copyists in

1716.

Died 1800.

Amati and Stainer

professional

musician

at

the

Prussian court, a distinguished connoisseur of his time

and the inventor of the system of screwing the double

bass pegs, which led to the adoption of machine heads.

His instruments are soundly made, and covered with a

kind of

oil

varnish.

Breton, F. " Brevete de S. A. R. Me La Duchesse

D'Angouleme a Mirecourt," so runs the ticket of this
maker who seems to have worked in Mirecourt from
about 1800 to 1830, or later. His instruments frequently
have a

light

to look at,

brownish yellow varnish, not unpleasant

though of rather

common

type,

and such as

one might expect to see on a good class of trade instru-

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

44

The

ment.

tone

is

GUIDE.

not without breadth, and

The arching is
by no means bad, but

certain degree, sympathetic.

altogether the

work

is

people think common-looking, no fault at

and

what
a good

is

in

all

to a

is,

flat,

violin.

Briggs, James W., Leeds.

Contemporary.

of William Tarr of Manchester.

pupil

and

Violins, violas,

basses.

CoLLiNGWooD, JosEPH, Loudon,

1760.

English maker of considerable originality.

and pleasing,

fine old

Fine wood,

His sound holes are

light yellow varnish.

well designed, but very wide Amati-Stainer model, with

remarkably good quality of tone.

Camillus, Camilli, Mantua, about 1740.

who

maker

copied Stradivari to a certain extent, and employed

good wood and

fairly

good varnish.
This was a Piedmontese

Cappa, Joffridus, Saluzzo.

maker, about

much

whom a good deal has

been written without

Fetis had
was born in Cremona, and had been a pupil of A. and
H. Amati, giving other apparently well ascertained
particulars regarding him which very naturally led
people to suppose that he had acquired them in some

authoritatively said that he

foundation.

An

specifically authentic fashion.

of

much

little

to

distinction also took

about this maker, but

Italian connoisseur

some trouble

failed.

Conjecture appears

have been very busy with him and

seems that he was

during the

first

information

is

at

work

in

to find out a

his work.

It

now

Saluzzo and in Turin

half of the seventeenth century,

derived solely from

instruments claiming to be by him.

tickets

and

this

found

Anything that

in
I

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

have seen which

could be persuaded to admit might

possibly belong to the period in which he

have

care in the wood, a

sound

tasteless
for the

style, varnish,

cautious.
this

good

style,

parentage showed discrepancies in

his

model, and everything

palpably absurd, that

in regard to

fairly

Other examples equally claimant

holes.

honour of

else,

little

who

which were so

think him one of those

dummies

whom the fiddle-fancier should be particularly

There are some very

fine instruments bearing

name, whether they are by Cappa or

sons

supposed to

is

showed poor
generally tubby look, and rather

although of

lived,

45

not.

He had

followed the business, but whose work

is

of

importance.

Lorenzo and Tomasso, Florence, 1738

I have seen a number of instruments professing to
1758.
A few of them were fairly good.
be by these makers.
This is a name which is, unfortunately, largely used to
Carcassi,

put into any kind of absurd rubbish which

may

it is

thought

be got rid of in a sale room.

An

Castagneri, Gian Paolo.

settled in Paris,

and whose

violins

Italian

maker who

appear to be remark-

ably rare and of mediocre quality to boot.

Castagneri, Andrea, Paris, 1735

was

a son of above,

ments than

1741.

This maker

and made somewhat better

his father.

The

instru-

dates given are those found

on two of his instruments.

Poor work.

Castro, Venice, i68o^;-i720.

Castello, Paolo, Genoa, 1750. Poor work.

Ceruti, Giovambatista, Cremona, 1755 1817.

maker

is,

of Storioni,

in

Italy,

supposed to have been

on what ground

it

is

difficult to guess.

This
pupil

He

THE FIDDLE FANXIER'S GUIDE.

46

succeeded to Storioni's business

removed

the

into

premises

1790, or, at

in

least,

occupied

previously

by

Storioni at No. 3, Contrada Coltellai, near the square of

Saint Domenic.

Perhaps

this

circumstance

given rise to the notion, for there

very

Ceruti

Amati model, but having a

varnish is of a soft and

are very good, chiefly of the

The

tone quite French in style.

but not particularly spirited in appear-

ance, and not very transparent.

cherry colour,

dull,

may have
common

little in

The instruments of

between Ceruti and Storioni.

elastic character,

is

It

is

frequently of a

Guiseppe and

scumbly.

rather

Enrico were son and grandson of Giovambatista, and

on the

carried

of

traditions

the

house

wdth credit.

Enrico, the last of the Cerutis, died on 20th October,

1883

i860

his father, Guiseppe, having predeceased him

and thus the direct
of communication which

in

line

had subsisted between makers of modern times, and the

of the more important Cremonese artistes was

last

severed, as Giovambatista
Storioni, of

much

greatest of the
talk to

was the

depository, through

of the traditionary lore regarding the

Cremonese School.

As

the irresponsible

which that kind of information gives

something

to

do with

confusion

the

of

rise

has

knowledge

regarding the subject, the drying up of such a stream of

gossip

is

not so

much

to be regretted as the disappearance

of the firm of Ceruti itself from the contemporary annals

of fiddle lore.

at

Chanot, Francis.

Born

Rochefort, 1828.

He was

scientist

of

who

violin

at Mirecourt, 1788.

Died

a naval engineer, and a

distinguished himself greatly in the study

acoustics

and

construction.

He

invented

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

new

although

He

violin
it

which

made

did

succeed

not

47

permanently,

a considerable sensation at the time.

continued to

make and

specimens of

sell

They

about seven years from 1817.

it

for

almost

differed

wholly from the classical shape and in their principles

of construction, but are

now

interesting in

many ways.

protruding

margins, no

Guitar-shaped, they had no

blocks

back and front were

sound

single pieces,

in

holes parallel, bass bar in the centre,

and so

on.

specimen was tested by a commission of distinguished

known

musicians, and pronounced superior to the best

Stradivaris.

Chanot, George.
at

Brother of preceeding, was born

Mirecourt in 1801.

went

to Paris in 1819.

of his time,

Learnt violin-making there and

Became one

and worked

first

makers

of the finest

then on

for his brother,

the regular fiddle with Clement, a Paris maker.

in

his

82 1, with

own

retired.

Gand

for

two years.

when he

account, and continued until 1872,

He was

reputed

the

Then

In 1823 he began on

finest

connoisseur in

Europe, and his instruments have a very high reputation.

He died in

January, 1883.

his business with his father in

came
for

His son, George, learnt

Paris,

and afterwards

London, where he has been a maker and dealer

upwards of forty years. One of the finest modern
to

copies of Joseph Guarnerius that

outward look and wood goes

George,

who has

have seen

was made

also sons (F.

carrying on the family

name and

and G.

by

as

this latter

A.),

reputation in

and Manchester.
CoMBLE, Ambroise de, Toumay, 1720

far as

worthily

London

1755.

This

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

48

maker has undoubtedly high claims

He

ment.
at

acknowledg-

to

has the reputation of having been actually

Cremona under Stradivari. His work is of a very

The outline of his larger instruments is

high character.

extremely

and

beautiful,

bears

recognisable

quite

evidence of having been guided by a Stradivari

but his sound holes are cut

instruments, which

who came

much

lower than

the influence of the great

Oddly enough, they do not detract much

ensemble.
There is not
entire compactness with which a Stradivari

fine feeling of the

that sense of

'cello inspires one,

but that

De Comble's

is all.

are very beautiful specimens of sculpture.

fine

maker

a curious circumstance in a

so directly under

Cremonese.
from the

is

imtif,

in Stradivari

brownish red, pretty closely resembling

it

is

said,

was a

instruments pretty deep in the

Varnish a
Italian.

CoMiNS, John, London, about 1800.

worker who,

scrolls

very good

Made

pupil of Forster.
ribs.

Light yellow-brown

Fine wood.

varnish.

CoNTRERAS, JosEPH, Madrid, 1745. Very good style

and work. Not very many specimens about.
Cross, Nathaniel, London, 1700 1750. I cannot
say that I greatly admire this maker's work. Somewhat
large and deepsided, his violins have rather tasteless

common

sound

holes, very

They

are covered with a light yellow varnish.

worked

short corners, and

conjunction

in

outline.

He

Barak Norman.

with

His

scrolls are certainly fine.

Derazey, H., Mirecourt.

copier of

J.

B.

Vuillaume

From about
in

1820.

outward

especially in the figures of the backs of

good

appearance,

some

of his

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKKRS.

The

violins.

varnish on the back

sometimes, more

His

Vuillaume.

is

that of the elder

like

His varnish

Tone

purple.

fairly good,

crackly

than of

is

The sound

curiously enough,

Amati copies are

a red, slightly inclining to

1754

His outline

magnificent maker.

Gand

and not so wide

but decidedly nasal.

Duke, Richard, London,

Stainer.

little

Gand

scrolls are also not unlike those of

pere, but not nearly so powerful looking,

at the bottom.

49

is

1780.

This

very pure

is

Amati or

holes in the Stainer models are,

not

particularly

The

better.

but those in

fine,

latter

are

cut

little

narrower at the top than at the bottom turn, which

gives
fine,

them a slightly quaint look. His scrolls are very

and the tone of his instruments is of a most exquisite

character.
in line

consider that he

quite entitled to walk

is

with the Italians of importance in everything

except his varnish, and that chiefly excepted with regard

to its colour, but not in regard to its pate.

beautiful soft, but dull brown, with

Richard Duke violins

are,

it

little

or

It

no

is
life

of a
in

hardly need be said

it.
to.

experienced fanciers, very rare indeed.

DoDD, Thomas, London, 1786

clever

man who

make

did not

1823.

This was

a,

violins himself, like so

many others, about his time. He employed first-class

men to deliver them to him unvarnished. Among these
workers were such as Bernard Fendt and John Lott,
both

men

of the

highest

instruments himself.
to

set

least as

vioHn

the temse on

fire.

Dodd

skill.

It is

a nice

The

oil

varnished the

varnish, but nothing

instruments,

such at

were made by Fendt, are splendid examples of

making.

Dodd

professed

to

be

" the

only

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

50

GUIDE.

Cremona

possessor of the recipe for preparing the original

This statement appears on his

varnish."

may

and

tickets,

be quite true, but he certainly never seems to have

used the recipe.

DuiFFOPRUGCAR,
1510

1540.

Gaspar,

This

is

Bologna,

Lyons,

Paris,

an early lute and viol maker, who,

having once got into books about

never to get out of them.

violins,

seems destined

Every now and again some

person starts the discussion as to whether or not he

made

The

violins.

latest fight

was

May,

in

891, in a

Leipsic paper, where a writer took the trouble to review

[he

whole question, because a Mr. F. Niderheitmann,

of Aix-la-Chapelle, believes that he has discovered three

by

violins

one to

this splendid old viol

whom

maker, although every-

he has shown them, and

know anything about

they are modern French reproductions

in

the sense

Vuillaume's

fac-similes as

The whole

New

that

him that
modern

is,

J.

suppose

of

battle

has

spread

York, where an esteemed correspondent of

own has

B.

they

question has been threshed

out over again, and the fever

to

professes to

they are probably some of

that
clever

should be called.

who

the subject, has told

my

taken the trouble to translate the article and

reproduce

it

First Violin

the form of a small brochure of seven

in

or eight pages,

"Was

Maker

"

Gaspar Duiffoprugcar
I

really the

never saw any violins by the

great Bolognese.

Eberle, J. U., Prague.

maker of the old style

clever

(juality

of

varnish, but

About

1750

fine finish,

1759.

but thin, poor

High model and good quality of

somewhat dark in colour. All the Eberles

tone.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

there were

5I

them appear to have been of

Such work of theirs as I have
seen was of a refined and decorative style.
Ernst, Frank Anthony. Born in Bohemia, was a
musician, writer and violin maker who did good service
to the art in Germany by teaching Jacob Augustus
Otto how to make instruments. I have not seen any
by either master or pupil. Ernst began business in
Gotha about 1778 as a musician at Court, and having
a little leisure he turned his attention to making violins
and succeeded, as is reported, in producing very
good ones.
Fent, Paris, 1763 1780.
This maker has the
reputation of being one of the highest class in France
several of

a highly artistic turn.

of his day.
his violins

have never been able

to

understand

why

have not ranked above those of any French

maker, unless the circumstance that he has been so

unfortunate in the matter of

worms has

told against

down

him, and, perhaps, in addition, the darkening

his varnish.
finest.

In all other respects his

work

He

His model was Stradivari.

is

of

of the

spelt his

name

" Fent " in his tickets and his calling " lutier."

Fendt, Bernhard. This maker was, it is supposed,

nephew of the Paris Fent. He was born at Innsbruck in 1756 and died in London in 1832. His name
a

is

spelt differently

from that of his Parisian

who was not particularly good at

own or in his adopted language,
reference to last article.

relative,

spelling either in his

as

may

Bernhard learnt

be seen by

violin

making

with this uncle in Paris, and at the time of the French

Revolution came to London, where he found employE2

THE FIDDLE FANXIER

52

Thomas

ment with

Dodd

GUIDE.

tone which

The

varnish which

what he professes
might

Dodd
it

quality

and may quite

in that respect.

in

put on, although not exactly

to be,

mislead

readily

having

art,

Cremonese

exquisite

is

truthfully be described as

His

mentioned.

already

instruments are beautiful specimens of his

is

a very fine varnish, and

who have

people

Bernhard Fendt

examples of Cremonese.

seen

not

worked

also

John Betts.
Fendt, Bernard Simon, London. Born in 1800,
He
died 1 85 1. He was a son of the previous maker.

for

spells

" Bernard,"

be observed, without the

as will

letter "

Like his father, he was a splendid maker,

/t."
and has produced work which will rank with some of
Indeed, in the prime matter of tone,

the finest Italian.

his earlier instruments are

now

almost quite in line with

There

the best of the Italians for quality.

roundness on

all

the strings which

is

instruments other than Cremonese.

Italian style,

having a

margins,

and handsome

full

and

very good
exceedingly

neat

fine.

brilliant

excellent

displayed

London

the

while

Altogether his

great

His work

is

He

any

of fine

sides, elegant arching,

double basses and

at

a rich

orange varnish, spacious

purfling,

are splendid productions.

is

rarely found in

also

his

earlier

made

'cellos,

and

International

scrolls

and
are

instruments
a

number

of

1851

he

Exhibition

in

in

a quartet consisting of violin, viola, violoncello

and double bass, which,

competent judge
exhibited in that

in

the

show.

in the opinion of

country,

almost every

surpassed anything

The most competent judges

did not, however, happen to be the jury on that occa-

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

sion,

and although B.

Fendt got a prize medal, the

S.

one which he should have had

went

the grand council medal

to J. B. Vuillaume, of Paris.

violins in the 1851

Bishop,

Hector

The

jury on the

Exhibition consisted of Sir H. R.

Sigismund Thalberg,
Berlioz,

53

J.

W.

Black,

R.

Sterndale Bennett,

Neukomm,

Chevalier

Cipriani Potter, Dr. Schafthauk, Sir George

Henry Wylde.

They were

Smart and

W.

Cazalet,

by the
James Stewart and William Telford.

Only one

of these

gentlemen could even play the

Professor

Rev.

assisted

violin

when he was a young man, namely, Sir George Smart.

The others were general musicians, pianists and organdistinguished, of course, in high degree, but who
ists
knew little more about the question of fiddles than the
man in the moon. One was a pianoforte maker, another

an organ builder, a third a geologist and metallurgist,

a fourth a physician, a
to

fifth

a clergyman

who happened

be superintendent of the Royal Academy, and the

rest

were professors there, or elsewhere, of the piano

and organ.

awarded

The very same gentlemen,

in fact,

who

prize medals to successful competitors in barrel

organs or big drums distributed the honours

and it
surprising that the object rewarded

most wonderful instrument

therefore,

in the world,

for

the

is

not,

in this

Henry Bishop, " New

such a manner that they are

case was, in the words of Sir

modes of making violins in

matured and perfected immediately on the completion
of

the

manufacture, thus avoiding the

necessity of

keeping them for considerable periods to develop their

excellencies."

That

is

the deliberate statement of the

chairman of the jury as to the reason why they gave the

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

54

Council medal to

was

breath for
that

B.

J.

enough

quite

S.

Vuillaume.

it

decision like that

away any

take

to

and

time,

all

GUIDE.

Fendt died that same

however, that decision

maker's

violin

not in the least astonishing

is

year

Seriously,

remain a curious comment

will

on the astonishing ignorance of

which

fiddle matters

more

prevailed in distinguished musical circles forty or

years ago.

none

yield to

in

Wiillaume's fine violins, and

Fendt

my

admiration of

know

also

somewhat

in his later instruments tried

ways, but to accept an honour

kind, argues as

much

for

J.

B.

that B. S.
similar

processes of that

ignorance on Vuillaume's part at

that time as the jury themselves displayed, or else an

amount

unusual

of

hardihood

in

almost

every

the

arts

of

self

of

the

advertisement.

The instruments
Fendt family have

of

ing in public favour.

tone which they possess

The
is

member

back been steadily advanc-

for years

beautiful

character of the

sufficient to

but apart from tone, there

is

account for

this,

a style about Bernhard,

Bernard Simon and Jacob, which so forcibly recalls the

Cremonese, as to make one

finest efforts of the greater

almost
a

fine

realise, in the latter's

Cremona

instruments
his

name

is

is

violin.

absence, what

The

occasionally a

varnish

little dull.

it

is

on

to

his

have
later

In his tickets

printed " Bernard S. Fendt, Junr."

Fendt, Martin, London.

Born 1812. This maker
was another son of Bernhard Fendt, and was in the
employment of the Betts firm.
I hav^ not seen any
instruments which were made by him, and it is probable,
that he was chiefly occupied with repairs.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Fendt, Jacob, London.

Born

Died 1849.

1815.

The whole conception

Another son of Bernhard Fendt.

of his instruments is generally higher than the

members

other

His wood

of his family.

55

is

work of

generally

\ery fine and regular, while some of his backs are really,
in regard to figure,

most

sound

the

copies,

In his Guarnerius

beautiful.

holes

exaggerated

rather

are

reproductions of that great maker's style, but in

he

respect

in

is

very good company,

as

the

this

best

copyists that ever lived have failed in exactly hitting off

the striking peculiarity of Joseph del Jesu's sound holes.

I have heard it urged that these great
makers, both
English and foreign, did not try to " slavishly copy " the

individuality of Joseph Guarnerius, but

I

have great

believe that they tried to copy

cannot say that

faith in the validity of this kind of reasoning.

him and

Stradivari, as

well as Nicolas Amati, in the most minute particular,

and

that

his

imitations

he

left

done, and so
to

do

to

failed

reproductions

imitations

in

clever

simply

it

perfectly.

Vuillaume turned out, under stress of circum-

stances,

put

they

that

When

of

too

we

nothing

it is

of

the

thei

old

may

old

masters, and

tickets

and

very

be absolutely certain

undone that

with any maker,

who

he

could

have

has set himself

copy the old masters in that fashion.

With the
wood

exception of putting in old tickets, discolouring the

by

artificial

means, and otherwise imitating the aged

breaking up
barring, perhaps, the
"
of varnish makers could not do better than " slavishly

appearance

artistic

copy such productions as the Cremonese masters have

left us.

Like Vuillaume, Jacob Fendt,

in order to live.

THE FIDDLE FANCIKR'S GUIDE.

56

was constrained

to turn out

the man's genius

is

the

modern antique, and

the circumstance that he

visible in

could do the latter thing, and at the same time turn out

a splendid violin. In tone, style, and everything, a good

specimen of Jacob Fendt is magnificent.
Fendt, Francis, London. This was another son of
Bernhard, of whom little is known.
Fendt, William, London. This maker was a son of
Bernard Simon, and was employed with
did not

make many

father in the

making

violins,

He

his father.

but was at work with his

of double basses.

Ford, Jacob, London, 1790. A very clever maker,

who imitated in a remarkable manner the great favourite
of most
are a
is

His

scrolls

in other respects, the

model

8th century workers, Jacob Stainer.

and

little stiff-looking,

not really Stainer, but borders very closely on

it.

For example, Stainer's margins, which few English, or

even Continental makers, have copied well, are very
though

by

reproduced

faithfully

not

so large

Ford.
the

as

Stainer's

Italians,

are

margins,

much

less

niggardly than the great majority of his imitators would

have us believe, and although there

is

no great

credit,

perhaps, in the mere reproduction of the design of a

fiddle, when we find a man doing this in a faithful
manner we have reason to cherish the hope that he may
have his head screwed on properly with regard to other

things.

The sound

arching, and one

the work that

is

holes are not Stainer, nor

may

well ask,

Stainer

"

"

What

is

the

is

about

Just the general look and

tone feeling, the finish of the work, which

the choice of wood.

there

is

great,

and

Varnish a deepish tinted yellow.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

57

FoRSTER, John, Brampton. Born 1688. Of interest

because it is supposed that he was the father

chiefly

William Forster, who

of

follows.

It is

understood that

John Forster made one violin.

Forster, William, Brampton. Born 1713 4. Died
1 80 1.
He is chiefly of interest because he was the

father of the next Forster.

Forster, William, Brampton.

He was

violinist,

celebrated throughout

spinningwheel

Born about

maker, violin

1738.

maker, and

the country

side

in

Cumberland for his performance of Scotch reels. He

also composed and published reels.
He came to London
in 1759, and tried spinningwheel making in Commercial
Road, East, but not successfully.
Then he manufactured gun stocks, and occasionally a violin for the
music shops.
By-and-by, after some hardship, he
entered the service of a maker in Tower Hill named
Beck. There is no trace of this Beck anywhere except
in the biography of the Forsters.
William Forster was
successful with Beck, and asked an advance of wages,
was refused, and left.
In 1762 he began business on
his

own account

in

Duke's Court,

St. Martin's

Lane.

Success came there in the form of aristocratic patronage,

and

between

last

date

and

1782,

he

added music

publishing to his business, and at this time used the

title

page of one of these works as a

was

in St. Martin's

Strand

No. 348.

In 1781, he

Lane, and three years later in the

Royal patronage now came, and the

climax of his success was attained.

Haydn

label.

for the publication of his

He

negotiated with

works, and

among

his

customers were the famous engraver, Bartolozzi, and the

THE FIDDLE

58

no

FAN'CIER's GUIDE.

famous

litterateur,

1807.

That he

Peter Pindar (Dr. Walcot).

This William Forster (called in the trade " old Forster")
less

died

in

made instruments

good, and

much

admire the

confess

style of his tenors

course, judging
violoncellos

coveted.

of high

His violoncellos are very

quality goes without saying.

do not altogether

and

violins

that

is,

them by the highest standard, and

do not always appear

to

me

of

his

to be very

graceful instruments as far as outline goes, but rather

broad at bottom, and narrow at top

decidedly good.

His varnish

refined character,

if

W'ith

but their tone

dull,

is

but of a

staid,

may employ

such expressions

The

much

one

regard to varnish.

is

colour of

of

it is

like

a reddish brown, not too dark, with an almost

entire

absence of polish on

air

its

eminent respectability,
piece

of dull

always

fine.

an

surface, but having

like the surface of a

of

well-worn

grain goatskin leather.

His wood is
About 1762 he adopted the Stainer model,

and worked on it for ten years, when he turned to

Amati (A. and H. and Nicolas). What I have said

about his varnish refers to his later work, from about

1780, or a year or

two before

that.

In the early work

he appears to have stained the wood before varnishing.

On

these

it is

He made

dark red with a blackish tinge.

only four double basses.

His commoner

violins, etc.,

had no purfling.
Labels, William Forster, Violin
Maker, in St. Martin's Lane, London.
Forster, William, London.
Born 1764.
Son of
above. He began to make violins early, his first one
being entered

when he was fifteen.

highly finished, but

is

His work

is

generally

not of equal merit in other respects.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

nnd

is inferior to

ones.

His varnish

died in
labels,

Duke

"

and
of

same

is

Music

made two
dozen common
only

and about a

as his father's best.

Added "Junior"

1824.

He

that of his father.

or three vioUns of any worth,

59

He

name in "his
Prince of Wales and
to

Seller to the

his

Cumberland."

Born

FoRSTER, William, London.

Son of above. Made very few

Died 1824.
have not seen'

1788.

violins.

any.

Simon Andrew, London.

Born 1781.
Made few instruments personally, and not
merit, as far as I can learn.
He is best known

FoRSTER,
Died 1869.
of great

as the joint author, along with Mr. Sandys, of a " History

of the

Violin "

which

contains

He

work

states in this

that he

made

violas, thirty-eight violoncellos,

all

of the best class,

instruments, of

would be

in all

and

and that he
of an

all classes,

deal

information regarding the English

of

valuable

School of Makers,
violins, four

fifteen

five

also

double basses,

made

other forty

That

inferior quality.

over a hundred instruments.

have

only seen two or three claiming to be by him, and they

were violins of rather poor quality.

position to say that

FuRBER, London.
the early

members

But

am

not in a

recognised his work in these.

of

family of violin makers regarding"

which very

little

have been chiefly employed making

is

for

known.
others.

They
The

was David, of whom nothing appears to be known.

His son, Matthew^ died in 1790. A subsequent Matthew
and a John Furber worked for the Betts' firm, and Mr.
Hart states that this John made fine copies of the
first

" Betts' "

Stradivari,

while that instrument remained

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

i60

There should therefore be some excellent

with the firm.

copies of this famous fiddle about, and for which

have done some

will

equal.

service

all

time

other things being

The last-mentioned Matthew died about 1830,

The present representaafter 1841.
the family is Henry John Furber.

and John sometime

tive of

Gabrielli.

Florentine family of violin makers

from about the beginning of

last

century.

Bartolomeo, Gian-Battista, and Antonio.

is

Christoforo,

Gian-Battista

the best known, and has sometimes attractive looking

wood

in

quality,

his

but

Of second and

instruments.
carefully

made.

Yellowish

somewhat tubby model.

Gagliano, Alessandro, Naples.

The

third

rate

varnish,

and

Born about

1640.

biographical details regarding this maker corruscate

around a duel, which he

which drove him

to the

is

said

to

have fought, and

manufacture of

violins.

The

story has taken various shapes, the most recent being

that

from his youngest days he studied music, and

amused himself by making mandolines and lutes. That

in his time the Kingdom of Naples, being under Spanish
Dominion, was affected by an unusual disregard of the
value of life. That duelling was constantly practised
which

is

quite correct

and that the inhabitants,

in order

to be able to defend themselves, or from a love of fighting,

and taught their children assiduously the art of

and the general management of lethal weapons.
Alexander Gagliano, in this way, acquired consummate
skill in the art of duelHng while yet he was young, and

learnt

fencing,

one evening he had a quarrel with a Neapolitan gentle-

man, a member

of a family called

Mayo.

They had no

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

sooner

6ll

when Gagliano's opponent

wound. The duel occurred in th&

swords,

crossed

received his death

New

St. Mary's, near the Church of the

was sacrilege according to the bull
Pope Gregory XIV. The friends of the murdered

square of

little

Franciscan's, which
of

man were

sufficiently powerful

with the viceroy of the

Kingdom, and Gagliano, alarmed at the possible consequences of the deed, sought asylum with the brotherhood,
and put himself under
one

The

their protection.

Count Penneranda

was

viceroy

vehemently opposed

to

the practice of duelling, and missed no opportunity of

treating

intimate

with

offenders

man

murdered

the

greatest

was, in this

and

friends,

case,

naturally,

one

The

rigour.

of

his

most

resentment

his

was-

considerably accentuated.

The Spanish Government

made determined

upset the privileges of the

efforts to

monastical establishments, the inmates of which had

more

than

once,

shown

however,

themselves

to

be powerful defenders of their rights, and Penneranda

had,

at

to

last,

increased

his

retire

repulsed.

anger, and he at

assault the convent

if,

were not delivered up

This,

length

of

course^

threatened to

within a given date, the culprit

to him.

Neapolitan Cardinal, Ascanio

In the meantime, the

Filomorino, had mixed

and supported the brotherhood

himself up in the

affair,

in their efforts to

keep Gagliano safe by getting him out

of the

way.

He

arranged

all

the means, and

by night

and accompanied by
him to Mignamillo, in one of his districts, from whence
Gagliano, from this point,
he sent him off to Rome.
directed his steps northwards, and it is not unlikely that
a well-armed escort, he dispatched

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

62

travelled from

came

town

know

to

town

to

Stradivari,

He

shop as a pupil.
for

At any

turned to Cremona.

his thoughts

until

and arranged

worked,

it

rate,

he

he arrived there, and

is said,

enter his

to

with Stradivari

about thirty years, and, having recei\'ed intimation

of a pardon, returned to his native place at the end of

The

1695.

that

it

when

chief point of interest in this narrative

is

places Gagliano as pupil of Stradivari at a date

that great

maker was himself working with Nicolas

least, just begun business on his own

Amati, or had, at

Now

account, namely, in 1664 or 1665.

the \uolins of

Alessandro Gagliano are of a type totally different from

those which Stradivari
at

the

during

is

supposed to have been working

intervening

period

Gagliano's violins are of a

flat

model,

indeed, larger, than anything Stradivari

have made,

until

is

supposed to

is

long after his pupil was peacefully

settled in his native town.

ments

two dates.
flatter, and

these

much

The

varnish on his instru-

generally of a sickly-looking yellow

also of reddish brown.

His wood

is

tint,

but

is

of a fine quality,

and his general proportions are also good.

shown in his wood is usually of a

The
large

figure

kind

the sides being of ordinary height, and his purfling and

corners careful.

and
and

of a pure
fairly

The

and

tone of his violins

silvery quality in the

round and

full

in

the lower.

is

very good,

upper

strings,

He

died in

Naples in 1725. He seldom used labels.

Gagliano, Nicolas, Naples. Born about 1665, just
about the time his father had to flee from Naples. He

was

rather a finer

workman than

his father,

and had a

decorative turn as well, some of his violins being orna-

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

63

inented round the line of purfling.

of
in

an altogether

and somewhat more highly arched.

The

also different, being of a darker yellow,

and

outline,

varnish

is

different

His instruments are

type, more graceful, and softer

The tone
example. He made

very transparent.

is

in a fine

a large

body

after

He

then date.

filius

Alexandri

He was

Gagliano, Gennaro, Naples.

He was

was the

maker

finest

seems

to

" the

second son of

His works are very

have used Stradivari tickets

his

two

"

figures

Gennaro

Gagliano

writing

still

and a recipe

fecit

which would have located

He had

the instrument in point of time being omitted.

fine varnish,

chiefly,

own, he never put a date in

They simply ran

Neapoli, 17

Neap,"

probably born about i6g6, and

of this name.

and when he did use

them.

fecit

died in 1740.

Allessandro.

He

of violins,

'cellos,

run " Nicolaus Gagliano

rare.

number

and into some of them, he, or somehim, put Stradivari tickets. His own tickets

and

violas,

altogether very beautiful

for varnish in

own hand-

his

remains with the Gagliano family, but

it is

very likely not for that which he used, as his successors

have never been able

beautiful wood,

and

to reproduce

father, Alessandro, except that his

and wider.

He

it.

He

his style is not unlike

employed

that of his

sound holes are shorter

died in 1750.

Gagliano, Ferdinando, Naples.

Born

1706,

Died

This maker was eldest son of Nicolas Gagliano,

1 78 1.
and grandson of Alessandro. His instruments are in
some respects like his father's, but more arched.

Indeed the arch

is

a very long one,

suddenly at the top, continuing

at

and

rises

somewhat

about an equal height

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

64

as far as the notch of the sound holes, where

to begin to fall

away

it

appears

gradually to the lower margin.

The arching

of the

more equally

distributed.

back

not so pronounced, and is

His outline cannot be called
graceful, but rather heavy-looking.
The sound holes are
well cut and very well designed, long and open.
Fine

wood and

well

is

Varnish a warmish

work.

finished

yellow, of a common-looking character.

in design,

artistic

front,

spreads

volute

rapidly

out

at

from

it

bottom

at

Tone a

Altogether very good violins.

Scroll not very

Looking

but well cut.

little

turn.

thin, but

penetrating.

Gagliano, GuiSEPPEand Antonio, Naples.

of Ferdinand,

so

far

made instruments

concerns

as

made

but

violins,

mandolines and guitars.

An

Brothers

of no great importance

good

fairly

early ticket of theirs

is

dated 1707, and Guiseppe died in 1793, while Antonio

lived on to the end of that century.

Gagliano,

Giovanni,

He

Ferdinand.

know.

He

brother of

better as a violin

than the previous firm, but has

as far as

Another

Naples.

was rather

left

died in 1806.

Gagliano, Raffaele and Antonio, Naples.

Giovanni.

maker

nothing of importance

They worked

in

Sons of

partnership, but appear to

have made nothing worth remembering. Raffaele died

9th December, 1857, and Antonio 27th June, i860.
Gagliano,

Vincenzo,

Naples,

is

the

last

of

this

numerous fiddle family. He is not a vioHn maker, but a

maker of strings. His first strings have a high reputation in Italy.
As he has neither wife nor children, I
suppose the name

will die out

with him.

CLASSICAL AKD POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Gand, Michel,

This maker was the

Versailles.

He was

of the famous family of this name.

Mirecourt, and went to Versailles in

He

ments are not much appreciated.

780.

65
first

born in

His

instru-

had two sons.

Charles

Gand,

business in his

Francois, Versailles. Born 5th

Died loth May, 1845. He first began
native place in 1807 and continued there

He

then removed to Paris, where he died.

August, 1787.

till

1810.

He was

taught partly by his father, but chiefly by

Lupot of whom he was an acknowledged pupil. He

became Lupot's son-in-law and succeeded him in
business.
The violins of C. F. Gand, or, as he is
called in the trade, Gand pere, have a majestic outline.

They

The

are distinctly individual.

Viewed

powerful piece of cutting.

a broad, massive appearance not found in the

any other

The varnish

at least not to
is

He was

near

the

supposed to catch a
of

mark,

family

is

It is

where

violin in handling

which

generally

bottom on each

very

work of

in the habit of leaving

margins
has

been

wished their instruments to pass as

at the

has

such a pronounced degree.

the
it.

left

patches

hands
It is

modified

are

a kind

by

his

who
having been made

successor slightly, and, of course, imitated by

by him.

it

a strong red brown, tending to red, on a

yellow ground.
of yellow

a most

scroll is

at the back,

all

on each shoulder and also

side.

The

tone of his instruments-

fine.

Born 22nd July, 1792.

Died at Versailles 31st May, 1858. This maker was a
brother of C. F. Gand, and was also a pupil of Lupot,
after leaving whom he returned to Versailles and

Gand, Guillaume,

Paris.

66

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

became successor
well

to his father.

appreciated in France.

His instruments are

have not seen any of

them.

Gand, Charles Adolphe, Paris.

Born
nth
December, 1812. Died 24th January, 1866.
This
maker was a son of C. F. Gand and succeeded to his
father's business in 1845, and also to the appointment
of maker to the King's musicians and to the conservatoire and later to the Emperor's Chapel.
The two
first
appointments had been continued to the firm
since the time of Lupot, to whom they were first
granted.

A.

C.

Gand

did

not

make many new

In 1855 he took as partner his brother,

instruments.

Eugene Gand.
Gand, Eugene,

Born on 5th June,

Paris.

1825.

Boulogne sur Seine on the 5th February, 1892.

This maker the brother above referred to as associated

Died

at

with C. A.

Gand

has

played a somewhat important

While he
and brother he

part in the history of this famous house.

studied violin
also

making under

studied

Baillot

at

the

violin

his father

playing

Conservatoire,

under

and

death of that great violinist in 1842.

the

left

On

it

celebrated

only at the

the death of

two brothers Bernardel already

referred to became his partners and the firm then
became Gand and Bernardel Freres. For a number of
years the instruments of this firm had ceased, to be
his brother in 1866, the

personal works.

Their business extended considerably,

and could only be done in that fashion, namely, in

employing clever workers to do what their fathers
were

supposed to have

carried

out with

their

own

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Of course

hands.

subjected

be

to

the

supervision

during their progress.

no

doubt,

finish,

One

and tone.

had was

the

the

of

instruments
for

would
style,

gigantic order which the firm

the orchestras in the Trocadero at the

for

vivid.

sufficiently

is

to

masters

the

concern

My

International Exhibition of 1878.

that

understood

of

supervision quite sufficient,

that

reputation

the

sustain

ensure

to

were

violins

all

67

recollection of

This firm alone furnished

and 18 double basses.

were bought by the
Conservatoire.
In the violin department of that
Exhibition the jury awarded the grand gold medal to the
firm.
An award of this kind does not always mean
much, but instruments of theirs which I have seen are

The

18 'cellos,

18 altos,

51 violins,

number

greater

decidedly good

violins

Stradivari model.

these

of

of exquisite

They

outline,

and

fine

are covered with a kind of

family red varnish, and have a powerful,

traditional

when it settles down will doubtless

Eugene Gand received a good
many decorations. He was an officer of the Legion of
Honour, a commander of the order of Isabella the

ringing tone, which

be highly appreciated.

Catholic, a chevalier of the order of Leopold of Belgium,

a

chevalier

of

Nircham

whatever

may

that

be

president of the Association of Artiste Musicians, an

officer

of the

French Academy,

maker

violin

to the

Conservatoire, to the Opera, and to the Opera Comique.

He was

also a

opinions
recent

good judge of old

occasionally

required

violins,

although his

confirmation.

His

death will certainly leave a great gap in the

ranks of the trade.

F2

He was

man

of culture

and

THE FIDDLE FANXIER's GUIDE.

68

judgment, and had seen almost

world

at

least,

almost

Gasparo da Salo,

all

all

the fine violins in the

the fine Stradivari violins.

or, to

give

him what has now been

discovered to be his proper name, Gasparo di

was a

violin

maker

in Brescia

who has

Bertolotti,

hitherto

had the

honour accorded to him of being the inventor or designer of the violin in

was

that not only

present form.

It

maker before him, but that others

violin
Gio.

its

D'Oneda

Battista

similar

instruments.

discoveries

is

now appears

his father, Francesco di Bertolotti, a

1529

in

The

as follows

were

origin

On

of

such

as one

makers

also

these

of

important

the 12th of January, 1890,

Professor D. Angelo Berenzi delivered a very interest-

ing lecture in the Athenaeum of Brescia on the subject

of the

ancient

conclusion

Brescian violin
his

of

lecture

makers,

and

at

the

he expressed a hope that

Brescia might be induced to follow the example of

Cremona, and seek to commemorate in some permanent

manner the fame of her most distinguished workers in
this art industry, namely Gasparo da Salo and G. P.
Maggini, and suggested that it might conveniently be
done in the form of a memorial stone with their names
Some of those present advised that
inscribed upon it.
if

he would make investigations in the State archives,

and

in those of the municipality

for the

and suburban parishes

purpose of finding out where these two

dis-

tinguished violin makers lived, or had their shops,

would be

all

it

the easier to obtain from the authorities

permission to place the stones in the most suitable

localities.

He

at once set

most laborious researches,

about his task, and after the

in a

few months

laid before

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

69

These were

the public the results of his investigations.

many

published in October, 1890, and consist of a great

valuable facts connected with Maggini, his father, wife,

family, house, business, &c., &c.,

under the maker's name.

and which

them out

was unquesHe, and no

tionably the pioneer in these investigations.

other, initiated and carried

be noted

will

Professor Berenzi

cleared the jungle

and made a path through the wood, so that

whoever might follow him would have little or nothing

in fact,

do beyond verifying for themselves the discoveries

which he had made, and acquainting themselves with
the facts which he had already brought to light.

to

Having accomplished

who

Cavalier Livi,
in Brescia

gations,

is

this

Maggini,

for

and had greatly assisted him

entered the

his

friend,

the keeper of the State Archives

now

his investi-

in

on

path

cleared

his

own

account and penetrated farther in search of Gasparo

da

Salo.

His journey was also successful and resulted

in the discovery of

concerning this

some very

whom

maker, of

interesting particulars

so

little

was previously

known.

Cavalier Livi published these particulars in

August, 1891, in the " Nuova Antalogia." They are

in

to

substance as follows

Gasparo

di Bertolotti

us hitherto as Gasparo da Salo

Francesco

di

was

the

known
son

of

Santino Bertolotti of Salo, and was born

there in 1542.

The

exact dates cannot be ascertained

pages 224

and 225 ^^of the register in

which the birth entry should have appeared are missing.
But subsequent documents prove that he was born in
These are income tax returns for
the year mentioned.
the years 1568 and 1588, in the first of which Gaspar
because two

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

70

declares that he

is

twenty-six years old, and forty-five

There

in the second.

GUIDE.

is

no mention of him before 1565,

but he then appears to have acquired

the

of

title

and may have had a shop. There is some

reason for supposing that Gasparo was a pupil of one
Girolamo Virchi, a maker in Brescia, who was sponsor
maestro,

at

the baptism of one of Gasparo's children

son

named Francesco. In 1568 the rent of his house and

shop was about ;^20 per annum, and he had a stock of
musical instruments which he valued at close on ^60.

Twenty years
siderably.

had increased con-

after that his stock

He

says then that he had violins finished

and unfinished which he valued at about

1599 he bought another house in Brescia

^"200.

In

in a street

and from 1581 to 1607, a

called St. Peter the Martyr,

few small places situated chiefly

Calvagese

in

near

This maker died in Brescia on the 14th April,

Salo.

and was buried in Santo Joseffo.

The work of Gasparo da Salo (di Bertolotti)

1609,

work

of an artist.

His

like

restraints.

There

sound

That

holes,

is

is

as

if

the instrument were

bag under certain

silken
is

large

fine

feeling

which are pretty nearly

to say,

their

width

is

specified

about

his

parallel throughout.

pretty nearly the

until the stem approaches both top and bottom

They

the

violins are arched rather full,

but the contour of the arch

blown out

is

same

circles.

are not parallel in the sense of being in line with

the long axis of the fiddle.

The

corners are very short,

and the margins rather narrow.

some cases, been a golden

and in others a beautiful

His varnish has,

red, passing

rich

brown

in

through brown,

toast

brown.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

7I

His sound holes are remarkably expressive and are seen

In the matter of outline,

to great perfection in his violas.

his

The

instruments are exquisite.

purfling has been

double in those violins and violas which

the scrolls beautifully cut.
the grain of the front

many

'cello,

wood

have observed

be as wide almost as in

to

and the arching

have seen, and

In his violins

from the margins

to rise

almost equal to the style of

Stradivari.

these works of this early master,

it is

the later
type.

In

face

Amati School should have departed from

His instruments are of the greatest possible

Gedler,

J.

A., Fiissen, 1750

model.

his

rarity.

1757.

are certainly original in outline,

of Stainer

of

quite surprising that

His instruments
and are intended to be

The arching

as usual,

is,

much

exaggerated, and the groove around the contour of the

instrument

is

very deep.

The

outline

is

flattened at top

and bottom, and gives a peculiarly square look

and

is

to the violin,

accentuated by the upper portion being consider-

ably nearer the dimension of the lower part than

The sound

holes are rather stiff-looking in

of being pretty long,

and cut almost quite

long axis of the fiddle.

The upper

is

usual.

consequence

parallel to the

turns are not exactly

as the great majority of the imitators of Stainer

try to make them nor are the bottom turns
and
circular

either,

although they are fairly well cut, they have not a very
graceful appearance.

and clear.
Gedler, J. B.,

Varnish reddish brown.

Tone

thin

Fiissen, about 1790

son or other relative of above.

96.

Work same

Probably a
in type, but

commoner.
GoFFRiLLER, Mattheus, Vcnice, 1700

1740.

This

THE FIDDLE

72

I-ANCIER S GUIDE.

maker was a fine workman, especially in his violoncellos.

These are decidedly original to a certain extent. The
upper portion is a little narrower than is usual, and
which gives to the part between the middle bouts
His model in his best
an appearance of being wider.
'cellos seems to have been A. and H. Amati, only his
curves are not so flowing as we find them in instruments
by this famous Cremonese firm. The curves of Goffriller's
shorter,

C's are also different, their cutting in being like that of

Stradivari in some cases, and the C's themselves look

very long

an appearance

the upper portion of the

quite

beautifully

cut,

produced by the shortness of

and

Stradivari instead of A. and

the whole
result of
holes,
little

is,

The sound

'cello.

The

H. Amati.

in fact, a congeries of

which

one or two

though beautifully designed, as

on

design of
styles, the

The sound

by no means unpleasing.

is

holes are

based

evidently

are

have

said, are a

wider than usual, and have the appearance of being

long, also because of the stunted look of the upper portion

of the instrument.

His varnish

is

a very transparent

and

rather deep orange, with fine golden flashes here and there.
It is

sometimes cracklied

corners and middle sides.

and
it

Goffiriller rarely

all

It is

not yet

a very fine tone,

put labels in his work.

ran as follows "Mattheus

:

over those parts near the

They have

When

GofFriller, faciebat

known when he was

born, nor

he did,

anno

when he

."

died.

GoFFRiLLER, Francesco, Venice. Brother of above and

worked for him. The instruments which he made for him self

have very rarely anything

in the

shape of a

ticket.

Like his brother's, they are pure in tone and strong. Indeed,
great sonority

is

a distinguishing characteristic in them.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

G1LKE6, Samuel, London.

He was

Born

1787.

73

Died 1827.

born at Morton Pinkney, Northamptonshire,

and was taught vioUn-making by Charles Harris, who

was a relative. After leaving Harris, he was employed
by Forster. In 1810, he began business on his own
account in James Street, Buckingham Gate.
The
outline of his violins

is

exceedingly

fine,

the upper part

being beautifully proportioned to the lower, so that there

is

not that excessive disparity between the two, which

uncommon, even with very good makers. He

copied Amati chiefly, but his Stradivari instruments are
is

not

really excellent, the

sound holes being remarkably well

designed, although cut just a

some

scrolls.

Gilkes, William, London.

wide.

little

Very hand-

Yellowish brown varnish.

Born

1811.

Die'd 1875.

son of above maker, and a more varied worker than

his father, but not

basses.

These are

so good.

He

chiefly

made double

excellent.

GoBETTi, Franciscus, Venice,

1690

1720.

so-

whose work, so far as I

have seen, it is difficult to trace any influence of the
great maker.
The outline is of the Amati type, but
large in style.
Short corners, deep middle bouts, and
called pupil of Stradivari, in

rather

highly

arched.

Scroll cleanly cut, but

Tone, however,

very

somewhat monotonous

good.

looking,

Sound
same width almost to the first turn.
like Amati or Rugerius than Stradivari,
and slightly gaping. Varnish transparent and weakand

holes

of

much more

His tickets run

red, but of fine quality.
" Franciscus Gobetti fecit Venetiis," and date.

looking

GossELiN, Paris.

1814 to about 1830.

An amateur

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

74

maker

so-called who

style and finish,

has considerably surpassed in

many a professional with a high reputation.

His instruments

undoubtedly, of a high class, and

are,

His choice

have a superior quality of tone.

was

original

running

in

GUIDE.

and

felicitous,

the figure

of

in

backs

his

an extremely picturesque manner

The

direction of the long axis.

belly

wood

wood

in

the

of exquisite

and the varnish a fine red. He may be called

the famous Parisian maker and
restorer towards the end of the eighteenth, and beginning
selection,

a pupil of KoUiker,

Gosselin's instruments have

of the nineteenth century.

a splendid outline, and the design of his sound holes

good and

The

original,

finish of the

very handsome.

based on Stradivari, and a

work

is of a high class, and his scrolls

His tickets run " Fait par Gosselin,

amateur, Paris, annee

."

Gragnani, Antonio, Livorno,

1741

1785.

work, but a sympathetic and sweet tone.

of varnish,

and not particularly

sometimes branded on the

fine

ribs

wood.

below

Gragnani, Onorato, Livorno.

His

tail

many respects. Supposed

scroll.

initials

pin.

anno

His

."

son of above and

work.

Grancino, Paolo, Milan, 1665

whose

Coarse

Poor quality

tickets run " Antonius Gragnani, fecit Liburni

inferior

is

longer.

little

to

style he has followed in

His violoncellos are

i6go.

A fine

maker in

be a pupil of Nicolas Amati,

most particulars except the

his best works,

character in the matter of tone.

and are of high

Varnish lightish yellow.

Grancino, Giovanni, Milan, 1694 1730.

Son of
above. A superior maker to his father. Sometimes has
very handsome wood in

back, unlike the majority of

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Milanese makers, and his belly wood
for

is

often distinguished

being remarkably fine and straight.

times pretty wide.

Light varnish

75

also

It is

almost

some-

colourless.

The outline of his instruments is occasionally a little shaky,

but the tone

is

Tickets " Giovanni Grancino in

good.

1710 1750.
."

contrada largha di Milano al segno della Corona

Grancino, Giambattista

They

Francesco,

are, perhaps, the best of this

name.

Their violon-

and double basses are very good. Roughish work

and ordinary wood, but good tone.
Transparent yellow
cellos

Tickets " Giov. Battista and Francesco>

spirit varnish.
fra.

Grancino

in

1695 1760.

contrada larga di Milano

."

This
GuADAGNiNi, Lorenzo, Piacenza,
maker worked for a number of years with Stradivari so
and returned to Piacenza about 1730. His
it is said

violins are

grand instruments, and, curiously enough, a

They

goodly nilmber of them bear Nicolas Amati labels.

Their quality of tone

are highly finished.

ingly fine, though not always equal

string

is

sometimes a

little

weak.

all

tius

Guadganini Pater
Placentiae

anno

et
."

exceed-

The

His varnish

yellowish red, and of very fine quality.

fecit

over.

is

is

fourth
a deep

Tickets " Lauren-

alumnus Antonij Stradivari

This ticket

is

probably the

foundation for the notion that he worked with Stradivari.

At any rate the work

is

well worthy of such a master.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

^6

Son

GuADAGNiNi, GiAMBATTiSTA.
to have been born in
there,

and

to

of abovc.

Cremona during

Is Said

his father's

stay

have also been a pupil of Stradivari.

His

instruments are valued as highly as his father's, although

He went

they are not so powerful.

his parent,

to

Piacenza after

and worked there a long time, then went

Turin, where he died in

1780.

to

His instruments are

covered with a slightly yellowish red varnish, and his

tickets run " Joannes Baptista
fecit

Guadagnini Cremonensis

Taurini (or Placentiae) Alumnus Antonij Stradivari."'

Guadagnini, Giovanni Battista, Milan, from about

1695 to 1750.

This maker was a brother of Lorenzo

Guadagnini, and he

is

sometimes confounded with

always so good a maker as his brother

he

certainly

made

some

his

Although he was not

nephew, the preceeding maker.

magnificent

nephew,

or

instruments,

sometimes of Stradivari type, and sometimes of Amati.

Middle bouts pretty deep,
Excellent

wood,

and

fine,

equally-balanced outline.

finely-designed

sound

Varnish frequently of a very deep orange red.

*'

Joannes

mediolani."

and

his

Baptista

Guadagnini

His arching

sound holes a

little

is

of a

holes.

Tickets

Placentinus
rather

flat

longer than usual.-^

fecit

character

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

77

GuADAGNiM, Giuseppe. Son of the preceeding. Was a

violin maker in Milan, Como, and Parma, and employed
His instruments have a

his father's tickets.

fairly

good

tone.

GuADAGNiM.

There were a number of

this

subsequent to above, and settled in Turin.

the Guadagnini

name,

Almost

all

have good tone.

GuARNERius, Andreas, Cremona.
The first maker
of this celebrated name is supposed to have been born
He was married on 31st December,
there about 1626.
1652, to

Anna Maria

He

born to him.

When

1698.

violins

Orcelli,

and had seven children

Cremona on

died at

7th December,

he was fifteen years old he was working in

the shop of Nicolas Amati, and four years afterwards he

was one
being

of the witnesses mentioned in the register a&

present

the marriage of

at

instruments are of beautiful

many

Amati model

in

his master.

His varnish

cases,

orange, with a brownish

fine

brown.

always of the

It

is

his

master.

His

workmanship, and of the early

is

and also of the

of a golden

tint,

and

is

sometimes thickly

later style

of

yellow, bright

occasionally of a
laid

on,

but

is

finest quality.

Eldest
Guarnerius, Pietro Giovanni, Cremona.
Born i8th February, 1655, and remained
at home until about 1680, when he went to Mantua.
son of above.

Three years before

this

he had married Caterina Sussagni.

About 1698, he returned to Cremona, and appears to

have remained there until after the death of his father in
that year.
He went back to Mantua after this event,
and lived there a long time, going late in life to Venice,
where he died at an advanced age. His violins are very

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

y8

and

beautiful specimens of work, of exquisite tone

style,

and covered with lovely varnish.

He varied a good
deal, however, and there are examples of his which do
His
not command the same unstinted admiration.
sound holes are often lower than usual, and
parallel for a certain distance

They

also

full,

contemporaries

and
;

passes himself.

The
is

on each side of notch.

have the appearance of being placed straight

with the long axis of the

somewhat

their cutting-

ribs often

fiddle.

His outline also looks

just a little heavier than in his greater

but there are occasions

The tone

when he

of his instruments

have very pretty figuration, and

is

very

surfine.

his varnish

a beautiful golden amber, occasionally passing to a rich

brown.

His

'cellos

plainly wooded,

He

varnish.
to his

oil

have a superb tone, but are often

and have a

slightly

reddened brown

also used spirit varnish of similar colours

varnish.

Although

Pietvo Giovanni Gttarnieri,

his baptismal

he always

name was

calls himself

simply

Petrus Guarnerius as under.

GuARNERius, Guiseppe Gian Battista, Cremona.

Second son of Andreas was born 25th November, 1666.
Died about 1739. He apparently lived with his father
and when his brother Peter was back at home

all his life,

waiting, seemingly, on the death of the old man, Peter

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

made some

fiddles

This maker

is

and put

He was

inscription found in his tickets.

He

name in them.
Andrew " from the

his brother's

called " Joseph son of

of that family.

the cleverest

chose very handsome wood which,

has rarely been surpassed.

for figure,

79.

His margins are

generally small, and his purfling sometimes close.

varnish

superb

is

when

struments,

golden

perfect,

The

red.

His

corners of his in-

show with what extreme care

he finished his work, as they come out quite pronounced

His sound holes have not the vigour of

and sharp.

greater brethren.

Andreae

filius

Teresiae

his

His tickets run " Joseph Guarnerius

Cremonae

fecit

sub

Sanctae

titulo

."

Guarnerius, Joseph
October i6th,

1687.

Cremona.

Born

Date of death unknown.

This

(called del Jesu),

was the greatest of all the artistes called Guarnerius.

He was only a very distant relative of the family, his
grandfather having been a cousin of Andreas Guarnerius.
It is

known where he

not

he carried
there

is

it

on.

learnt his business, nor

where

His tickets date from Cremona, but

no trace of him there

known tickets date from

The story that he died

1725,

The

after 1702.

and the

latest

earliest

about 1745.

was founded on the

circumstance that a person named Giacomo Guarnieri
This tradition was indusdied there in the year 1715.
triously circulated, and a great many inferior Italian
fiddles

were called

genuine.

in prison

" prison

Joseph's "

All that sort of thing

man was an

is

now

artiste of the highest class,

these inferior fiddles.

and

sold

as

The
and never made
exploded.

His instruments are very

flat,

arch rising gently from the purfling, one might say.

the

His

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

8o

dutline

is

very perfect and

Many

restful.

of his instru-

and do not exceed fourteen inches in

length, but the peculiarity which will strike most people
These are of an early
will be found in the sound holes.

ments are

type,

small,

and designed

most masterly way.

in a

At the top

the circle has the appearance of a miniature arch of

That

Gothic type.
the

mind

of

They then

is

slope

away

made on

to say, the impression

an ordinary observer
a

little

is

of that character.

towards the margins and

are fairly wide at the middle, the notch being cut

an angle of about

at

forty-five degrees to the longer axis.

His margins are large and massive, his edges round and
His ribs are about i^ at the top, ly^ at the
solid.
corners,

and about

of his violins there

In a good

i^ at the tail pin.

is

possessed at one time a goodly piece of pine.

of

what

on the

called grey

is

a streak

It is

wood, and runs down from the top

of the fingerboard.

left

many

a peculiarity which indicates that he

have also seen

it

on the

right of the fingerboard. It can easily be seen through the

varnish.

This grey

strip looks just as if the

the varnish at that point were dirty.

inch in the width, sometimes

instances as far

The backs

down

less,

It

wood under
is

about an

and travels in certain

left sound hole.

as the top of the

of his fiddles are often of the finest

figure,

broad, medium, and in a few instances, extremely fine

His tone

and complex.
and

if

there

is

is

grand, round, and sonorous,

a difference between

in that respect

it

is,

him and Stradivari

perhaps, because there are fewer

Josephs than Strads to choose from.

His varnish

is

golden, and a golden red, in tints of the most entrancing

loveliness,

and

of a quality not surpassed

by any other

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

The middle bouts

maker.

8l

are generally cut in at the

top without any tendency to travel upward, and sweep

out towards the lower corner in a beautiful curve which
the indention quite

leaves

curve

is

The

ended.

shallow by the time

He made

usually of a fairly wide guage.

cellos

that

know

tenor, but never

of,

saw

GuERSAN, Louis,

and

in style, but

number

is

no violon-

have only heard of one

it.

Paris,

1735

1766.

instruments are attractive looking.

ably

the

grain of a Guarnerius belly

Many

They vary

of his

consider-

He made

tone rather deficient.

and employed a varnish which in some

cases might be called "golden." There is no doubt he
of 'cellos,

make very beautiful instruments when he chose

He was a pupil of Claude Pierray.
Hardie, Matthew, Edinburgh, about 1800 1825.

could
to

do

so.

This

maker

produced singularly

has

Nicolas Amati.

question

if

copies

of

he has been surpassed

in

fine

by any one of our native makers.

His
first
class quality.
His outline is
a
very accurate reproduction.
His sound holes
slightly err, where almost every maker who copies N.
Amati does err, in being just the least bit knockkneed,
that respect

wood

of

is

but in his case

He

it is

so trifling as to be scarcely perceptible.

has caught the general proportions of the N. Amati

model with great

of the finest degree

ing.

The

condition,

tone
is

His varnish

felicity.

of rather

of

his

is

light tint,

instruments,

a yellow

not

but not unpleas-

when

in

proper

quite of a high class.

Hardie, Thomas, Edinburgh. Born 1804. Died 1856.

Son

of above.

Worked

in

his father's shop.

He

has

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

82

not the same reputation as his father, but

am

not in a

position to say anything about him.

Harris, Charles, London, about 1800 to 1815.

is

another splendid native maker, whose work

is

This

entitled to

His out,
and the design of his

rank with that of the best Continental copyists.

lines

and modelling are

beautiful,

The cutting
The sides of his

sound holes exceedingly graceful.

most satisfactory.

scrolls is also

are

somewhat low, but

in almost

and of a good, yellowish brown.

Hart, John Thomas, London.
This

1874.
articled

is

a famous

other respects, his

all

His varnish

conceptions are of the best.

name

of his
violins

is

Born

of fine quality

Died

1805.

in fiddle lore.

He was

Samuel Gilkes previously mentioned, and

to

duly learnt the art of violin making.

Just at the time he

started business the fever for Italians

became accentuated

and he turned his attention to the study of the classical

His opportunities were great, and by-andby he became a judge of violins of quite a European

instruments.

Some of the finest collections of the time

were formed by him, including the celebrated Coding
reputation.

Cabinet, and also that of Plowden.

large

number

collection

the

of the

also supplied a

instruments for the Gillott

fine

largest

He

ever

made

by

one

private

style

of the

individual.

Hart axd Sox.

preceeding

firm,

became a partner

became the

This

when
of

the
his

late

father.

Mr. George

Hart

Mr. George Hart

also acquired a world-wide reputation as a connoisseur

and dealer forming

becoming acquainted

many

beautiful

like his father

collections,

and

with almost every

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

known instrument

of importance.

He was

83

entrusted

with the arrangement of the Gillott collection, and the

cataloguing of

it

when

it

came under the hammer of

and Manson, and numberless other

important commissions with respect to the finest instruments in the world were placed in his hands. He is
Messrs.

Christie

known wherever

a fiddle-fancier has his habitat, as the

what

author

of

on the

violin

is,

perhaps, the most

work

reliable

has ever been written, and he

besides, the author of a work on " The Violin and
that

is,

its

Music," which, for interest in that branch of musical

can hardly be surpassed. He was born in

and died on April 25th, 1891. His son, the present
Mr. George Hart, carries on the business under the
same style, and the name has become a household word
literature,

1839,

in the

vocabulary of fiddle-fanciers.

Hel, Pierre-Joseph,
near Mirecourt in 1842.
in thorough fashion,

he worked with

Lille.

He

This maker was born

learnt violin-making there

and afterwards went

at Aix-la-Chapelle with

to Paris,

He

where

also

was

Darche, and started on his

own

Sebastien Vuillaume.

account in Lille in 1865. He is a good restorer, and

claims to have a means of aging wood without using
acid or heat.
of

He

is

also the

inventor of a

which can be applied

tuning

heads, and which

is

to

system

existing

violin

said to permit the player to tune

easily.

Henry.

family of vioHn makers of this

existed in Paris for about a hundred

The work

is

good

in

and

name has
fifty

years.

regard to several members of the

family, such as Jean-Baptiste, born in Mirecourt, 1757,

G2

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

84

his son, Jean-Baptiste-Felix, born in

died in
1803,

1858,

and one of

Eugene Henry, son

and died 1859.

mentioned, was born in 1843, and

Hill.

has existed

in

family of

London

Paris,

for

Henry's existed in Paris.

1793,

and

his grandsons, Charles, born

of the last-

a good restorer.

is

English violin-makers, which

about as long a period as the

The

first

of the

name appears

to have been

Wamsley. The
maker which I have seen were
a tenor and a 'cello. The tenor was in the exhibition of
1885, and deserved, in my opinion, high commendation
The
for its finish and the appearance of the varnish.
sound holes might have been more artistically designed,
but the style of the instrument, and the brilliancy of its
varnish, as it hung in its case, really seemed to be
Hill, Joseph.

pupil of Peter

only instruments of this

dangerously near the genuine Italian

article.

A violin by this
maker was exhibited at the same exhibition, and had,
I remember, a very beautiful back.
Hill, Joseph and Son. 1770. This firm was represented at the same show by a very clever-looking
and I have seen a fine 'cello by them of
violin,
Ruggerius model, with ornamental purfling, and of
excellent tone, especially on the two lower strings.
Hill, Lockey. About 1810. There must have been
two Lockey Hills, I should think, if the dates in two
Hill, Lockey, London, about 1720.

violins bearing this

name are correct, or correctly printed in

the catalogue of the exhibition in which they were shown.

The 1720

violin

was a very

clever looking instrument, but

the 1 8 10 specimen was quite a

little

gem,

in a plain

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

85

and with wood of the most exquisite regularity.

holes were almost perfect, the corners charm-

varnish,

The sound
ing,

and the margins

fine

and

Of the subsequent

full.

work of this family I know nothing. The present firm is

Hill and Sons, W. E. The senior member of this
firm is Mr. William Ebsworth Hill, a practical violin
maker, and for many years known as a highly competent

He

judge of classical instruments.

sons, William, Arthur,

and Alfred

to their ordinary business, the firm

several highly interesting

is

assisted

his

have brought out

monographs on

which they have embodied the

by

Hill, and, in addition

fine violins in

results of the

most recent

research.

Jacobs, Peeter, Amsterdam, 1690

1740.

This maker

copied Nicholas Amati with remarkable fidelity in almost

In the choice of his

every point.

wood

even, he sought

to reproduce the figure generally associated with the

name

of the

recognisied

easily

whalebone

He

Cremonese master.

with the outline and arching.

by the

is

very successful

His work

purfiing.

He

is,

however,

always used

for this instead of the black stopping,

and

where the varnish has been worn off the purfling, a little
rubbing will bring up on the whalebone a most glassy
surface

if

one cannot detect the maker in any other way.

It glistens in

way unknown

Jacobs, Amsterdam.

maker,

who was perhaps

in

any other

case.

His

Varnish, a red brown.

instruments are very good.

do not know anything of

this

related to the above Peeter.

His instruments are reported to be coarse, but of good

tone,

and having a deep red varnish transparent.

Born at Mirecourt, 1808.

Jacquot, Charles, Paris.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

S6

He was

a pupil of Nicolas Aine and Breton, and began

to learn his business

fifteen years old

when

When

quite a child.

the trade in co-operation with a few others.

began

in

own

Nancy on
1853, when he went
his

remained

until his death

was

good character.

but

of a

Tone

orange type.
instruments

improve

His workmanship

Varnish of a

of the

where he

Paris,

to

1880.

in

In 1827, he

account, and continued

there until

on

he was

he went to Nancy, where he worked for

twangy,

common
nasal

red

kind,

soundly made, and of a quality to

in the course of time.

Son of preceeding, and

Jacquot, Pierre Charles.

born 1828, in Nancy, where he succeeded to his parent's

business after the latter went to Paris.

His instruments

are of a type similar to his father's.

Born

Jeandel, Pierre Napoleon.

Vaudmont
Charotte.

in

181 2,

He went

for the brother of his

at Courcelles sous

he was taught at
to

Rouen

in 1835,

Mirecourt by
where he worked

Mirecourt master.

His employer

died in 1836, and Jeandel arid another took the business.

These

partners

carried

on on his own account from 1848 to

Infirmities then obliged

any extended

separated,

ultimately

him

He

scale.

and

to relinquish active

fell

Jeandel
1878.

work on

into poor circumstances,

and the sudden death of his daughter, in whose place he

stayed, withdrew his only shelter, and he was admitted
to the hospital at
five

months

violins,

after

Rouen, where he died

admission.

in 1879,

He made

and received prize medals from three

exhibition juries.

His work

of the previous maker.

is

some

very good
different

of a type similar to that

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Jay,

Made a number
1777.
among which are some good

Henry, London, 1744

of instruments for dealers

87

'cellos.

Johnson, John, London. About 1750 1758.

This
maker seems to have confined himself largely to Stainer
models, and he does not appear to have been personally
His instruments are frequently large and
a maker.
heavy looking, although of good outline. Very narrow
margins, and pitched up from the groove which goes
quite round the outline.
elliptical,

The edges

are

flat,

and the corners mean-looking.

or rather

Frequently

unpurfled, but having painted lines instead.

Altogether,

work of rather a common type. Varnish, light brown.

Tone fairly good.
Kennedy. A family of violin makers for a very long
time since about 1700. The best known of the name
was Thomas, who made a great many instruments of no
great value.
Dark coloured varnish.
Kerlino, J., Brescia. A maker of little interest to the
modern fiddle-fancier, except from his connection with
the early Brescian school. I used to think he was an
imaginary character, but in a work published in 1890,
entitled " La Musica in Mantova," by A. Bertolotti, and
issued by Ricordi of Milan, a reference to him dating in
1493 has been found, and appears to prove conclusively that he was a celebrated maker of viols at

that date.

Kiaposse,

maker's

Fairly well
size

S.,

St.

instruments

made and

but perhaps a

Petersburg.
are

of

the

This
1748 50.
" odd " character.

proportioned, they are of the usual

little

thin in the

wood.

The back

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

88

and

worked

front are

rounded with the

ribs

Everything

thickness.

That

sides.

The

are wanting.

is

is,

sides

The

holes are not badly designed.

is

of a

is

the usual violin edges

are of considerable
" rounded " off. The sound

or

distasteful in appearance, but

The varnish

margins, and

off straight to the

general result

mistake

is

not

technically.

The

commonplace character.

tone

of a thin nasal quality.

Klotz,

Edgidius,

Absam and

Mittenwald,

1675.

This maker's instruments are very finished performances,

both inside and out.

When

they are in good condition,

they are extremely attractive looking, but they are very

rarely in condition.

Klotz, George, Mittenwald.

good maker of this family.

style,

About

but sound holes not very pretty, and poor varnish.

Klotz, Sebastien, Mittenwald, 1700

good when

genuine

in

Landolfi, C.
Italian

maker,

The

condition.

of Klotz' instruments are not

size.

Another

1754.

His instruments are of larger

F,, Milan.

1760.
large

Also

number

worth carrying away.

1735

who made some

1775.

very good

outline of his violins

is

'cellos of

a fine

small

good, but the middle

is

bouts are long and deeply cut

This

giving a

in,

somewhat

gaunt look to the instrument, the lower portion of which

seems

and cause
His
really is.

to spread out a deal in consequence,

the upper portion to appear smaller than

sound holes are not badly designed.

it

His varnishes, as

well as the details of his instruments, vary a good deal,

some are a

brilliant

red,

and

others

while others again tend to a yellowish orange.

dark

red,

Much

of

his work certainly does not look very pretty, but the

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

tone

He

means

bad.

N., London.

1803

by no

is

has

SQ

often

narrow

have

httle to

margins.

Lenz,

J.

say in favour of this maker.

was

his

1807.

and he was a

fine

maker

believe, only

two

violins,

have seen of

Very " scoopy '*

of a very tasteless description.

and unequal.
Lenz, Jacob, London. I suppose
son of the preceeding. His work was

maker was a

this

of a superior kind,

He

of double basses.

one of which

a copy of Joseph Guarnerius, arid

is

Anything

is,

in

made,

have seen.

many ways,

It

very clever copy, except that the sound holes are far too
wide.

In other respects of arching and

caught the points of Joseph very well.

this

instrument

LoTT, G.

F.,

scroll,

he has

The wood

in

is fine.

London.

Born

1800.

Died 1868.

famous John Lott, mentioned below.

was a clever maker of old fiddles.
a son of the

Was
He

Lott, John Frederick, London. 1775 1853. This

was father of the preceeding, and following maker of
same name.
He was a German, and originally a
cabinet maker, whom Bernard Fendt induced to take to
fiddle making under Thomas Dodd, already mentioned.
All his work is of a high character, especially his double
basses, which are really chefs d'ceuvres.
Lott, John Frederick, London. Son of above, and
hero of Charles Reade's Romance, " Jack of All Trades."
He certainly was a clever violin maker, and took a long
time to get up those imitations, with which, I daresay^
a good many people were atone time hoaxed.
There is
for

example, an appearance of a kind of brutal hardihood.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

90
in the

in

S GUIDE.

seeming recklessness with which he copied, and,

some

cases, travestied, the salient points of Joseph del

Jesu, and yet he

may have

laboured over the instrument

months, getting up those antique fractures, indenta-

for

tions, scratchings,

and rubbings, which give an

He was

genuine age to some of his productions.

man

of

many

air of

adventures, which have been duly recorded

in Mr. Reade's novels.

He

died about 1871.

LuPOT, Nicolas. The greatest of a French family of

violin makers which has flourished for about two

The first was a Jean Lupot in Mirecourt,

whose son Laurent was born there in 1696, and became
a violin maker also. Travelling about a little, he settled
in Orleans, and about 1762, disappears from fiddle history.
This son, Fran9ois Lupot, also violin maker, after moving
centuries.

about in similar fashion, settled temporarily in Orleans,

and then

in

Paris,

where he died

in

1804.

The

last

mentioned had two sons, the above Nicolas born

in

Stuttgard in 1758, and Fran9ois born in Orleans in 1774.

Nicolas was the great maker of the family, and was
trained by his father in Orleans, where he continued to

work
went

until

he was about forty years of age, and then

to Paris,

died in 1824.

where he started business

The violins of

of the highest character.

style,

this

There

in 1794, and
maker are undoubtedly
is

great variety in his

and many of those hailing from Orleans, one would

hardly recognise,

which he made

if

in

placed side by side with some of those

Paris later on.

This

is chiefly,

but

not wholly, seen in his varnish, however, for there

the

same masterly,

great

many

solid style

about

all his

is

instruments.

of his early violins are covered with a dull,

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

9I

brown varnish, which looks very well when a considerable

it has been worn away.
His Paris instruments are covered with much variety of varnish,- from
brown, through orange to a red that would almost knock
one down. Those covered with the red upon orange are
splendid instruments of massive style, and tone clear
and pure, and of rocklike firmness.
Some of his
varnishes have gone very nearly black, and here and
there are specimens which have it so thickly laid on, that
one might say there is almost as much varnish as wood.
portion of

Some

of his Paris instruments are slightly smaller than

those large orange instruments, and these, as indeed

his violins, are finished

most exquisitely.

his favourite model, but

Stradivari

he also copied Guarnerius, and

But

succeeded with the sound holes remarkably well.

the manner

in

which he has caught the " grand

line of Stradivari is quite

margins are
even

in the

full,

and there

a fine feeling of solidity,

when

a nice specimen

Some of his very fine work is

in the matter of finish

was

out-

His sides and

exceptional.
is

"

handling of his best instruments, which does

not escape one's notice

countered.

all

was

and

also a splendid maker,

His

style.

and the

is

en-

really entrancing
father, Fran9ois,

fitting instructor of

his son.

LupoT, Francois.
other distinguished

maker, and

is

The brother of Nicolas, the only

member of the family, Avas a bow-

referred to in the chapter on bows.

Maggini, Giovanni PAOLO,Brescia. This distinguished

early Italian

maker was born

in

Botticino Sera on the

25th August, 1580, and the precise date of his death

is

not yet known, but in an income tax

return of the

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

92
year

"

son, Carlo

1632, his

quondam Johannis
Giovanni Paolo. As already

GUIDE.

Maggini,
Pauli,"

filius

spoken of

is

son of

the

as
late

stated in the article, Gasparo

da Said, Professor D. Angelo Berenzi delivered a lecture

month

in Brescia in the

of January, 1890,

Brescian violin makers, and at

on distinguished

conclusion,

its

it

was

mooted that a search should be made by him in the

Municipal and State archives for the purpose of

known about

discovering what could be

once, and, as

was able

these great

Professor Berenzi set about his task at

early artistes.
I

have already

said, in

a few months he

to publish the results of his researches, namely,

in October, 1890.

Nothing whatever had been previously

known about Maggini, except what was based upon

that can be called knowledge

and observaThere was not a scrap of documentary evidence known to exist, either regarding him or
the other great maker, Gasparo da Salo, of whom he was
tradition

if

tion of his work.

conjectured to be a pupil.

All

was guess work, com-

bined, of course, with the traditionary gossip to which I

But the researches

have alluded.
have now

set all these

Maggini.

In a

little

of Professor Berenzi,

matters at rest in the case of

pamphlet entitled " Di Giovanni

Paolo Maggini," and published

in

Brescia in 1890, he

gave to the world his discoveries

in a separate form,

although

they

communication

same

year.

had appeared previously

to

"II

Bibliofilo "

in

in

his

October

This communication related that he had

found mention made of Magginis during the

first

half of

the sixteenth century in the returns of Gerola and

Botticino

first

of the

two small places

West

in the vicinity of Brescia

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

and during the second half of the same century

West

of

Botticino,

and of Brescia.

And

in those

later, in

returns of Brescia, Bagnolo, and Manerbio.

93

other

All this

means a considerable amount of very patient labour, and

when he had thoroughly examined these various
sources of information regarding people of the

Maggini, he fixed on those of Botticino Sera

Botticino

He

name of
West

or

and Brescia as being what concerned his quest.

unearthed from the archives two returns, one dated

1568, and the other, 1588. The first relates to the father of
G. P. Maggini, and begins " Boticino de Sera. Poliza
de mi Zovan q Bertolino di Magini," etc., and gives
particulars of the ages of himself, his wife, son, and

The second

daughter, and his brother.

beginning

'*

Giovanni

f.

Brescia,
q.

300,

Ser

p Johannis Polizza de mi
Magini, cittadino et

Bertolino

habitante in Bressa," etc., and gives his

that

of

wife

his

(dated 1588)

erroneously

own

apparently

age,

and

and
then

continues with that of a son, and son's wife, followed

by the mention of " Gio Paolo, mio figliolo, d'eta d'anni 7."
This is the first official documentary reference found in
Brescia having regard to the existence of G. P. Maggini.

later search

by the same cultured writer

Sera revealed an earlier one

Book

of Leaseholds, or

Brescia, and among

Rent Book of

the entries

it,

In the

Agatha

in

Gian Paolo Maggini

from Ser Ludovico Serina, the house which

stands opposite the Old Mayor's Palace,

call

St.

between the years 1500 and

1636, Professor Berenzi found that

bought

at Botticino

the baptismal entry.

the

(or,

Old Mansion House) and

" Gio Pavolo Magini, che fa

le cetere,'"

as

we would

that the said

as proprietor of the

THE FIDDLE FANCIERS GUIDE.

94

to the parish of St.

Agatha

about two pounds, sixteen and sevenpence per

annum

said house

began

to

pay

He

for the perpetual lease.

then discovered a returii

dated September loth, 1614, and another dated 1617,

which confirmed the purchase of property, and gave

This begins,
of ages, debts, and assets.

particulars

" Polizza del estimo di M. Gio Paolo Maggini, maestro

di vioHni in contrada del

Palazzo Vecchio del Podesta,"

and gives his age as thirty-six, his wife's age as twentytwo, and his son, Gio Pietro's, as one year. The return
finishes up after giving particulars referred to with the
following estimate of his stock in hand at that date.
" Item mi ritrovo in mercantia di
cordi di essi violini

have stock

lire

cento

in violins,. furnishings,

violins, /"43 6s. 8d.

time, Maggini

was

If

we

in debt

violini,

100."

pi.

and

strike
to the

lignami et

Item.

strings for these

a balance at
extent of

2^

this
5s.

But the next return which Professor Berenzi discovered,

is
a very different tale.
It
dated 1626 and
" Pollizza del
and begins,
estimo di
me
1627,
Gio Paolo Maggini che fa violini in contrada delle
Bombasarie a Santa Agatha," and gives his age as forty-

tells

six, that of his

wife as thirty-two, that of his daughter

Cecilia as five, another daughter, Veronicha, two,

and a

During the ten years which

elapsed between the dates of these two returns, Maggini

son, Carlo, six

months.

could show a balance to his credit of about two thousand,

three hundred and ninety-six pounds, and a few shillings.

For those days, this was undoubtedly good progress. He

had become the owner of property in the country, and it
will

be observed, he had changed his place of business.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

The next important discovery which

95

Professor Berenzi

made, was the marriage entry of January 20th, 1615,

from which we see that Maggini was married to Anna,
daughter of Fausto Foresto on that day.
his investigations, Professor

Maggini's children

Berenzi

ten with

made

Continuing
out a

list

the dates of birth

of

and

death, and, further, the approximate date of the violin-

made by

maker's death, from the return

and already referred

The

to.

was the entry recording the date

November

namely,

24th,

the son Carlo,

Professor's next discovery

1651,

of the widow's death,

and he concludes his

very interesting article by speculating as to the identity

of the

maker

Maggini.

whom we

in the year 1890, in

and

have hitherto called Pietro Santo

All these particulars

called "

II

were published

in detail

a periodical published in Brescia,

Bibliofilo."

After this very satisfactory

search, Professor Berenzi continued his investigations

for the

purpose of bringing to

and date of Maggini's

birth.

light, if possible,

the place

After a deal of patient

searching in the parishes in the neighbourhood of Brescia,

he discovered the entry in the records of the small parish

of Botticino

Sera (West), and published

La

pamphlet

entitled,

"

Maggini,"

in 1891.

The

first to

last,

and almost

Patria

di

in a little

it

Giovanni

PaolO'

credit of these discoveries

verbatim

et

from

belongs to

literatim,

Professor Berenzi, and apparently to no other person

whatever, with the exception of Cavalier Livi, whose

counsels and assistance he gratefully acknowledges as
well

as the

services

of Messrs. A. Coen,

and D. L.

Corbolani.

The instruments by G.

P. Maggini which

have seen

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

96

were

of the highest type in finish

all

most striking

peculiarities

their corners,

and

in contrast

are their sound holes,

The

their arching.

highest point of

have been able to ascer-

always as near as possible

fifteen thirty-seconds of

Maggini's arching
tain,

The

style.

which they show

make

to great violins of a later

and

as far as

is,

an inch above the upper plane of the sides that is, above
what is called the symmetrical plane. If my readers will
suppose that, instead of the upper table, a
glass

is

flat

sheet of

placed absolutely level on the rims of a fiddle,

the lower surface of the glass will represent the symmetrical plane,

and Magini's arch

be the above height from

at its highest point

would

This height does not de-

it.

is maintained for about two inches

and three-eights on the long axis, and on each side of
the central point, after which it gradually and steadily

crease at once, but

Doubtless no one

decreases to the margins.

who has
why

seen a fine work by Maggini can help wondering

the Amatis or anybody else kept on arching fiddles to

such an extent, and

for so long a time, after his

and fame were so widely spread as

to see his work.
far to seek.

It

But so

to

make

was, and the reason

it

name

people curious
is

not

can be found at almost any stage in the

history of fiddle-making,

and

is

more

closely associated

with individuality and opinionativeness than with technical skill.

Maggini never seems to have varied

arching from the time

until

when

he laid down his

in his

he was twenty years of age

tools,

and

it

would

be,

beyond

question, a serious blunder to disguise from oneself that

nowhere can be seen anything grander

lines which are visible in

than the

or

more majestic

his

work.

The

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

strength of his broad arching seems to claim for
place side
is

by

side with Stradivari.

gf

him a

Another peculiarity

seen in his sound holes, which are intensely Gothic in

feeHng.
that

two

They

are wide, and inclined at such an angle,,

straight lines, one

each opening,
edges, would,

if

parallel to,

drawn through the middle of

and equi-distant from their

produced, intersect each other at the centre

of the top edge of the violin.

and lower

circles of the

The

corners in the upper

sound holes have not the broad

They

terminals of later and Cremonese makers.

are

and in many cases, appear

almost pointed, but that is more the result of wear, and,
perhaps, interference, than design.
His varnish is a
yellow, having a slightly red tint, and is chiefly spirit

finished square, but narrow,

varnish, but he also used

and sometimes
his

it

is

oil

varnish of similar colour,

a brownish red.

The

backs are slab backs.

great

many

of

outline corners of the

middle bouts are very short and stunted, but not on

that account ungraceful, while the middle bouts themselves are rather shallow,

which almost looks

the lower corners,

great

number

and formed by a simple curve,

like part

of a circle, except towards

where the curve

is slightly

elongated.

of Maggini's instruments are double

and have also decorations in purfling on the

back, some at top and bottom, and some in the centre.
These decorations take the form of a conventional
trefoil, finishing off the limbs of a St. Andrew's Cross in
The decorathe centre, and are all done with purfling.
tion varies. Sometimes a lozenge is projected between the
purfled,

limbs of the cross, and sometimes the

to three small squares.

Of course

trefoil

gives place

these decorations

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

^8

have been copied, and reproduced

Some

or less accurately.

in the imitations

of his

more

have only a

violins

single line of purfling, like ordinary instruments.

It is

supposed that he never dated his tickets.

Medard, Nicolas, Nancy and

One

about

Paris,

French copyists of Amati

of the finest of

as appearance goes.

1655.

so

Beautiful M^ood, and fine,

far

rich,

The reproductions by this maker

The sound holes
and
the
choice
of
quite of a
imitated,
wood
finely
are
high class. There were a number of makers of this
name from early in 1600. Toussaint-Medard, Antoine
golden red varnish.

are really as faithful as one could wish.

Medard, Fran9ois, and Nicolas.

Their instruments are

very rare.

MoNTAGNANA,
This maker

workman

is

DoMENico,

Cremona

and

Venice.

supposed to have been a fellow pupil or

Amati's shop, along with Stradivari.

in Nicolas

There is no doubt about the quality of

in line with the finest.

The

his work.

It

stands

outlines of his violins are

almost identical with those of Nicolas Amati's best

model, except that at the upper and lower bouts they
are slightly
holes

is

fuller,

distinctly

The middle bouts

'cellos

are

outward towards the lower corners.

are also deeper

and

The arching is of
very few specimens known

corners fine and

There are

while the inclination of his sound

full.

really

grand,

to

sometimes
appearing to droop some-

the

contrast to that of his violins

and the
Amati type.
exist.
His

longer,

the

outline

in

what from the shoulders, and in other instances, being

fuller and finer.
There is a certain feeling of parsimoniousness in the outline of his bigger instruments, with

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

99

regard to which the character of the wood

something to do.

His varnish

may have had

magnificent of a

is

beautiful red orange, or deep golden red.

always of the very

and

finest,

His wood

his instruments are

scarce, that they are probably

is

so

unobtainable except at

which one could get very good specimens of

the greater Cremonese.
prices for

The

Nicolas, Didier (Aine).

1757,

and died there

are very good violins

Varnish

fine,

He

slightly red.

lively,

born in Mirecourt,

His genuine instruments

this time.

He

copied Stradivari.

brown,

yellowish

This maker was in fashion

one time, and his own violins are fashionable yet

that matter, but one result of his vogue

large

number

of instruments are

is

la ville

his

mark,

His brand,

de Cremonne D. Nicolas aine "

into a triangle, with a small circle having

for

that a very

branded with

although he had nothing to do with them.

"

sometimes

has good margins, but rather irregular

Tone very good.

purfling.
at

in 1833.

by

best of a family of

He was

Mirecourt violin makers.

is

formed

D. N. and a

small cross inside, placed in the middle of the triangle.

He was
violins

who signed his own

widow of the latter

succeeded by his son Joseph,

"J. Nicolas

sold the business,

fils,"

and the

and the

right to use the brands to

H. Derazy, a Mirecourt maker already mentioned.

H2

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

lOO

S GUIDE.

1683
NoRMAK, Barak, London.
A highly
1740maker of viols, violas, violoncellos, and violins.
His work is often of a very refined character, with
The style
fruity decorations of a tasteful description.
of his violins deserves the highest commendation except
artistic

in the cutting of ^the

sound

holes,

which are very much

But

below'par in the matter of design.

in other respects,

the lines on which the instruments are built are exceedingly

His varnish

fine.

is

really

nowhere by

good quality.

this

time in point of

He was

a partner of
Nathaniel Cross, already mentioned, at " The Bass ^'iolcolour, but

it

is

of

Church Yard, London."

Otto, Jacob Augustus, Halle and Jena. This maker
was a pupil of Ernst, already mentioned, and is chiefly
in St. Paul's

known

work on the violin. I never saw any of his

He had also four sons, who carried on the
business or businesses, which were established by one or
two of them in above and other places, but their work is
hardly known, apparently, except by their father.
Panormo.
a family of violin makers, about the
earlier members of whom there is a great amount of
Vincent, the first bearer of the cognomen, is
confusion.
supposed to have been a native of Palermo, in Sicily,
where he is said to have been born in the beginning of
the eighteenth century, and to have gone to Paris about
His
1735, where he attained a splendid reputation.
tickets there date from 1738 to about 1778, namely forty
for his

instruments.

years, according to one authority, while, according to

another, he

few
it

was only

violins are dated

is

said,

a few years in

from

it.

He

and made instruments

Paris,

visited

and only a

Ireland also,

there from an

old

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

which he bought.

billiard table (maple)

lOI

At any

rate,

he appears to have been a maker working under stress

of canvas,

and from hand

He made

mouth.

to

magni-

double basses, some of which, are, however, of

ficent

But

very poor wood.

The appearance
times

varnish

his

his

workmanship

is

is

splendid

worthy of Cremona, and

always

much.

of his instruments varies

amber, almost

rich

at other times, as

work

is

splendid

might almost say too

very

he had

if

chosen altogether different materials to make

style of his

fine.

Some-

The

it.

margins

full

one

His favourite model

full.

Stradivari, but he copied Guarnerius

and Amati as

is

well.

Indeed, he did pretty nearly anything he was asked to

do, and,

As

deal.

quite evident, he changed about a good

is

it

have

found

said, tickets in Paris fiddles are

from 1738 to 1778, and I have seen fiddles having

Palermo tickets and London tickets between these
dates,

and

to

crown

said that he died in 1813.

all, it is

If all these dates refer to the

same Vincent Panormo, he

There were

appears to have attained a ripe old age.

also

a number of Panormos

after

him

Joseph, George Louis, and Edward, the

being good violin makers.

and guitars.
months ago,

The

last

George Louis

sons,

and second

also for

Panormos died

of the

bows

few

at Brighton, in very poor circumstances.

1785.

Parker, Daniel, London, 1715

of our fine I^nglish makers.

and

three

first

in his varnish

His tone

is

This

is

one

pure and clear,

he has caught a great deal of the

brightness of the Italians, although he has not caught

the pate.

It is

show very

full

very rich and pulpy-looking.

margins, which

is

His

violins

a characteristic of the

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

I02

better class of Italians,

and

GUIDE.

sound holes are cut

his

in a

very masterly way. His choice of wood also displays great

judgment and a

instances, his varnish

his instruments

shops,

and

to

is

of a dull red,

have been sold under other names.

certainly turned out

many good

1800.
violins

merit high praise in every respect.

very

Workmanship

fine.

and a great many of

for the music

appear to have been made

Perry, Thomas, Dublin, 1767

clear.

In some,

eye for Italian style.

fine

The

This maker has

and some of them

tone

is

sweet and

generally most excellent.

Scrolls

Varnish usually almost colourless, but of good

and quite transparent. Copied Amati largely,

many a good copyist of the same school, the
droop in the top part of his outlines shows pretty clearly
where his model came from namely from some of the
finest German copyists, but not from an original Amati.
About 1820 he became a partner with William Wilkinson,
and the firm was Perry and Wilkinson for a period of

quality,

but, like

about ten or

fifteen years.

Pierray, Claude, Paris, 1714

1730.

Well made,

but somewhat thin-wooded violins were produced by

this

maker.

Tone

Red

varnish of fairly good appearance.

of rather poor quality.

Pique, F. L., Paris, 1788

1822.

instruments are of remarkably good

A fine

maker, whose

style.

His favourite

model was Stradivari, and he certainly made exceedingly

correct copies.

Tone very

fine.

lent in such instruments as

are beautifully

full,

and

his

exceedingly well designed.

times somewhat "

gummy "

The wood

is all

excel-

have seen.

His margins
corners and sound holes

The

varnish, although some-

in appearance, is often

of

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

I03

good quality and transparency, and of a colour which

may be described as of a nice brown.
Plane, Walter, Glasgow, 1820
very
ful

fair

who

work, and

or later.

out neat and taste-

model before him, copy

could, with a

an old master with considerable

was

1860

who turned

Scotch maker

who never

but

skill,

in a position to be particularly choice about his

wood.

have known very good Amati copies by him.

Light yellow varnish.

RoMBOUTS,
that

good

Amsterdam, 1720

P.,

in its

way.

It

much

it

cannot say

may be called

might be described as "fat and

but his purfling is very careless.

seen

1740.

admire this maker's work, although

of his work,

have

but in what

not,

fine,'^

however,

have seen the

was not pleasant.

Rayman, Jacob, London. 1620 1650. This maker's
large work merits the highest praise.
Some of his
'cellos for the excellence of the wood and dignified charvarnish had a dry resinous look which

acter of the design deserve to be placed in line with the

best.

cannot say so

pretty enough in

as

have seen

is

much

some

his violins.

for

They

are

respects, but the outline of such

very poor, as

is

also the design of his

These might, indeed, be called disastrous.

The workmanship is good, but had his reputation
depended on the appearance of his violins it would never
sound

holes.

have reached the point to which

of error,

what he

rank of an

which he uses
to be seen.

really

artiste in his

show

it

attained.

Fortu-

beyond a possibility
could do, and raise him to the
calling, while some of the wood

nately, his big instruments

in this large

us,

work

is

as fine as anything

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

104

RoGERi,

GUIDE.

(commonly

GiAMBATTiSTA,

Rugerius) was a native of Bologna but

G.

called

not

it is

B.

known

when he was born. He was a pupil of, or, at least, a

workman with, Nicolas Amati about the same time as
Stradivari, and made remarkably fine violins on his own
It is not known
account when he started business.
precisely when he began in Cremona after leaving the
service of Amati, but after 1660 he was established in
Brescia and continued in business there until after 1730.

His instruments are very

the finest varnish, and

fine,

it is

have the

said that

finest

wood, and

many

of the in-

struments which we now call Nicolas Amati's were

made by him a very likely thing no doubt the same
may be said of all the great pupils of Nicolas. G. B's
instruments are modelled very much after the style of

Amati, of exceedingly
all

The

done.
'

fine

wood, and highly finished

but the purfling, which often looks as

figure of his backs

is

in

carelessly

if

often quite striking.

His margins are full and flat. There is a charming look

about his sound holes which it is not very easy to describe.
They are of the N. Amati style, but the inner edge looks
like a beautiful,

distance before

round

clean, straight cut for a considerable

it

merges into the lower curve, or turns

to the top corner.

His varnish

unlike that of his master.

His

'cellos

instruments, and his varnish on them

fine

is

and not

are magnificent
is

not always so

transparent, besides leaning to brown.

RoGERi, PiETRO, GiACOMO.

whose

His work

is

to his father's, but

basses.

son of the preceeding

special excellence lay in tenors, 'cellos,

said to be very

am

little, if

at

and double
all,

inferior

not in a position to speak of

it.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

RuGiERi, Francesco, Cremona.

pupil of

school

He was

namely that
His

self trained.

and H. Amati

in

not always

crept
or a

away from
before,

little

are very beautiful, of the A.

with the pretty, ridgy arch, the

make

and pure

find

But he
and gradually

tone.

his master,

like

we

the model until as

we

above

which Nicholas Amati was him-

violins

type,

relative of the

thus of a somewhat earlier

beautiful finish, fine varnish,

did

This maker was a

Hieronymus Amati and no

Bolognese family.

IO5

him leaving

it

get on to 1690,

almost entirely

becoming flatter in his arching, enlarging his model,

and changing and lengthening the design of his sound

Then

holes.

later

a year or two back he

goes in his

His

violins to the old, beautiful, sweet toned arch.

His outline

have large-headed volutes.

is

scrolls

not quite so

graceful and complete as that of his master or of his fellow

and

pupil,

his

middle bouts are pretty deep and long,

but they are exceedingly handsome instruments for

that,

Many

and very rare indeed.

on the
brown.

slab.

His varnish

His tickets run,

is

somewhat

of a

Cremona."
Rugier, Vincenzo, Cremona.
in

He

also used the phrase " detto

distinguish

his

Rogerius family.
is

dull golden

" Francesco Rugier detto

Per

Son

il

all

of his backs are cut

Per

il

preceding.

of

" in his tickets to

work, presumably, from that of the

So, at least,

it is

His work

thought.

not reckoned so good as his father's, and

coarse by some, but anything that

quite a refined style, and

displayed a most

judgment

wood.

in the selection of

his instruments not in the least

is

called

have seen was of

excellent

have seen wood

unworthy

in

of even the

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

Io6

finest

who was

grained examples of the Amati,

his

master, and with a varnish

for colour and

same distinguished makers.
There were other members of these two families of
whose work I do not know anything. One is named
Giacinto, and he calls himself in his ticket a son of
Francesco, and there is another called Giambattista

father's

quality not second to the

Ruggeri,

who

also calls himself "

Per," but whether he

il

was a scion of the Bolognese Rogerius, or of the

Cremonese Rugier, is not known. They are both credited
with good work, but there has been considerable confusion with regard to these

two families

in

consequence of

the names having been similarly spelt, and their precise

relations to the

two have not yet been defined.

About 1770. This maker

Saunier, Paris.

known because he

is

is

chiefly

credited with being the instructor

of F. L. Pique.

Sanctus, Seraphin, Venice, 1710

1748.

Santo Sera-

was an exquisite maker in many ways. The artistic

and picturesque functions of the violin maker were undoubtedly exercised by him to a considerable extent, and
anything more lovely so far as regards outward appearance
than some of his work both big and little could scarcely
be found. His double basses are most magnificent, but
adjectives of that kind are not quite fine enough to describe his other classes.
His basses are his best for tone,
fino

the smaller instruments not being quite equal in that

respect to the hopes their splendid appearance raises.

For

beautiful wood, finished work, splendid varnish

rich

and

brilliant

golden brown

not rival Stradivari,

it is

if

difficult to

Santo Serafino does

say

who

does.

His

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

margins

and

corners

are

margins being rather narrow

exquisitely

finished

and, altogether, he

lOJ

the

makes

and beautiful instruments such as even Stradivari

bright

might have been proud of had they only possessed the

proper tone.

In the latter respect they are considerably

behind, but not in any other.

what

rare,

and

His instruments are some-

tickets

his

run " Sanctus

He was

Utinensis fecit Venetijs anno."

a

town

Italy,

of considerable size in the extreme north-east of

and

far

enough from Cremona where the two

famous men lived whose works he made

Where he

learnt

his

went

Udine

to

from

business

is

not

his models.

known.

" Utinensis "

Venice.

" Udinese" just as " Cremonensis "

He

Seraphin

born in Udine,

He

means

means " Cremonese."

copied Amati and Stradivari.

SiLVESTRE, Pierre, Lyons.

Born

This maker was born at Somerwiller.

violin

went

1801.

Died 1859.

He was taught
He afterwards

making by Blaise of Mirecourt.

and worked first for Nicolas Lupot, and

to Paris,

afterwards for Gand.

He

is

a splendid maker, using

magnificent wood, and very good varnish.

His outlines

work
beyond reproach. The fluting of his heads is bounded
at the bottom by a quaint line which slightly squares off

are of surpassing beauty, and the finish

the corners.

and

The

perfect, his

of his

corners of the middle bouts are

full

sound holes most graceful, and the tone

of his instruments

is

of exceedingly fine quality.

He

had a brother who was taught by the same Mirecourt

maker, and who went to Paris also, and entered the
This brother, Hippolyte,
service of J. B. Vuillaume.
and Pierre became partners, and started business in

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

lo8

Lyons

In 1848 Hippolyte retired, and Pierre

in 1829.

When

continued until his death.

the brothers were

together, the tickets ran in Latin, " Petrus et Hippolytus

Silvestre fratres, fecerunt

Lugdun," and when Pierre

was by himself he used

his

Silvestre a Lyon."

Pierre

violins himself, but they

rapidly, as they are

" Pierre

native tongue,

made

number

a goodly

of

appear to have been picked up

now somewhat

The

rare.

firm's

instruments are not quite so good.

Stainer, Jacobus,

Absam

This great

near Inspruck.

maker was born on July 14th, 1621, at Hall a short

distance from Absam where he settled, and where he
died in 1683. He was first put to work with an organ
builder in Inspruck named Daniel Herz who appears

to

have been also an organ player.

It

said

is

that

was not robust enough for this

calling although the work is not particularly heavy
and that Herz recommended him to try violin making.

Stainer's constitution

We

are next informed that the parish priest of

was instrumental in getting Stainer placed

Cremona, and with Nicolas Amati. This
Stainer's
tion,

life is

at

Absam
work

incident

in
in

supposed to be an apocryphal interpola-

because no particular resemblance to Cremonese has

been found by the doubters in what they considered to be his

work when theyplaced it along side of that of the Cremonese

makers. Those who are not inclined wholly to discredit
the story, suggest that

it

is

just possible the

doubters

never really saw Stainer's finest work, and have come

to

their conclusions

which were not

his

from observations of instruments

at

all.

This

explanation of the matter, for a

is

fine,

not

an unlikely

genuine Stainer

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLiK MAKERS.

almost the rarest thing in fiddles.

violin is

talk about Stainers as

if

People

to their finger tips are generally talking

now

about instrutools.

am

referring to the tubby, or even to the j^wtubby,

which are usually called Stainers

violins,

who

they were familiar with them

ments which have never had the impress of his

not

IO9

over the

all

country, but to good, well made, and really old, instru-

ments of considerable merit

sometimes

Italian,

some-

German, sometimes English, and sometimes

French, which responsible people often accept, and speak
The pampered instrument, which has
of, as Stainer's.
times

been

one family

in

for

over a hundred years,

only guilty thing in this connection

its

and even

is

London

pretensions would be quite lost on a

not the

if it

were,

dealer,

and perhaps as completely on a provincial dealer, if

he happen to have had a little real experience.
But
there is another, and much more dangerous candidate
Bavarian honours, wearing the remains of a nice

for

golden-tinted sizing, and a suspicion of cherry-coloured

varnish
in

the

you can almost see the bloom of

shadow of the corners and had

Stainer's

life

only been

known

to

us a

peripatetic wholesale maker,

had

"

instrument handed

however,

it

is

edges, too narrow in

holes too

away

earlier,

kind of

fairs,

etc.,

we might have

to us as the

"

Market

a fitting companion to the " Prison Joseph,"

and the " Early Maggini."

violin,

down

little

attended

purpose of disposing of his stock,

this

Stainer

who

hiding

the details of

was

together with the knowledge that he

for the

it

much

Though

a finely-finished

generally too delicate about the

the margins, and having sound

of all sorts.

It

has

little

or no resem-

no

THE FIDDLE FANCIERS GUIDE.

blance to Cremonese work, and just as

little

to Stainer's,

makes people
imagine that Stainers are by no means uncommon, and
which clearly proves to them the absence of Italian
and

is, I

fancy, the kind of violin which

influence in his work.

influence in his

work

It
is

be greatly surprised

Cremona

business in
fact.

It

seems a

more than

the old

if

me

that the Italian

should not

that

tradition

from Absam, but

a journey from Liverpool to

it is

market

to market,

and

traflic

from

and had he even

to fair,

fair

really little

London would be

In those days there was considerable

to us.

he did

one time, had some foundation in

at

far cry

appears to

very evident, and

started on foot on the old road over the Brenner pass, he

could have done the whole distance merely as a tourist

in three or four days, but in

Schonberg,

such intervening towns as

Brixen, Klausen,

Sterzing,

markt, Trent, there would be

lots

Botzen, Neu-

of opportunities for

The

such business as he appears to have cultivated.

Albanis were in Botzen even in his

own

day, and there

are traces of a large fiddle trade between the Tyrol and

Cremona, of which a maker, such as he was, would not

be slow to take advantage, whether he made
instruments

himself

Trent

or not.

half

one of the busiest and gayest towns

Roveredo, was another

when

there,

one

is

the

the

was
Tyroi.

commercial place, and

within hearing of the heartbeat of the

classical fiddle country.

has,

lively,

in

all

way

Many a

bit of fine

Tyrol wood

no doubt, gone down to Brescia and Cremona, and

throughout Lombardy, and elsewhere in Italy, over that

old

post road,

across the

fashion, one might link

Brenner.

Absam

In

some such

with Cremona

but

it is

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

way

not a very satisfactory

There

work, the varnish

finest

as

of dealing with the subject.

however, the sHghtest doubt that on his

not,

is

is

of exactly the

which were formerly called " Elector

it

same character

The

found on Cremonese instruments.

is

Ill

was supposed that he made one

for

violins

" Stainer's,

because

each of the

German

The
woven

Electors, are magnificent instruments.

story about

them

into the old

a bit of romantic rubbish,

is

biographical accounts of him, and has been exploded

for a

few years now.

They

vioHns.

are

But there
really

is

no mistake about the

about

grand,

Width

from margin to margin lengthways.

inches

i4|-

across the

bottom about 8 inches, across the top, about 6^. The

margins are of good width, and gracefully thrown up a
little

The edges

from the purfling.

are circular.

The

corners are not so pronounced as those of Nicolas Amati,

and the purfling

It is not,

is

rather wider than usual with Stainer.

however, so very neat as in

many an

maker, but of an entirely satisfactory character

There

that.

is

holes are circular,

The

is

for all

a perceptible groove running round the

The

tops of the sound

and so are the lower

turns, but larger.

margins of both back and

arching

inferior

front.

greater on the front than on the back.

It starts to fall longitudinally at

the

same points from upper

and lower margins, but as the arch below the sound

holes is perceptibly higher than it is above them, the
the former point seems more sudden than
fall at
appears above, where

it

seems

more of the distance in falling.

quality
ficent

full,

to

occupy about a third

The

round, and resonant.

double basses.

He was

tone

is

of a lovely

He made

magni-

married on 7th October,

THE FIDDLE FANXIER

112

to

1645,

children.

and

debt,

S GUIDE.

Margaretha Holzhammer, and had nine

He was

unfortunate in his business,

died, out of his mind, in

fell

pointed out in Absam, and the bench to which he

bound when he died mad.

His label

Storioni, Lorenzo, 1751

who

is

1798.

is

fine,

A Cremonese

maker
His

generally called the last of the fine school.

and gives a most excellent

is

was

written.

instruments cannot be called pretty, but the wood

spirit

into

His house

1683.

He

tone.

is

very

employed a

varnish which sometimes appears to have actually

Many

sunk into the wood.

of his instruments are of

very broad grain in the upper table, and he certainly

is

not graceful in his outline, as, frequently, his work looks

almost shapeless.

Many

instruments having this broad

grain and unattractive appearance are called Storioni

His

work.

model

is

He made

Joseph Guarnerius.

some

magnificent double basses,

" Laurentius Storioni fecit Cremonae

and

the

tickets

" are not so often

genuine as one could wish.

This maker

Stradivari, Aktokio, Cremona.

is,

as

every one probably knows, the greatest artiste in the

matter of violins that has ever lived.

The year

of his

supposed to be 1644, and the place Cremona.

birth
The interest which his work has aroused regarding him
is

has been so keen that people, for lack of information

directly concerning himself,

the

name

in old registers in

finding, presumably,

Up

how

have taken

Cremona
far

to

hunting up

for the

purpose of

back they can trace

it.

to the present the year 12 13 is the earliest recorded

date concerning an entry of a

name bearing

to that of our great fiddle maker.

a likeness

In a practical work

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

like

to

lucubration

this,

the

statement

Stradivari

have

of

may

kind

that

that

bearers

honourable

occupied

be

limited

name

oi

positions

in

the

of

II5

Cremonese history from very early times, but no direct

relationship has been traced between Antonio, the
violin maker, and these distinguished people.
His
fame is not much in need of it, having spread
far
enough and wide enough in all conscience
through the merits of his

own work.

Indeed, those

lawyers, doctors, etc., etc., of old times have had their

names rescued from

oblivion solely because of Antonia

and we may therefore in a

work like this leave them in peace. Stradivari'sfather and mother were Allesandro Stradivari and Anna
Moroni, and they had another son, Joseph Julius Csesar,,
whose birth in Cremona has been found registered.
Stradivari, the violin maker,

brief

The

entry of Antonio's has not been found.

Stradivari

was twice married, first to a widow lady, a Signora

The lady had a
Capra in 1667, who died in i6g8.
daughter before her marriage with Stradivari, and there
were

six children

born to them.

On

the 3rd June, 1680,

Stradivari had bought the house in the square of

Domenic and

it

remained

in the possession of his heirs-

for forty years after his death,

persons called Ancina,

and

when
in

becoming the

again, this time

St..

it

1801

was

sold to some:

changed hands,

property of a Signer

was purchased from his

heirs by one Vigani, then in 1862 by a draper called
d'Orleans.
It is at present No. i. Piazza Roma and is

Bono.

Fifty years after this

it

a modest house of three floors looking over the square.

The shop

floor

has two windows at one side and the

114

"^"E FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE.

door
violin

The upper

the other.

at

windows.

In

these

floors have, each, three

unpretending premises the great

maker resided and worked

years, having on

for

Five

second wife, Antonia Zambelli.

born of

second union, of

this

their father's calling.

nearly fifty-eight

August, 1699, married his

the 24th

whom

children were

only two followed

These were Francesco, born

ist

and Omobono, born 14th Nov. 1679. The

exact date of Stradivari's death is not known, but he

July, 1671,

was
and

December, 1737,
the family tomb he had prepared for

carried out of his house on the 19th

laid,

not in

but in one Francesco Vitani's vault in the

himself,

Chapel of the Rosary Church of

second wife had preceeded him
Stradivari

is

in

St.

Domenic.

supposed to have been a pupil of Nicolas

His name has not been found entered

Amati.

His

death by nine months.

return as an inmate of Nicolas Amati's as

any

in

the case

is

that other pupil of

his.

But

observation of his work reveals the fact that he

made

with Andreas Guarnerius

violins

which bear Amati's name, that

began

1666, at which date he also

name.

If

we

these tickets

placed,

matter which, by the way,

are thrown

attempting to

work.

and

if

in the violins in

we

as early as

own

place implicit reliance on the integrity of

possible to decide

remained

is

to put in his

we

it is

believe that they

im-

have

which they were originally

into

the utmost confusion in

trace any gradual

development

in his

Since his death, no person has shoAvn himself

possessed of any specially authentic data from which

could be deduced

models which have

the

theories regarding his various

for so long a

time prevailed.

When

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

probed to the bottom these theories are found

very largely, guess-work.

work

in a great

that.

It is, of

was

while he

many

It

cases, but

he was

if

employment of Nicolas
as Nicolas Amati liked them to
after the

he discovered something

not however a very profitable subject of

and

now

is

authorities on the

largely confined to one or

two

who do

not

and

subject,

know very much about

yet

employer he would

his

left

unless, or until,

It is

discussion,

more than

is

make them somewhat

probably continue to

better.

never

it

in the

be made, and that after he

style,

to be,

very reasonable guess-

is

course, highly reasonable to suppose that

Amati, he made violins

same

II5

the fiddle fancier

is

those

to

What

it.

chiefly concerns

had several models,

that Stradivari

but when, during his active working

life

on his own

account, he began, interrupted, renewed, or finally discontinued, the use of any one of them

person can

What

is

now

the

is

amatise

ridgy, but graceful arch,

This model he

" long" Strads.

supposed

That

of about 14^ inches.

is

called

length

is

his

an instrument

somewhat
characteristic of Amati

is

after.

Then from 1690

model having a

total length

1700 onwards what

period prevails, in which the

somewhat

less,

while the widths of the

upper and lower portions are slightly greater.

I

or so

have made what are called

From about

" grand "

generally

is,

supposed to have used until

to

is,

he ever did work for

the long, and

which
is

about 1690, or a year or so

until 1700, he is

if

That

model.

having, to a certain extent,

style.

more than any

considered to be his earliest style after he

ceased working for N. Amati

him

is

tell.

These

THE FIDDLE

Il6

FAN'CIER's GUIDE.

are the general appearances of what are

known

as his

three periods, but whether the instruments were actually

made in this succession or not is a matter which cannot

now be decided. In some of his so-called early instruThere

ments, he employed a kind of poplar for the back.

are

very few examples of the amatise model in this

" long " pattern

country, and the

is

quite as great

The distance from corner to corner of the

middle bouts in the " long " model is about S^in. rather

rarity.

under than over

and

in the "

grand

"

pattern

The sound holes in both "long "and "grand"

and

it is

very

difficult to

their perfect beauty.

have,

it

again, seen

Joseph del Jesu's

is

of the

wood

in the

medium

generally of a

is

upper

frequently very close and regular.

is

now and

there

3 in.

are the same,

give any indication in writing of

The grain

table of a Stradivari violin

width, but

it is

violins.

it

as wide as

Throughout

all

is

found in

these styles

great variety in individual instruments, and

solidity of construction,

them

characteristic of

combined with refined

all.

finish is

"long" pattern the

The top curve of
the "grand " pattern,

In the

middle bouts are cut in very sweetly.

these does not, as in the case of

appear to almost
the violin before

turns down.

this gives these bouts

ellipse of

of

how

somewhat

of the appearance of

an

more pronounced character, and as an instance

what is called a previous

Stradivari reverted to

style, the

middle bouts of the " grand " pattern

1716, or thereabout,

may be found in

of distinctly amatise model.

pattern

upper portion of
In the " grand " pattern

rise a little into the

it

is fuller

The

of,

say

instruments of 1690,

outline of a "

grand

"

than that of a " long," and gives to the

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

instrument the appearance of having

a greater approach

what

it

II7

really has

dimension between

to equality of

The

the upper and lower portions of the body.

top

curve of a " grand " does not droop so quickly from the
level of its start at the

though constantly

neck as that of a "long," but,

keeps travelling out a

falling,

speak, nearer the level of

The

its start.

bit,

so to

result of this is

that fulness already referred to.

The varnish

of Stradivari

work
brown, golden yellow, and
of his so-called early

The

" long " has

much

brown tinged with

red.

That

of various colours.

is

is

often of a beautiful'golden

also a kind of cherry brown,

the

same range

The

of tint in golden

" grand," as far as

have

seen, has a wider range of colour, from a clear straw

tint

(almost) through toast

orange, red orange,

brown

and golden

to golden

All

red.

extremely transparent and beautiful, and

brown,

these are

soft

to the

Such descriptions can, however, only

I have seen them in all
have seen a highly arched back which

touch like velvet.

apply in a general sense, for

styles, just as

might, indeed, almost be called amitise

very heart of the " grand

"

dating from the

period, while

have also

seen a model of about 1680, repeated line for line more

than forty years afterwards so far as tickets are concerned.

fine.
it

is

The

quality of the varnish

Sometimes

it

is

of a dull,

almost always

barely possible that the few instruments where

observed

it

of this appearance,

cleansing process which

.

is

scumbly character, and

had been treated

to

might easily cause the

appearance of the polish.

There

in the pate of the varnish.

On many

is

also

some
dis-

some variety

instruments

it

is

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

Il8

thin, soft,

and gleaming, on

flaming ruby gum.

like a

treated

by Stradivari himself

appearance of age,
instruments

and that appears

to imitate the picturesque

can be seen vanishing away in

it

In one of the

ever saw, the margins were large,

to

qua non, but not in

luscious,

a back which has been

thinnest scales at the borders of wear.

earliest

and

others, thick

On

have been

in almost all

Fourteen years

all.

cases, a sine

later,

they grew

small, while in the immediately preceeding year they

were large and magnificent.

They

are generally of a

handsome width, and, when not worn away, there

is

present a fine sense of solidity, combined with lightness

The

of construction.

scrolls are of the finest

having broad and

artistic contour,

full

and most

sides for the

peg

same material apparently

the back.
But the grafting of new

box, and they are usually of the

as that employed for

necks has given opportunities of changing scrolls in earlier

times which are

now

many

well past recall in a great

These changes have been made

instances.

for

the

purpose, sometimes, of supplying a well preserved scroll

to a violin

whose head had been

worn down.

many

great

of

either lost, broken, or

them are worn down on

the side of the fourth string because of the habit, not

yet extinct, of placing that side of the
som-e firm support while tuning up.

wear has been so excessive as

owners

to

to

volute against

In some cases that

tempt makers and

have a fresh piece inserted, and the contour

some measure restored.

When the wood
matched, and the work accomplished in an

in

manner,
scrolls

it

is

vary a

quite a
little

in

right thing to

do.

is

well

artistic

Stradivari

appearance, early ones having

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

II9

but

their

deeper fluting at the back than later work

From

dimensions do not vary much.

fluting

at

back

the

to

apex

the

they measure about four inches.

from boss-edge to boss-edge

" boss "

which

is

on each

the

of

The

about if inches.

is

side.

It

the volute,

of

sometimes called

is

the " ear," and at other times the "eye," and

be just as rational to

volute,

Their width across

protuberant terminal

the

sticks out

the bottom of the

would

it

call it the " nose," or the "

mouth."

The width

of the widest part of the fluting is about an

and that of the narrowest part of the volute at the
top is about -^^ of an inch. Width of the first curl of the

inch,

volute, measuring, as

it

were, right through from boss-

edge to boss-edge, and along their tops

is

Width

same

^%
^

in.

in.

of second curl across top,

Depth

Width

withpegbox

of sculpture of
of

in.

and

first

in

about

direction,

curl, at boss,

under turn of volute

Jg- in.

about

at its junction

Greatest width ofpegbox, at the nut,

Width of fluting

f in., and then diminishes to f in. at top.

at back, opposite bosses, f in.

Depth

across second peghole from top about

back of second curl

pegbox
Depth from

of side of
i

in.

at level of boss tops to fluting

about

and then diminishing gradually, as it turns round

to where it overhangs pegbox at same level to ^in., and
further diminishing until lost in the boss on the up cut,
i^in.,

the sculpture widening from the front until

with the boss end.

about

^ of

an

In some the cutting

inch

above the

thickness of the pegbox sides

is

is

it

is

flush

hollow from

peghole.

The

about g% of an inch.

These measurements may be of service to the fancier,

although, of course, they must not be understood to be

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

120

GUIDE.

Viewed sideways a Stradivari

an unvarying standard.

very perfect, curling in towards the boss in

scroll looks

ever lessening depth until the cutting ends just as

reaches the top.

the volute

comes

is

The undercut where

it

the pegbox joins

as highly finished as any other portion, and

slightly out to

meet the under turn

in a

most

The wood is usually very well marked

and the whole appearance of very refined, and strong
character.
Of course in those cases where the splicing

graceful manner.

of a scroll has been

sides, or cheeks,

carelessly done,

away on

thinned

and the pegbox

the inside to conceal

a poor job, the front view of that

portion will not

harmonise with what

is

where the

been made too high up,

joint has

often destroy in

said of their thicknesses,

a distressing

appearance one expects to

fine

Stradivari, Francesco,

manner the

it

and
will

beautiful

even there.

Cremona.

Born the

ist

Died nth May, 1743. This maker was

Antonio, and the elder of the only two members

February, 1671.
a son of

of his large family

As

who

followed their father's calling.

maker Francesco did not attain to the level of his

father, which is not saying very much in his dispraise,
seeing that none of the other great Cremonese makers
a

permanently attained to that

of Francisco's work

exactly the

may be
not,

was heavier

same quality

father's instruments.

level.

What

in style,

of varnish as

is

have seen
but

it

had

found on his

There, however, the resemblance

said to cease, although that circumstance will

as the

fancier

knows,

lessen

the

interest

in

Francesco's work, for he has qualities which are personal

to himself.

His margins

for instance are relieved in the

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

most beautiful manner

a thickish cord rising up

like

from the marginal groove

and his

His arching

very sweetly.

edges are rounded

somewhat after that of

of the "grand" pattern

is

his father in the earlier style

not so graceful in any point, but having a

paternal feeling for

The

that.

all

121

little

of the

cutting in of his

middle bouts betrays the same influence, but they are

not so artistic and have the appearence of being deeper

and longer

which

they really are except in regard to

the father's model, which

His varnish

what

in

"long"

called the

is

have seen

of a

is

pattern.

reddish,

golden brown, soft and transparent like his father's, but

His sound holes appear more straightly

not so brilliant.

cut than his father's, and have their terminal wings not

They

so square or broad.

The

lower.

His

pointed.

are

also

placed

little

corners of his middle bouts are also more

are slightly different, the volute

scrolls

appearing to be rather long, but not ungraceful, in front,

and narrowing steadily towards the

He made

top.

few instruments, and they are exceedingly

" Franciscus

tickets

run

Filius.

Antonii faciebat anno."

Stradivarius

Stradivari, Omobono, Cremona.

rare.

very

His

Cremonensis

Born 14th Novem-

Died 9th June, 1742. This maker is the

1679.
only other son of Antonio who became a violin maker.

ber,

am

not acquainted with his work.

have been
is

"
I

chiefly

a ticket which,

Omobonus

employed
it is

said,

Stradiuarius

should very

donkey, or at

making

He

appears to

repairs.

There

he used, and which runs

figlij

much doubt
least,

in

Antonij Cremone," etc.

that

he ever was such a

that he used such an inscription

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

122

The

twice.

GUIDE.

family were too

patrons of the

clerical

numerous to permit such a thing, I should say.

Tecchler, David, Rome. This was a fine maker,

who

if

tickets
I

we may

trust to the accuracy of inscriptions

was born

have seen of

Salzburg in 1666.

in

work was

his

altogether Italian in style.

made

Anything that

of very high character

It is said,

on

and

however, that he

when

was in
was in
Rome when he was about thirty years old, and his work
was Italian in character then. It displays finely and
massively moulded corners and margins, and altogether
a noble and grand appearance. The wood is of the
finest kind and beautifully figured, back and sides.
His
arched

highly

Salzburg, which

is

instruments

very

He

likely.

he

certainly

His varnish

violoncellos are superb instruments.

long he lasted
until

cannot say.

about 1742 or

It is

generally supposed

he worked in

It is also said that

3.

is

How

golden brown of somewhat scumbly appearance.

Venice and had a quarrel there with the other makers,

who
to

threatened him in some way, so that he removed

Rome.

am

his

Roman

Well

finished

only acquainted with

work.

Testore, C. G., Milan, 1690

1715.

instruments of Guarnerius model.

Testore, C. A., Milan, 1720

preceeding.

He made

Amati, and Stradivari.

what thickish brown

Brown

1745.

varnish.

Eldest son of

very good copies of Guarnerius,

Good

pate.

tone.

Varnish of a some-

He made

fine

'cellos

and

tenors.

Testore, P. A., Milan, 1720

to

preceding.

1759.

Similar work

Varnish yellow, and yellowish brown.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Thibout,

Born

Paris.
J. p.,

who

started business in Paris in

ship

is

corners,

fine,

Died

Caen, 1777.

at

This was an excellent French maker

near Paris, 1856.

very

I23

and

1807.

distinctive in

many

His workmaninstances by his

where the joinings of the sides are not made

square, through carrying out

the usual way, but

in

the

corner blocks, and facing apex of these until about an

His margins are quiet

eighth of inch surface appears.

and finished looking, and

sides,

over, so to say, on the

fall

His sound

not greatly projecting over these.

holes have something of the straight inner cut of Rogerius.

His arching

is

and

flat,

his varnish a red

mahogany,
His

with a very slight tinge of brilliant brick red.

scrolls are beautiful, not so

French or

deep nor so long as other

Italian specimens, but of exquisite line

curve in

profile.

volute.

His

tone

and good.

French, powerful,

is

Altogether his style

and
Thompson.

and

Strong pegbox, and most finished

is

restrained, strong,

and

artistic,

his finish very fine.

makers

of a

of the

London violin
and Samuel Thompson

number

beginning with " Charles

in St. Paul's

None

Name

of

Church Yard, London," as the tickets run.

work is very good, that of Charles and

Samuel being

of poor outline, poor

wood, poor, tasteless

sound

Everything about

indeed,

holes.

mean.

Thin

and weak,

tone,

it,

more

or less,

Their

inartistic scroll.

instruments have generally a pronounced groove round

margins both back and

lifeless,

about

maple
1720

stain tint.

48.

Thompson, 1753

front,

and the varnish

is

of a

This firm carried on business

Other firms of the name are Jno.

9,

and thereabout.

R.

Thompson

"

'THE FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE.

124

about 1749, Thompson and Son (S. and P.) about 1764.
Some of the work of these firms is rather better than the
founders', but none of
far as

have known

it

mention so

calls for particular

it.

ToBiN, Richard, London, 1800

36.

This was a

good maker, who worked at one time

fairly

Betts.

He

His

ToDiNi,

scrolls are certainly

Rome.
who used

MicHELE,

native of Saluzzo,

and he had the

reputation of being the finest scroll cutter ever

this country.

John

instru-

He was

ments are good-looking, and well varnished.

pupil of Perry and Wilkinson, Dublin,

for

His

died in poverty in Shoreditch.

known

in

very good.

About 1620

1676.

be credited with the

to

invention of the four-stringed contra basso, a notion

some time ago exploded.

They made

ToNONi, Felice and Guido, Bologna.

very fine violoncellos of exquisite work and considerable

power.

Their tickets run " Tononi di Bologna fecero

168"
Giovanni, Bologna.
Son of Felice.
A
maker than preceding firm.
He made large
and tenors, which are very fine, and of Nicolas

ToNONi,
better
'cellos

Amati model.
fecit

His

tickets run

" Joannes de Tononi's

Bononioe in Platea Paviglionis anno 17

Tononi,
ceding.

Carlo, Venice, 1716

His

violins are well

1768.

Son

of pre-

shaped instruments, and

have a very good quality of varnish.

Urquhart, Thomas, London,

maker is one of the finest of the
His work is that of an artist
.

the quaint,

1648

1666.

This

early English school.

in

all

points,

from

pure cutting of the sound holes, to the

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

I25.

named

beautiful golden varnish, which hardly can be

second to even the best Italian.

About

Vaillant, F., Paris.

Nicolas Amati.

lines of

somewhat long middle

This was a very

1738.

good maker, who produced some

fine

instruments on the

His outline

is

very pure, with

bouts. His tickets run " Fran9ois

Vaillant rue de la Juiverie a Paris.'

Vuillaume,

J.

B.,

Paris,

respects this distinguished

France has ever had.

1798

maker

1875.

is

In

some

the greatest that

In other respects he

is

He

not.

had the capacity to be the greatest in all

had he so chosen, but he did not so choose, with

certainly
points,

the result that he never gained on Lupot except in one-

two points of comparatively slight importance. He

was born in Mirecourt on the 7th October, 1798, and

or

all

biographers, without exception, state that his

his

father,

Claude Vuillaume, was a

violin

maker

there.

have, myself, adopted that statement in making reference

him elsewhere, and even the late highly esteemed

Gustave Chouquet, keeper of the museum of the:
Conservatoire at Paris, has apparently drawn his
information from the same source, namely, Antoine

to

Vidal.

It

has even been recently stated that his grand-

father

was

a violin maker, although he does not appear

to

have gone quite so

far as that himself.

M. Vidal was writing his

make some researches in

In 1874,

when

book, he asked Vuillaume

his native town, in

ascertain the history of his family.

What came

tO'

order to
of these

searches will be referred to presently, but long previous

to that

date, namely, about 1856,

Chapel Master

to

the King

when M. F.

of the Belgians,

J.

Fetis,

and Director

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

126

of the Brussels Conservatoire,

graph

Antonio

on

was compiling

work

mono-

material

we find incorporated in
was a Jean Vuillaume,

supplied to him by Vuillaume,

this

his

Stradivari, mainly from

a statement that there

who had been employed in the establishment of Stradivari,

and who had made good violins from about 1700 to
The only known specimen of a violin by this
1740.
maker appears
possession of
Vidal,

who

J.

have been one which was

to

the

in

B. Vuillaume, and which was seen by M.

describes

it

as a very

common

piece of work,

with painted purfling, narrow edges, and yellow varnish,

and

which no connoisseur could

in

find

the

slightest

trace of the magnificent example and tuition of Stradivari.

When

the researches as above referred to were made, no

two

trace of relationship between the

found.

It is

families could be

not even said that this Jean Vuillaume had

However

been discovered to be a real personage.

may

that

be, the most remote ancestor of the family then

reported

was Vuillaume's own

father, Claude,

who

is

and the 'prentice master of

his

four sons, Jean Baptiste, Nicolas, Nicolas-Fran9ois,

and

called a violin maker,

Claude Fran9ois.

It

tion supplied in this

him when

he

does not appear that the informa-

way

published

to
it

M. Vidal was
in

the

Vuillaume's death, namely, in 1876, and

verified

by

year

following

am

beginning

to fancy that J. B. Vuillaume, however clever he was as

a violin maker and dealer, was a practical joker of a some-

what serious turn

of mind, or else that those to

conveyed such details had

failed to

whom

comprehend

he

their

At all events, the biographical

account of the family which is at present current from
precise significance.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

the pens of the

late

Vidal, and which

is

Gustave Chouquet and Antoine

adopted by

addition of a grandfather,

mention,

is

I27

whom

to the effect that

others with

all

the

these gentlemen do not

Claude Vuillaume, born

in

Mirecourt in 1771, according to Chouquet, and in 1772,

according to Vidal, was a violin maker in that town, and
the

first

known member

of the family

his four sons in the business,

that he trained

who continued

under his

it

that he was a maker of trade instruments,

and had used as his trade mark, " Au roi
David, Paris," branded in the backs. I am now
informed that this Claude Vuillaume was not a violin
maker at all, but was what we would call the " carrier,"
between Mirecourt and Nancy. There may be people
direction

etc.,

etc.,

alive

in

both places at the

remember the

who

old

could confirm

Assuming,

man

present

quite well

this, I

daresay,

for the nonce, that

if

it

who

time

he died

in 1834

will

^^^

were necessary.

he was even a dealer in

cheap instruments in Mirecourt, what a strange fancy it

was to start a " violin " ancestry in this way
And if
he was not a violin dealer, and had nothing whatever to
!

do with the business, except as the carrier of the goods from

one town to the other, what a lurid

light the

circumstance

throws on the eagerness to establish by some means a

between an
and
the
glorious
old
undoubtedly talented personality,
shop in Cremona. It is very unpleasant to have one's
confidence in the accuracy of biographical detail shaken
connection

if

in this fashion,

even only

'a

and although

nominal one

it

appears that his brother,

Claude Vuillaume, never made any such pretensions and

laughed at the idea when the subject was broached in

THE FIDDLE

128

FAN'CIER'S GUIDE.

much

graver aspect

If the late J.

B. Vuillaume

his presence, the matter has really a

than that of a practical joke.

led Vidal to believe that his father

who

was a

violin

maker,

himself trained his four sons in the art, and this

information has no foundation in fact, the circumstance

is

sure to cast discredit on anything he ever said.

further,

if

he,

supplied

that,

Vuillaume

more than a quarter

Fetis

" violin

and

with
its

the

And

of a century before

story

of

the

" Jean

maker's supposed connection

with Stradivari, without having any foundation for his

statements, then he certainly would be called an untrust-

worthy authority, who did not scruple

to divert with the

most unpardonable audacity, the ordinary channel of

musical history in a direction which

it

would not other-

wise have taken in that particular respect, and people in

such an event would not be slow to believe that he did

this for purposes of self advertisement as a violin

and

maker

dealer.

Whether his father was a violin maker or not, he himwas one, and a great one, without any doubt what-

self

ever,

and had he not descended

to very reprehensible

practices in the treatment of the wood, etc., in such a

manner as could only

aid in deception, he

would have

occupied even a higher position than he at present holds.

In 1818 he went to Paris and began work with Francis

Chanot,

who was

Remaining there
organ-builder

then making his guitar-shaped violins.

for

named

two years, he next went

Lete,

who

to

an

kept a fiddle shop as

In four years' time he became a partner there,

well.
and the firm was Lete and Vuillaume. Three years later
he separated from Lete and started on his own account.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

In 1826 he had married a lady

I29

named Adele Guesnet,

through whose acquaintances he came to know Savart.

the

Vuillaume

acousticien.

made

is

he began business he tried to

instruments

when
made new

to explain that

carefully

sell

instruments made with the of which

but that he found they sold very cheaply
skill

all

he was capable

and slowly, and that the rage

set in.

He

for old

ItaHan violins had

suited himself to the times,

old instruments, placed

sham

and produced
and found

tickets in them,

In order to produce a prematurely old

his customers.

tone, he destroyed its capacity for endurance.

to

In order

produce an old appearance he destroyed the wood to

He

a certain extent with acid.

who has done

same

this sort of thing,

is

not the only

and

as that of others, namely, " he

his

had

excuse

maker
is

to live."

the
All

things considered, this excuse does not appear to be, in

his

case,

quite

valid.

In

1825,

when he was only

twenty-seven years of age, his ability procured

partnership in

an old established concern.

for

him a

In 1826, he

had married into a good family. In 1827, he had gained

a silver medal at an exhibition in Paris at a time when
Aldric, Chanot pere, C. F. Gand, and many other high
class makers were alive

and working. In i828,he had made

over one hundred and thirty violins, exclusive of tenors,

and double basses, and in that year he started on

own account with an excellent reputation. He was

'cellos,

his

then only twenty-nine, and

he had

much

to

complain

certainly cannot see that

of,

yet in that very year he

began making those imitations of old instruments to

which I have already referred, and he confessedly made

them

to satisfy the

demand

for " old Italians."

put

it

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

130

GUIDE.

that in view of the progress indicated above, to say that

it

was with him

a question of either " Hving

by imitations
" is simple

new vioHns

or starving by the fabrication of

nonsense, unworthy of a serious historian.

of those

secret

Vuillaume was

clever

hurry to

in a

These instruments he
have

11

sold at

Many

He may

of

it

is

fortune.

his

the violinsand

clearly does not appear to

the

me

to

a legitimate

people profess to believe that he did

not always have so sold them

nevertheless

whom we

know

al

than

many

man

to

apply names which sound really quite harsh.

also said on his behalf that he

the people

we

he does not occupy a higher

position in this particular respect

is.

true

those instruments as genuine old Italian violins.

sell

about that

It

origin

laid the foundation of his fortune in

manner.
not

He

10.

The

probably that

is

make money, and

were the

admitted that they

'cellos at

productions

who

was no worse than

expected old Italians at such prices.

do not think so. He did not confine himself to Strad.

and Guarnerius imitations, and in those days, and for
long after, ii was not a small price for outside Italian
makers.

Had

he limited his

skill

to external imitation

only there would have been no ground of complaint, but

the colouring of the

simply made a great

useless

which

wood

many

inside

when combined with

is

and out with

acid, has

of these instruments almost

the thinning

also characteristic of them.

away

in parts

In 1834 he had

another silver medal, and in 1839 and 1844 he had gold

medals. These were for Paris exhibits, but in 1851 he
sent to the Great Exhibition here two quartets and the

great octobasse which he had previously invented and

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

I3I

which gave four notes lower than the ordinary double

In this Exhibition he carried away the only
bass.

But the grounds

grand council medal that was given.

upon which he got

much ignorance on
was

distinction

Although

are so curious, and display so

it

the part

very

have quoted

this

the

of

that

jury,

the

questionable

one

award already

in the article

indeed.

Bernard Simon Fendt (which see), it will be as well to

reproduce it here. " New modes of making violins, in

such a manner that they are matured and perfected

immediately on the completion of the manufacture, thus
avoiding the necessity of keeping them for considerable
periods to develop their excellencies."

as

violins in

"

all

the

splendid trade advertisement and, no doubt,

air of a

served

has

It

one.

Vuillaume

Fortunately,

an absolutely legitimate manner

new mode," but by

These had

the old mode.

made

also

not by any
all

to

be

developed and perfected in the usual way, namely, by

careful playing

instruments of

and the flight of time. These are grand

which any man might well be proud, and

they are what place him in the front rank of French

makers.

made

His favourite model was Stradivari, but he

copies of

all

makers, almost without

the great

exception, and these instruments

called chefs d'oeuvre

phrase.

If

in

may

the highest

they have a fault

it

is

one and

significance

all

be

of the

that the upper table

is

not always strong enough to resist the pressure where

it

should be able to do

are superb.

so.

In

all

other respects they

His edges are properly massive and the

margins always right with the model

copying.
K2

Every point

of his

work

is

he
of

might be
an

artistic

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

132

S GUIDE.

character, and he must have been a most indefatigable

made 3000
he personally made

worker, as he says himself that he

That does not mean that

his early

days he undoubtedly did

but

so,

violins.
all.

In

imagine

must have had people constantly

him besides his own brothers, although
every now and then he turned out a violin made entirely
that after 1829 or 30 he

working

by

for

His early instruments are

himself, or almost wholly.

spirit

varnished, generally of a deep, red orange, and

later,

he used a kind of covering which

varnish nor

now-a-days.

oil

It

varnish, as
is

sort

is

of

nondescript

which can hardly be called a varnish

at

period the colour becomes a rich red

of a

kind of

paint.

His sound

the terms

production

all.

At

this

brown, appears

exceedingly well, and feels quite elastic.

look

neither spirit

we understand

It

has the

holes

in

the

Stradivari models of early days are very good, but they

are not reproductions of Stradivari fs.

round

in the

His Guarnerius models are also

The

holes are exaggerated.

model

With

is

They

are too

upper curve, and too wide in the middle.

clever,

but the sound

tone, however, of the latter

powerful and very suitable for orchestral work.

the exception of those doctored violins, his instru-

ments are very

fine

specimens of violin making,

and

when they are perfect, will be much sought after. He

was an inventor of one or two things which have never
come into extensive use, and was a large dealer in old
violins.
He died 19th February, 1875. One of his
daughters was married to the famous French violinist,
Delphin Alard.

Vuillaume

His

in Paris for

brother

Nicholas worked

with

about ten years and then returned

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL VIOLIN MAKERS.

Mirecourt and

the

Nicolas-Fran9ois,

also

to

making
worked

I33

cheap instruments.

of

with

brother

his

in

when he went to
own account there, and was

Paris until he was about twenty-eight,

Brussels,

and started on

He

a good maker.

his

Claude Fran9ois, the

died in 1876.

became an organ builder, and then a

maker.
There was a nephew of J. B.

fourth brother,

case

fiddle

Vuillaume called

Sebastien

began business

Paris but died in the

in

son

of Claude's

who

same year as

He was not a particularly good maker.

The name then disappeared from the trade.
Wamsley, Peter, London, 1727 1740. This was

his uncle.

some

a good old English maker,

fine class.

made

The wood

is,

however,

copies of Stainer of a

whose work

of

left far

of a

He

too thin.

somewhat tubby

sound holes are not particularly

is

His

style.

tasteful,

and

those

instruments which have a kind of dull brown varnish

inclining to black are reckoned his best.

Wise, Christopher, London,

maker was undoubtedly an artist

1650

56.

his

in

This

and

way,

occasionally indulged in decorative purfling, sometimes

all

over the back.

height.

He was

of the best
in

His

an East

makers of

ribs or sides

End London

his time

and

are

of a

good

some
His place was

artist like

after.

Vine Court, Halfmoon Alley, Bishopsgate Without,

and has only recently been cleared away.

WiDHALM, L., Nuremberg, 1765 1788.

maker, who

copied

exaggerated fashion.
of fine

varnish.

quality

and

Stainer

well,

but,

His instruments
finish.

A
as

very good
usual,

in

are, nevertheless,

Brownish red and pale

134

"^"^ FIDDLE

FANCIERS GUIDE.

This was a
Withers, Edward, London.
maker, whose instruments are gradually rising in

capital

value.

He succeeded W. Davis of Coventry Street, who flourished

first half of the present century.
There are
two branches of the firm now existing. Edward Withers,
in Wardour Street, and George Withers in Leicester

about the

Square.

CHAPTER

VI.

^ccottb Scries of Classical anb

^ost-Classical

itakers.

Many of the following are mere names and dates

which have simply been carried on from one treatise
Wherever it has been possible, information
to another.
is

given.

Where none

is

found

it

is

to be understood

that nothing further than the names, etc., has hitherto

been known.

Aachner, Philip, Mittenwald, about 1772.

Absam, Thomas, Wakefield, 1810 1849. His tickets
are in English " Made by Thomas Absam, Wakefield,"
and he appears to have been particular enough to put

in the date to the

very day.

A
Modena, 1775 1793.
maker of double basses and other large instruments.
He was trained in the establishment of Antonio Casini,
another Modenese maker or, at least, followed his
style.
His model is good, his work careful, capital
wood and brown varnish.
Adams, C, Garmouth, Scotland, about 1800.
Addison, William, London, 1670.
Adler, Paris. A Swiss maker who settled in Paris
Abbati,

Gianbattista,

fine

beginning of present century.

Aglio, Guiseppe Dall, Mantua, 1800

Albanesi, Sebastiano, Cremona.

1840.

About the middle

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

136

of

the

18th

century.

Said to be

pupil

of

Carlo

Bergonzi.

Alberti, Ferdinando, Milan, 1749 1760. Fairly

good work. Light yellow varnish.
Aldred, London. An old English viol maker of
1

6th or 17th century.

Aldrovandi, Emilio, Bologna, 1850

Alessandro

maker's was shown in an exhibition in

violin of this

Turin

80.

(called the Venetian), i6th century.

in 1880.

Alvani, Cremona.
Guarnerius.

Said to be an imitator of Joseph

have never seen any of

Allegretti, Massimiliano,

his instruments.

Soliera, 1870.

Amelot, Lorient, 1829. The only reminiscence of

this maker appears to be a ticket.
Anciaume, Bernard. A French maker of whom
nothing is left but the name.
Andrea, Venice, about 1640.
AiRAGHi, Cesare, Milan. Modern.
Antognati, Gian-Franceso, Brescia, 1533.
Antonio (called the Sicilian). An old viol maker of
whose work a specimen exists in the museum of
Bologna (Philharmonic).
Antonio (called the Bolognese). Another old viol
maker.
Antoniazzi, Gregorio, Colle (Bergamo), i8th century.

Antony, Girolamo, Cremona, about

1751.

good maker. Good arching and model.

and nice yellow varnish.

Artmann, Weimar.

Good work.

18th

Golden varnish.

century.

Good
Amati

fairly

finish

model.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

AsKEY, Samuel, London.

About 1825

I37

40.

AssALONE, Gaspare, Rome, i8th century.

Said to

be good work.

AuBRY, Neveu, Paris. Nephew and successor of

whose business he took over in 1840.
Bachelier, Paris. About 1788.

Aldric,

Baffo, Gian-Antonio, Venice.

1630.

Bagoletto, Antonio, Padua.

Baines, London. 1780.
Bajoni, Luigi, Milan,

1782.

igth century.

London, 1696. An old viol maker, whose

instrument bearing above date, at present owned in
Baker,

Paris,

is

F.,

described as possessing a ravishing quality of

tone.

Baker, John, Oxford, 1648

88.

Another old

viol

maker.
Balcaini.

An

Italian

maker about 1760 who copied

Amati.

Baldantoni, Guiseppe, Ancona.

Ballantine, Edinburgh.

19th century.

About 1850.

Compara-

tively poor work.

Bandl, Joseph,

Oiffern.

Bantis, Jean, Mirecourt.

1765.

About

1730.

Fairly good

work.

Barbanti-Silva, Francesco, Correggio, 1850. Violins.

Made

also a number of double basses.

Barbe Pere, J. An old French maker
merit.
He also made 'cellos.

Barbey,

Guillaume,

Paris.

i8th

of no great

century.

Viol

maker.

Barnes,

Robert,

London.

About

1780

1823.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

138

partner in the firm Norris and Barnes, which

Became

W.

subsequently became R. and

Davies and

is

now

Withers.

Barton, G., London. About 1810.

Barbieri, Pietro, Mantua, 1864.
Barbieri, Guiseppe, Mantua, 1879.
Baraldi, Alfonso, Modena, 1879.

VioHns.

Baraldi, Giovanni, S. Felice, 1766.

Baracchi, v., S. Martino.

'Cellos.

19th century.

Barbieri, Francesco, Verona, 1695.

of

Violins.

After the style

Andreas Guarnerius.
Bassi,

maker

a.,

Scandiano.

19th

Bastogi, Gaetano, Leghorn.

lutes

century.

Chiefly

of 'cellos.

and

Chiefly

guitars,

Antonio,

Battani,

Chiefly repairs, but also

Baud,

i8th century.

Versailles, 1796

19th

Frassinoro.

makes

century.

violins.

1810.

Baur, Carl Alexis, Tours, 1789

1810.

This maker

tried to abolish the tail pin.

Born 1815, died

also two sons,

Bausch, C. a. Ludwig, Leipsic.

1873.

Pupil of Fritsche, Dresden.

Had

Ludwig and Otto, who carried on the

Beckmann, S., Stockholm, 1706.
Bedler, Norbert, Wurtzburg.

business.

1723

50.

Chiefly

viols.

Bellon,

The one

J. F.,

Paris, 1832.

for the 'cello

Invented a new mute.

was adjusted by

a pedal.

Belcioni, Antonio, Italian, 1663.

Bellone,
maker.

Pierantonio,

Milan,

1690.

Old

viol

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Bellville, Paris, 1828.

I39

Tried new forms

Violins.

unsuccessfully.

Belviglieri, Gregorio, Bologna, 1742.

Violins very

well made.

Bente, Matteo, Brescia, 1570

1600.

Lutes and

guitars chiefly.

Bendini, G. B.,

Benecke,

S.,

Violins.

Italian, 1668.

Stockholm, igth century.

Beratti, Imola.

19th century.

Violins

Violins.

Berge, Toulouse. 1771. Viols.

Beretta, Felice, Como, 1784. Calls himself a pupil
Poor work. Yellow varnish.
of " Joseph Guadagnino."
Wretched wood.
Bertasio, Luigi, Piadena.
Berti, G., Fiunialbo.

i8th century.

19th century.

Bertrand, N., Paris, 1701 35. Viols.

Besancenol, Dijon, 1776. Violins.
Bessard, Louis, Paris, 1753. Dean of the Violin
Makers' Guild

for that year.

Beveridge, W., Craigh, Aberdeen. Modern.

Native of Genoa.
BiANCHi, N., Nice.
Modern.
Formerly
violins.

Chiefly repairs,

Paris.

in

Died

Bindernagel, Gotha and Weimar.

Otto and Ernst in Gotha.

Weimar.

new

Associated with

Subsequently with Otto in

Another modern Viennese restorer.

BiRMETTi, G. B., Florence.

good wood and varnish.

BizAN, Brussels, 1749.

Blair,

also

Ordinary workman.

Bittner, David.
fairly

but

in Nice.

J.,

Edinburgh, 1820.

About

1770.

Employed

Stradivari model.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

140

GUIDE.

Blaise, Mirecourt, 1820.

Blanchard, p.
where he learnt

F.,

Silvestres in Lyons.

Red

oil

Born

Lyons.

his caUing.

at

Mirecourt, 1851,

Afterwards worked with the

Began on

his

own account

1876.

Not

to be

varnish and well made.

BocQUAY, Lyons.

i6th and 17th century.

confounded with Jacques Boquay, Paris.

Bodio, G. B., Venice, 1792.
Bofill,

who

Barcelona.

S.,

copied

J.

About

1720.

BoiviN, Claude, Paris, 1744

was Dean

Good maker

Guarnerius.
52,

good maker who

of Makers' Guild for the latter year.

BoLELLi, Bologna,

BoLLES, London.

igth century.

An

early viol maker.

i6th or 17th

century (1675).

BoMBERGHi, Lorenzo, Florence.

17th century.

Bono, G., Venice. i8th century.

BoNORis, C, Mantua, 1568. School of Dardelli.
BoNviciNi,

Phillip,

Spilamberto,

1790.

Chiefly a

repairer.

1857.
Booth, W., Junr., Leeds, 1838 1856.

Boom, Pierre, Brussels, 1758

Booth, William, Leeds, 1779

73.

Borbon, Casper, Brussels, 1689. Viol maker, and

and double basses, very early style.

also violin, tenor,

Yellow varnish.
Borelli, Andrea, Parma, 1746.

Violins,

Guadagnini

style.

BoRGOGNONi, SenigalHa, 19th century. An amateur

maker of double basses who had some success in Italy.
BoRLON. (See Porlon).

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

BoRTOLOTTi,

(or Bertolotti) Luigi.

Milanese style of work.

orange.

modern

Yellow varnish inclining to

'

Time about 1810

BoTTE, D.

Careful,

I4I

or 1820.

B., Brescia, 1770.

I.

Good

Boussu, Eterbeck-les-Bruxelles, 1750 1780.

work. Amati style. Yellow orange varnish.

Boucher, London, 1764.

BouLLANGiER, London. Modern.
Boumeester, Jean, Amsterdam, 1637.

Good maker.

Yellow varnish,

Bourbon,

Caspar,

Brussels,

1601

1692.

Chiefly

repairs.

Bourbon, Pierre, Brussels, 17th century. Made a

violins, tenors, and double basses.
BouRDET, Jacques, Paris. Another Dean of the

very large number of

Parisian Violin Makers' Guild for 1751.

BouRDET, Sebastien, Mirecourt.

Early i8th century.

good maker.

BouRGARD,

Nancy.

maker

the

after

style

of

Medard.
BouRLiER, Laurent, Mirecourt. Born 1737. Died 1780.
Braglia, Antonio, Modena, i8th

century.

Violins

and bows.
Brandiglioni, Brescia, i8th century.

Brandl,

K., Pesth.

Modern.

Branzo-Barbaro, Francesco, Padua, 1660.

BreliNjN., Grum, 1690 1753.
Brensius, Girolamo, Bologna, i6th century.

Viol

maker.

Bresa, Francesco, Milan.

larly

good work.

About

1708.

Not

particu-

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

142

Broschi, Carlo, Parma.

19th centuries.

End

GUIDE.

of i8th, beginning of

(1744..)

Brown, James, London.

Born

1770.

Died

1834.

Style of Kennedy.

Brown, Jas., London.

Died i860.

Son

of preceding.

Born

1786.

Ordinary work.

Browne, John, London. Middle of i8th century.

Amati style. Good work, but poor varnish.
Brown, A., London, 1855.
Brug^re, Francois, Mirecourt. Born 1822. Died
1874.

Buchstadter, Ratisbon, i8th century. Stainer

not particularly

copies,

fine.

BuDiANi, G., Brescia, 15th and i6th century.

and viols.
BuoNFiGLiNOLi, P. F.

Lutes

di L., Florence, 1653.

BusAS, DoMENico, Venice, 1740.

BussETO, G. M. del, Cremona, 1540

1583.

Viols

and perhaps violins.

BuTHOT, Mirecourt. Modern.
Cabroli, Lorenzo, Milan, 1716.
Cabroly, Toulouse.
Cabasse, Paris.

About

1747.

Ordinary class of work.

Caeste, Gaetano, Cremona, 1677.

About 1788.
Cahusac, London.

Common

work.

Varnish frequently gone almost black.

Bernardo, Genoa, 1720 1750. A fine

maker.
Varnish of a reddish amber tint.
Model
Stradivari.
Tickets run, " Bernardus Calcanius fecit
."
Genuae, anno
Calcagno,

Calonardi, Marco, Cremona.

17th century.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Calot.

who worked

Mirecourt,

native of

I43

in

Paris for Clement, and in 1830 entered into partnership

with Augiere, already mentioned.

He was

a finished

Torre

Baldone

workman.
Calvarola,

Bartolommeo,

of

(Bergamo), 1753 1767. Of the early Cremonese type,

with the Amati style of arching. Medium work. It is
said that he also dates from Bologna.

Small

scrolls.

Camillio, D., Cremona, 1755.

Camploy, J., Verona. Modern.

work

His

Capo, Milan, 171 7.

" spread-eagle."

marked with a

is

Caprari, Francesco, Rolo, 1846.

Carcanius, Cremona.

His

i6th century.

tickets are

printed on parchment.

Cardi, Luigi, Verona.

19th century.

Carre, Antoine, Arras.

viol

i8th

century.

An

old

m^ker.

Carlo,

J.,

Milan, 1769.

Carlomordi, Carlo, Verona, 1654.

Carl-Issep, Milan, 1800.

Caron,

Versailles, 1777

in the reign of
ill-starred

Marie Antoinette.

one to suppose
lady's

the

85.

so.

Royale,

a court maker,

least, his

in the

He held

hear no more of him.

Rue

tickets lead

after this unfortunate

to the throne,

Versailles,

" Luthier de la Reine."

when he was

At

Three years

husband succeeded

Rue

He was

Louis XVI., and was patronised by the

and

he

Caron was
calls

in

himself

this position until 1785,

Satory.

After this date

we

couple of years later, the pre-

revolutionary troubles began, and by-and-by, the court

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

144

Caron was

of Versailles vanished for a time.

Brown

maker.

GUIDE.

^ood

a.

varnish.

This maker was one of

Garter, John, London, 1789.

those whose instruments went into the shop of Betts, and

helped to swell the fame of that dealer, but not greatly.

CARYi^ALPHONSE, London.

Modern.

Casini, Antonio, Modena, 1630

considerable importance,

who

dull,

'cellos

in

Cremona, and

cherry brown.

1690.

maker

of

not unlike that

is

his varnish

He made

celebrated over a large

His model

part of Italy for his work.

of Rugier of

is

of a

a very large

somewhat
number of

and double basses, which are exceedingly popular

and sought after with some eagerness.
His

Italy,

corners are elegant, the sound holes pretty correctly

designed, while the tone of his violins

sweet generally, and in some very

commoner work.

The

to

is a'

is

have been

wood

quality of the

varies considerably, but on the whole he

and

His inlay

sometimes a composition which appears

put into his

brilliant

is

full.

good maker.

Cassanelli, Giovanni, Ciano, 1777.

Cassini, Antonio, Modena, i8th century.
a descendant of the previously mentioned

same name. His

Cassinus
is

fecit

tickets are printed,

of the

and run, " Antonius

Mutinae anno." " Muttinae

the Latin form of "

Probably

maker

" or "

Mutinae"

Modena."

Born about 1760.

and guitars.
Castellani, Luigi, Florence. Born 1809. Died 1884.
Son of preceding. He was a fine repairer of violins, and a
Castellani,

Died 1820.

restorer.

It is

Pietro, Florence.

good maker

not

known

many firstclass guitars

of violins

that he

made

any, but he

made

he was a capital doublebass player.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

I45

Casbani, Giovan-Pietro, Venice.

About 1658. A
maker who copied Amati and Andrew Guarnerius.
Castendorfer, Melchiorre di Stefano, Erfurt.
15th century. Old viol maker.
Castendorfer, Michele di Stefano, Erfurt.
15th
century.
Old viol maker.
Catenar, Enrico, Turin. About 1671. This maker is
called a pupil of

Cappa.

Cattenaro, Pavia.

and

About

1639.

maker

of basses

viols.

Catignoli, Guiseppe, Milan,

igth century.

Cavalorio, Genoa, 1725.

Cavallini, Luigi, Arezzo.

igth century.

Cavani, Giovanni, Spilamberto.

Caussin,

i860

Neuchatel.

Fi,

Viol maker

19th century.

81.

Violins

of

Italian style.

Cellini,

was

the father of the illustrious

testimony

making

making

finest that
in

regarding

string

character.
of

Giovanni, Florence.

He

his

15th century.

parent's

instruments

This

Benvenuto CelHni, whose

is

of

skill

in

the art of

very conclusive

says that his father " had the reputation

violas

of rare

beauty and perfection

had ever been seen."

Florence in 1527 or 1528.

Giovanni

He was

th6

Cellini died

also a musician of

a kind, and in some favour with ecclesiastics in authority.

He was
and

it

born about the middle of the fifteenth century,

does not appear to me^to be unlikely that he was

a professional maker.

Celoniato, Francesco, Turin.

About 1715 25.

About 173^.

Celoniati, Gian-Francesco, Turin.

He

is

said to have been a good copier of Amati, with

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

146

In Italy they describe his work as of the

yellow varnish.

His

school of Cappa.

ticket runs,

"Joannes Franciscus

Anno 1732,"
fecit Taxirini.
known inscription of this maker. It
he was a son of the preceding.

Celoniatus

this being the

only

is

that

Cerin, Marcantonio, Venice.

not unlikely

pupil of Bellosio in

Venice. This information is derived from a ticket which

runs, " Marcus Antonius Cerin alumnus Anselimi Belosij

anoo 1793."

fecit Venetiae

Cervella, Giovanni,

Italian.

i8th century.

Challoner, Thomas, London. About 1750.

High
Brownish yellow varnish.
Stainer model.
Champion, Rene, Paris. About 1735. This maker
appears to have been a pupil or imitator of Boquay.
The work is of that style, and well finished. Varnish of

same character as Boquay's. His ticket runs, in one

case, " Rene Champion, rue des Bourdonnois, a Paris."

Chappuy, Nicolas Augustin, Paris, 1762 94. This

maker made some very excellent instruments, but he is
also responsible for a number of poor specimens.
The
initial N. is branded on the button, and nothing else
indicates,
tickets

in

many

cases,

the maker's

which he used bear the

name.

Some
Her

inscription, luthier to

Royal Highness the Duchess of Montpensier- in French,

of course, namely, " luthier de S. A. R. la duchesse de

Montpensier."

mostly

He

employed a yellowish

spirit

varnish

of poor quality.

Chardon, Joseph, Paris. Modern. This maker is a

son-in-law of George Chanot pere of Paris, to whose
business he succeeded in 1872.

Chardon-Chanot.

The

firm

is

known

as

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Charotte.

Rouen from 1830

I47

who worked

native of Mirecourt,

in

to 1836.

Chastelain, Martin, Warwick, Flanders, 1580. Vio

maker.

Cherpitel, Nicolas Emile, Paris.

court,

84 1.

He became

in Paris in 1850,

His

account.

left in

Born

in

Mire-

workman with Gand Freres

1873, and started on his own
a

tickets run

'

Nicolas-Emile Cherpitel, in

Faubourg Poissonniere, N.E.C."

His first
address was in the Rue Saint-Denis.
Chevrier, Andre Augustin, Brussels.
Born in
Mirecourt, this maker had a good training. His Violins
solid, and not unlike
iiave mostly a good outline
Paris, 13,

Lupot's best

style,

but heavier.

The

corners are

full,

and the sound holes well designed. The scrolls are also
good. Indeed, if the tone were equal to the general
work they would be excellent instruments.
The wood
chosen is of fine quality, and nothing seems to be
wanting but fine tone. His varnish is a red orange,
sometimes webbed

all

over like Vernis- Martin.

Chiarelli, Andrea, Messina, 1675

99.

and improver of the instrument

extent as to claim for him a place.

player,

Chiavellati, Domenico, Lonigo, 1796.

Chiocchi, Gaetano, Padua, 1870.

An

old lute

to such

an

A viol maker.
good maker

and repairer.
Christa, Joseph Paul, Munich, 1730
of

whom

Christofori,
claims him.

hold

in

L2

40.

maker

nothing appears to be known.

Cremona or Padua
the Amati houseand was then thirteen

Bartolommeo,

He was

Cremona

in

living

1680,

in

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

148

This information

years old.

and

conclusive

is

birth,

namely,

Florence, there

In

1667.
is

is

from a parish record>

regard

with

the date

to

musical

of

his.

museum

in

with the following

a double bass

inscription written on the inside of the back, " Barto-

lommeo Cristofori Firenze, 1715," and it

known whether he ever made any other
ments of the

violin kind.

highest degree probable.

It,

seems

to

me

to

This double bass

particularly fine instrument.

is

not

instru-

be

in the

is

not a

generally supposed,

It is

maker invented the piano, and, indeed, this,

supposition amounts almost to a certainty.
A very

that this

interesting description of this phase of his career will be:

found in Sir George Grove's Dictionary, where the

dates are

all

wrong, or in " Hipkin's History of

the^

Piano," where the dates are equally wrong, as, indeed,

all

dating with regard to him prior to 1886 must be,

seeing that the above parish record

then.

is said, for

It

son of the Grand

in

1687,

was only published,

instance, that Prince Ferdinand,

Duke Cosimo Medici

and induced

III., visited

Cristofori then,

Padua

or shortly after,

remove from Padua to Florence. If this is correct,.

must have invented his piano and become:
famous throughout Italy when he was a very young man,
to

Cristofori

about twenty years of age, say, not an impossible thing

by any means, but showing that these valuable notices.

of him are now in need of revision.
It is said that
Cristofori died at the advanced age of eighty in 1731.
He was really only sixty-four at this period, supposing the:
identity to be established.
Christofori.

In Italy

it is

His name used to be

Cristofori,

spelt

and there they

do

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

not appear to

know anything

I49

definite with reference to

the date of his death.

CiNTi,

1856.

1735.

Another of the

GuiSEPPE, Bologna,

maker and

restorer, or repairer.

CiRCAPA,

same

ToMAsso, Naples,

of no particular distinction.

Clark, London.

mere name.

An

Claudot, Augustin.

stamped or branded

his

The work

of his violins.

old

name on

French maker, who

the inside of the backs

somewhat common

of a

is

character, with yellow varnish, but has a fairly good

outline.

He was

Claudot,
earlier date

also a

Charles.
than

the

maker

of English guitars,

maker

Mirecourt

an

-of

preceeding, but having similar

characteristics.

Clement, Paris, 1815 to 1840.

This was a maker
who, like our John Betts, made comparatively few
violins himself, but employed first class men to do so,
such as Georges Chanot pere, Augiere, Calot,
Cliquot,

Louis-Alexandre,

brothers not in partnership, but

and

etc.

Two

Henri.

who were

successively

deans of the Paris Violin Makers' Guild for the years

1756 and 1765 respectively.

It

appears to be their only

distinction.

Cleinmann, C, Amsterdam, 1671

88.

An

old viol

maker.
Clusolis, Antonio De, Clausen, 1784.
fine

This was a

double bass maker of the Tyrolese school,

worked

in

Roveredo.

He was

who

probably a native of

Clausen, a small town on the Trent, so small, that

it

consisted of one narrow street in his time, so narrow,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

150

that people could shake

make

GUIDE.

hands across

The wonder

open windows.

is

through their

it

that he ever was able to

a double bass in such circumscribed surroundings,

or that, having

made

one, he ever

was able

to get

it

out

Perhaps that was the reason he followed

of the street.

the course of his native stream, through

down

its

magnificent

where he was in the society

of a busy, prosperous, commercial people, who, no
His is, at any
doubt, largely bought his instruments.
rate, evidently fine work, of a grand model, and he used
the following inscription, " Antonius DeClusolis faciebat
Roboreti opus," then follows the number of the work in
scenery

Roman

to Roveredo,

Although he

numerals.

Tyrolese

of the

is

makes it quite clear that he was

acquainted with the work of Stradivari. His inscription
schools,

is

his

style

a corroboration

Stradivari,

the

first

as

of

have

this,

if

there

elsewhere

were no other.

pointed

out,

to use the historical tense, "faciebat."

we have Antonio
Cremona,

in

of

Clausen

Antonio

copying

even this small point.

was
Here
of

But he copies him

in greater as well.

Cocco, Cristoforo, Venice.

lute

and

viol

About

1654.

An

old

maker.

Cole, T., London, 1690.

CoLLicHON, Michel, Paris,

viol

1693.

-^^

old

French

maker.

Collier, Samuel, London, 1750.

Collier, Thomas, London, 1775.
Collin, Claude-Nicolas, Mirecourt.

The

Died

in

1865.

known maker Collin-Mezin.

Collin-Mezin, Charles Jean Baptiste. Born
father of the better

in

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Mirecourt in

1840.

preceding maker.

Was taught by
He went to Paris

appears to be Httle doubt that he has

of instruments of a high character,

his
in

15!

father,

made

the

There

1868.

number

and which have been

examined and reported upon by various artistes very

Those which it has been my good fortune

favourably.
to see

and

try,

were probably not of the same

They were, however,

artistically

class.

made instruments

of

good outline and appearance.

CoMUNi, Antonio, Piacenza, 1823.

A French common maker.

CoNTURiER.

Yellow

varnish.

Conway, William, London, 1750.

CoRDANO, Jacopo Filipo, Genoa. A ticket of his
runs, "Jacobus Philippus Cordanus fecit Genuae, anno
sal,

1774."

CoRNELLi,

Cremona.

Carlo,

" Carolus Cornelli

His

ticket

runs,

Cremonae, anno 1702."

fecit

About 1780. Made double

There was George Corsby in London, a dealer

CoRSBY, Northampton.
basses.
chiefly.

CoRTE, Dalla, Naples, 1881.

CosTA, Genoa.

19th century.

Costa, Agostino, Brescia.

17th century.

Costa, Marco Dalla, Treviso, 1660.

style

and varnish

Costa,

He

of A.

Imitated the

and H. Amati.

Pierantonio

Dalla,

Treviso

and Venice.

copied Amati also.

Costa,

This member of
Pietro Dalla, Treviso.
Amati brothers, using, like the

the family also copied

others, an

amber coloured varnish

of fine quality.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

152

GUIDE.

Cramond, C, Aberdeen, 1821-^34.

Crask, George, Manchester. A prolific maker of
His period ranges from
copies of the classical schools.
about 1826 onwards. He made for the Forsters, Dodd,
and Clementi, and generally for any firm to whom he
Much of his work is said to be very
could sell.
clever, and in a circular issued by his successor in
business,

over

Mr. Crompton,

2,000

20 double basses.
to

have no

doubt,

stated

is

my

my

many

and

'cellos,

good fortune

knowledge,

have seen

made

he

that

250

tenors,

has not been

It

one of these to

see

it

250

violins,

of

although,

them

in

my

ignorance.

Cristoni, Eusebio, Modena, igth century.

Crowther, John, London, 1760

1810.

Crugrassi, Vincenzo, Florence, 1767.

CucHET, Gaspard, Grenoblc, 1729.

CuNAULT, Georges,

Born

Paris.

1856.

Learnt his

business in Paris and worked for Miremont from 1874

to 82,

and afterwards

CuNY,
*

Paris.

for himself,

i8th

century.

Common

Branded inside of back " Cuny a Paris."

Cuthbert, London.
17th century.
flat

work.

Good wood,

model, dark varnish.

CuppiN,

An

Giovanni.

old

Italian

viol

maker,

yellow varnish.

Cuypers (See Kceuppers).

a maker whose
are quite unknown.
Daitlanst.

Daniel, Antwerp.
basses.

habitat, style

and date

famous old maker of double

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Darche, Aix-la-Chapelle.

Copies

the

of

153

classical

masters.

Darche, C.

Modern.

F., Brussels.

This maker was

Dardelli, Fra' Pietro, Mantua.

alive in 1493

1497, and

member

The latter

Convent, Mantua.
an

of the Franciscan

date was ascertained from

instrument of Dardelli's in the possession of a painter

named Richard
decorated

lute.

appeared, and

founded upon

it.

Lyons, about 1807.

in

It

was

a highly

This instrument seems to have

that

all

was known

dis-

was
document

Dardelli

of

few years ago, however, a

dated 1493 was found to contain a reference to a magnificent quartet of larger instruments, which excited the

utmost enthusiasm

Some

in the writer.

of these largo

museums, and in
some cases, they show rather coarse work, which is
accounted for by the supposition that just then there
was a kind of renaissance in this tribe of musical instruments, and a new departure taken to a certain extent.
He also made rebecs, lutes, and viols, which are lovely
are in public and private

viols, etc.,

art, and decorated

and ebony.
David, Paris. About 1730.

works of

in

gold,

silver,

enamel,

ivory,

Ordinary work.

Davidson, Hay, Hantly, 1870.

Davini, Giusto, Lucca, 19th century.

Richard.

Davis,

A workman

with

Norris

and

Barnes, and ultimately became partner with the following.

Davis,

R. and

William, London. The firm then became

Davis, Coventry Street, and is now Withers

W.

and Co.
Dearlove and Fryer, Leeds.

About

1840.

'^^^

154

FIDDLE FANCIER

GUIDE.

Dearlove, Mark, Leeds, 1828.

Dearlove, Mark, W., Leeds.

An

De Canus Nunzio.

Modern.

old Italian professor who, in

the end of the i8th century, endeavoured to equalise

matters between good and bad fiddles by scraping the

wood

out of the fine ones.

In this regard he advertised

himself as a kind of public benefactor, and offered his

any one who wished them. It is as well to

add, however, that he was under the impression that he
was improving the old ones. How long he had been at
large is not known, and, of course, no estimate can be
formed of the number of instruments which had passed
services to

through his hands, or been scraped by him, but when

he was a contributor to the Tuscan Gazette,

last

heard

and

his latest offer appears in the issue of that

of,

newspaper

November, 1789, when, fortunately, he

" an advanced age."

of 7th

was

at

Decomble, Ambroise. See " Comble, Ambroise de.'"

Deconer, Mechael, Venice, i8th century.
Deconet, Andrea, Venice, 1785.
Deconet, Michele, Venice, 1769 71.
Deconet, Michele, Padua, 1722 69.
Deconeti, M., Venice, 1742.
With regard to these five makers there is really no
" Michael Deconer fecit Venetiae, An.
information.
Dom., 17 ," is the supposed ticket of one, and
"Michele Deconet fecit Venetiis, anno 1754," is the

supposed ticket of another, but

with any person

now and

who

has.

again be seen.

Of

have not seen an

instrument by any one of them, and

am

not acquainted

course, the tickets

may

..

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

I55;

Deckert, G. N., Grotbrutenback, 17th century.

Defresne, Pierre, Rouen. About 173 1 1737. This,

maker has recently been included among violin makers,

not because any violins of his have been discovered, but
because he had a dispute with the members of the.
Rouen guild of makers. He was a master of the Paris
Guild, and had advertised himself as such when he
settled in Rouen in 1731.
This raised the ire of the
local guild, and they prosecuted him.
Ultimately the
quarrel was arranged by Defresne paying a sum of"
money to be admitted to the Rouen Society.
Degani, Eugenio, Montagnani, 19th century.
Delany, John, Dublin, 1808. A maker who used a
curious ticket occasionally, " Made by John Delany in
order to perpetuate his

Liberty to

1808.

all

memory

in future ages.

Dublin,.

the world black and white."

Delaunay, Paris, 1775. A vielle maker.

Delannoix. A Belgian maker in 1760.
De Lannoy, H. J., Lille. About 1747. A very good
maker, and probably the same as the preceding, whose
name may have been so mis-spelled.

Deleplanque, Gerard, Lille, 1766 70. An artistic

maker who employed a reddish tinted amber coloured
varnish.

Della Corna, Giovan Paolo, Brescia, i6th century.

A maker mentioned by a writer named Lanfranco, but
who is not known to any other.
Dennis, Jessie, London, 1805.
Deroux, Sebastien Auguste.

Born in Mirecourt,
and taught his.
who afterwards worked with Silvestre in Lyons for

1848.
son,

His father was a maker

there,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

156

three years.

He became a

soldier at the outbreak of the

Franco-German war, returning to his business in 1873,

time with Miremont in Paris, and with whom he

this

remained

own

1884 he started on his

In

for eleven years.

ticket runs, " S. A. Deroux, 16, Rue

Paris " with A, S. D. inscribed over

His

account.

GeofFroy-Marie,
the date.

Despons, Antoine, Paris, 17th century.

is

Desrousseau, Verdun.
Devereux, John, Melbourne.
Contemporary. This
the only maker in Australia whose name I have seen.

He

formerly worked for B. S. Fendt.

He

certainly

had

a splendid guide.

DiCKESON, John, 1750 80.

Born in Stirling.
It is
known where he learnt violin making, but his work

not

has

many

of the fine points of Italian style.

undoubtedly an

artist,

and

his

model was

He was

chiefly

Amati.

His instruments are dated both from Cambridge and

London.
DicKixsox, Edward, London, 1750. An ordinary
maker on Stainer lines, exaggerated as usual.
DiEL. The name of a family of violin makers, the
different members of which date from about 1690 down
to the present day.

Jacob. These

Nicolas, Martin, Nicolaus, Johann,

all spell

the

name

" Diel."

Then Nicolaus,

Louis, Friedrich, Johann, and Heinrich spell

They

it

from Mayence (Maintz) Prague,

Hamburg, Bremen, and Darmstadt.

severally date

Frankfort,

" Diehl."

DiETZ, Christian, Emmerich, 1801.

DiETZ, Johann Christian, Darmstadt, 1805.

DiEULAFAiT, Paris, 1720.

viol

maker.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

DiNi, GiAMBATTiSTA, Lucignano, 1707.

I57-

maker

of

double basses chiefly.

Gaetano, Maiitua, 1869.

About 1700.
The " Small Coal
Man " a famous musical London personage of last
century had an instrument by this maker in his
possession.
Perhaps the similarity of the two names
DiON'ELLi,

DiTTON, London.

may

account for the conjunction of maker and owner.

"

fiddle

by Ditton,

Possessed by
Is

Tom

Britton,

something to spend a small muse's small wit on."

Ditton was also a harp maker.

DoBRucKi, Mattia, Cracow, 1602.

DoDi, Giovanni, Modena, 19th century.

maker

of

double basses.

DoLLENZ, Giovanni,

Trieste, 1841.

DoMANSKi, Alberto, Warsaw, 1830

1850.

DoMiNCELLi, Brescia, i8th century.

Dominicelli, Ferrara, 1695

1715.

DoMiNicHiNi, A. E., Bologna, 1708

Amati models.
A maker

66.

and repairer.
DoNATO, Serafino, Venice, 141 1.
DoNi, Rocco, Florence, i6co

who worked

priest,

1660.

at instrument

Florentine

making, and was the

Gian Battista
Rocco Doni made lutes and

father of the illustrious musical writer,

Doni,

who

violins,

died in 1669.

and

his son,

G. B., invented the

lira

Barberina.

a German maker about the end

of eighteenth century.
A good kind of ordinary work.
DoPFER, NicoLAUS, Maintz.
A violin maker who
Doerffler, G. F.

taught
married.

Martin

Diel,

and whose

daughter his pupil

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

-158

DoRANT, W., London.

1814.

Dosi, Pietro, Bologna.

19th century.

Drinda, Giacomo, Pianzo.

Droulot, Paris. About

Drouot, Mirecourt.
Ducheron, Mathurin,
*iearly

18th century.

1788.

A maker

Paris.

in

the

part of the i8th century.

Duiffoprugcar
About 1607 12.

(or Tieffenbrucher),

lute

and

viol

Magnus, Venice.
This name

maker.

appears in a variety of spellings and hails from various

places.

There

is

DiefFenbrucker of Padua,

Tieifen-

^runner of Munich, and Tieffenbrucher of Venice.

Whether they represent the same establishment one
cannot, of course, say.
They all made the same class
of instruments, and their dates run from about 1559 to

about 1612.

Dulfenn,
DuLiG, M.
fairly well

Du

a.,

Leghorn ) 1699.
Geman maker who copied

Livorno

about the middle of

Mesnil,

Jacques,

exceedingly artistic

About

Paris.

maker

Stainer

last century,

the

of

1655.

An

decorative class.

'Cherry-red varnish.

Duncan, Aberdeen,
DuRAND, Mirecourt.
DiJRFEL,

1762.

19th century.

Altenburg.

i8th

century.

maker of

double basses which are highly praised.

DuvRARD, Paris, 1745. A viol maker.

Eberspacher, Bartolomeo, Florence.
Eberti, T.

Edlinger,
.'His

17th century.

About 1750.
T., Prague.

About

1715.

fine

maker.

instruments are chiefly on Stainer lines and covered

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

I59

with an exceedingly good amber coloured varnish with

a slightly red

tinge.

Edlinger, Joseph Johann, Prague.

Son of the
preceding and a good maker. About 1748.
Edlinger, T., Augsburg, i8th century.

An

Eesbrceck, Jean Van, Antwerp, 1585.

maker.

Eglinton, London.

Ehlers,
EsLER,

About

old lute

1800.

Vienna, 1825.

J.,

J. J,,

Maintz, i8th century.

good

oM

viol

maker.
Emiliani,
1

8th

light

Francesco
Highly

century.

orange varnish.

de,

Rome.

arched

Very

Beginning

of

having

violins,

fine

wood,

and

good

finish.

Engleder,
Engleder,
Engleder,

a., Carlsruhe, 19th century.

a.,

Munich, 19th century.

L.,

Bamberg, 19th century.

Ertl, Carl, Presburg.

Fine quality of varnish.

Evangelisti, Florence, i8th century.

Evans, Richard, London, about 1750.

Model somewhat
Eve, Paris, about 1788.
deeply

grooved around borders,

good

work,

high,

orange

spirit varnish.

Fabbris, Luigi, Venice, 19th century.

42.
This maker
was a monk of the order of St. John of God in Bologna,
and made several violins of good character, with a fine
quality of varnish, Stradivari sound holes, and very

Pacini, Agostine, Bologna, 1732

excellent outline.

Falaise, a

French maker who copied Amati and

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

l6o

Stradivari,

but where or

wood and yellow

when

is

not known.

Good

varnish.

Falco, Cremona, i8th century.

so-called

pupil

and follower of Bergonzi,

Farinato, Paolo, Venice, i8th century.

A fairly good

maker, who followed the style of Santo Serafino,

wood and

in

varnish.

Faron, Achille, Ratisbon, about 1701.

Faustino, Lucca and Modena, 17th century.

Febbre, Amsterdam, 1762.

Felden, Magnus, Vienna, 1556. A viol maker.
Feldlen, Magnus, Vienna, 1722. I am inclined

to-

think this maker has only had a nominal existence on a

by some one who did not know the

Felden's activity, and had not
caught the exact spelling of the name. Still, it is only
an inclination so to think. One can never be quite sure,
ticket fabricated

precise date of

Magnus

about these names, apart from conclusive documentary-

evidence.

many of them are much alike, as in

own nomenclature, and I have, therefore,,

great

the case of our

preferred to leave

them

in the list

without more than the

present comment.

Ferati,

common

Pietro,

Siena.

About

1764.

Somewhat

work, broad purfling, and thick, brown varnish..

Feret, Paris.

About

1708.

According to

his

own

account of himself, this maker was a pupil of Medard,

and the style of his work bears out the statement.

employed a brown varnish.
Ferguson, Donald, Huntly, 19th century.
Ferguson and Son, Edinburgh, 19th century.
Ferraresi, Vincenzo, San

Felici, 1869.

He

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

l6r

Ferrari, Agostino, Budrio, i8th century.

Ferrari, Alfonso,

About

Calrpi.

1738.

maker

of double basses.

Ferrari, Carlo, Siena.

About

Violins.

1740.

Ferrari, G. B., Modena, 19th century.

Violins

and

guitars.

Ferri, Primo, Mirandola, 1848

51.

Feury, Francois, Paris, Dean of the Violin Maker's

Guild for 1757.

Fevrot, Lyons.

About

1788.

Feyzeau, Bordeau, about 1760. The instruments of

this maker are well made.
The varnish is a sort of
weak brown, but the work is very good under it, the
sound holes being

well

designed,

and

the

corners

elegant.

FiCHER, GuiSEPPE, AND Carlo, Milan.

sometimes

spell their

name

These makers

" Fiscer," and both spellings

are found on tickets, namely, " Guiseppe e Carlo

fratelli

Ficher fabbricatori di strumenti in Milano vicino

" Guiseppe,

Balla," and

catori d'instrumenti in

were German by

origin,

and

Their work

is

having a

FicHT,

J.

FicHTL,

well

it is

alia

Fiscer fabbri-

fratelli

Milano Vicino

have modified the spelling

tint,

Carlo

alia balla."

They

possible that they

may

to suit Italian pronunciation.

made, with varnish of

fine,

amber

good

light tinge of red.

U., Mittenwald, i8th century.

Martin, Vienna,

about

1750.

maker.

FicHTHOLD, Hans, about 1612.

maker.

lute

FiCKER, Johann Christian, Neukirchen, about 1722.

Highly arched

violin,

somewhat ordinary

looking.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

l62

FicKER, JoHANN GoTLiEB, probably also Neukirchen.

About

1789.

DoNATO, Naples.

FiLANO,

maker
taste

of violins, mandolines,

and

skill in

About 1782. A general

and guitars of very refined

decorative work.

About

FiLANO, LuiGi, Naples.

Similar work,

1859.

but chiefly guitars.

FiLLE, La, a French maker of the i8th century, whose
scrolls are cut into

shapes of animal's heads and

human

faces.

Rome, 19th century.

Padanaram,
19th century.
J.,
Finer, Fratelli (Finer Brothers), Milan, 1764.
FiLippi, FiLipPO,

FiNDLAY,

FiORi, Amilcare, Casinalbo, 19th century.

FiORi, Antonio, Modena, 19th century.

FiORi, Gaetano, Modena, 19th century.

About

FiORiLLO, Geo., Ferrara.

of Stainer.

This maker's

1780.

instruments are highly arched, and a

little

after the style

His basses are good.

Born in Pianoro.

This maker

FiORiNi, Raffaello.
is

somewhat

family

When

interesting.

named

Jadolini,

maker, used to make

who had

little

a child, a friend of the

a

brother

fiddles for the boy.

excited his attention, and he began to

violin

This

make them him-

As time passed, the interest in the subject

increased, and by and by (1867) he went to Bologna,
and worked and studied there for some years, and finally
self.

opened a shop there.

FiORiNi,

His son

is

GuiSEPPE, born in 1867.

He showed

same

instincts as his father, but the latter

fairly

good education

first,

the

gave him a

and then, when the lad was

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

63

about sixteen, he put him in the shop, and taught him

all

They now enjoy

he knew.

prizes at the exhibitions of

and gained

a good repute,

Milan and Turin.

Firth, G., Leeds, 1836.

Fischer,
this

J.,

The

Landshut, 1722.

maker appears

to be a

solitary relic of

specimen of the one-stringed

instrument called the marine trumpet.

museum

of

the

It

is

the

in

Friends of Music

Society of the

in

Vienna, and bears above date.

Fischer, Zacharie, Wurtzburg,

so

much

1730

1812.

Not

a violin maker as he was a violin baker, from a

mistaken notion that

it

matured the wood.

Dean

Flette, Benoist, Paris, 1763.

of the Paris

Guild of Violin Makers for this year.

Dean

Fleury, Benoist, Paris, 1755.

Makers' Guild
of his of the

for

this

There

year.

same year

in the

of the Violin
a

is

museum

bass viol

of the Paris

Conservatoire.

Florentius, Fiorino, Bologna, 1685

1715-

Florenus, Guidantus, Bologna, 1716.

Florenus, Antonio, Bologna.

Florenus, Guidantus Giovanni, Bologna,

1685

1740.

There is considerable confusion with regard to these

four Bolognese makers.
The inscriptions on tickets
vary in the most distracting, and, at the same time,
the most amusing manner.

Sometimes

it is

" Florentus

Florinus," " Florentius Fiorino," " Florenus Florentus,"

" Fiorino Fiorenzo,"

and so

on.

The

horticultural

variations are very suggestive,

and although they may

be variants of the same name,

will

M2

it

be as well

if I

all

confine

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

164

myself to the description of one specimen of work.

have

no doubt, however, that there were three makers of this

name in Bologna. The specimen I refer to is a viola da

gamba

of beautiful

wood and

beautiful

carving,

and

shows transparent golden varnish, and the most exquisite

workmanship. There may be violins by one or other of
these makers.
I cannot say that I have seen any at all
approaching the style or intelligence of the work visible

on the

bearing the name.

viols

Fontanelli, Gio. Guiseppe, Bologna, 1739

lute

maker

72.

of exquisite taste in decoration.

FoRADORi, Giovanni, Verona, 1855.

Violin maker.

Fourrier, Francis Nicolas, Mirecourt, 1784

1816^

Violins.

Ghent, 1800 1830. This maker was a

and a clever repairer of violins, but made few

Franck,
sculptor,
if

any,

new

instruments.

Francois, Paris, 1755.

viol

maker.

Frankland, London, 1785.

Franz, Jacob, Havelberg, 1748.
Frebrunet, Jean, Paris.
About 1760.
Well
made instruments.
Reddish varnish of fairly good
appearance.

Fredi, Fabio, Todi, 1878.

Hans, Nuremberg. About 1450. A

He was also a splendid performer
on the lute, and was married to a daughter of the famous
Albrecht Durer. His last will and testament is in San
Frey,

lute

and

Sebaldo.

(or Frei),
viol

maker.

It is

said that he also

Fritz, Hans, Nuremberg.

Fritsche,

Leipsic.

End

worked in Bologna.
mere name.

of

i8th

century.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

reputedly clever maker,

who was

165

a pupil of C. F.

Hunger

Died

about

of the same place.

Fryer,

C,

London

and

Leeds.

1840.

Fux, JoHANN Joseph, Vienna, 17th century. Maker to

the Austrian Court.

Fux, Matthias, Vienna.

Gaffino,

lute

An

Joseph, Paris, 1755.

settled in Paris.

He was

maker.

made instruments after

Castagnery. The firm was in existence
and

1766,

maker

Italian

dean of the makers' guild

the

style

in

of

as late as 1789,

but was then carried on by the widow.

About

Gaillard-Lajoue, Mirecourt.

which

1855, in

year he received a medal at Paris exhibition.

About

Galbani, Jacopo, Florence.

An

1600.

old

maker.

viol

Son

Galbani, Piero, Florence, 1640.

of preceding,

Galbicellis, G. B., Florence, 1757.

Galbusera, Carlo Antonio, Milan.

He was

improvements

as

they

were

then

called

on

said that he

It is

knowledge of violin construction

notion in conversation with some

1832.

who attempted some

a retired military officer

existing shape of the violin.

About

at

all,

the

had no

but started his

friends,

and meeting,

probably, with opposition to his views, set about making

fiddle

to

rounded

He

on the

lines

be nothing new
off,

thought

than

the

which he projected.

an

It

turned out

instrument with the corners

and somewhat after the style of the guitare.

was more elegant, stronger and lighter

it

Stradivari

model,

experiment had been carried

etc.

out

This

before

kind
fifty

of

years

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

l66

before

and

had been found an

concerned any improvement

in

idle

either

one so far as

shape

or

tone.

Nevertheless, just as in the case of previous experiments

and as
there was

will likely

be the case

in

many

future ones

a commitee of professors and connoisseurs

pronounce a laudatory judgment on the result of

to

Galbusera's

efforts,

and the instrument was exhibited

the town hall of Brera.

awarded him a
Leipsic

Musical

silver

The Milan Academy

medal

Gazette

for the invention,

published

with amazement that

the

in

of Science

usual

and the
gushing

had taken centuries

to give this perfect form to the violin.
In due time the
amazement and the violin subsided, and Galbusera
article filled

proceeded to construct

it

others of

and heavier make, and he appears

in

a
to

different

model

have succeeded

improving the quality of tone of his own fiddle

which was, without doubt, a highly meritorious 'act, as

they gave him another medal. I fancy I should have
myself condoned an award
still

like that.

But Stradivari was

untouched, and perhaps Galbusera's conscience told

him so, for in spite of his medals he had in all three

he began experiments with chemicals for the purpose of
extracting

the

gummy substance from the wood.

A verni, and from this point we hear
He made violas and 'cellos a few

Facilis est descensus

no more of him.

on the same system, and, if he made them himself, he

was no doubt, a handy man, but perhaps he merely
" invented " them
as his fellow professionals some"
times invent
flying machines "
and got other people
to make them for him.
He died in 1846.
Galerzeno, Piedmont, 1790.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Galland, Jean, Paris, 1744.

Makers of this year.

167

dean of the Paris

Violin

Galliard, C, Paris.

About

Good

1850.

Red

style.

varnish.

Galtani, Rocco, Florence. 17th century.

Galram, Joachim Josef, Lisbon, 1769.
Ganzerla, Luigi, San Felice, 1861. Violin maker,

Garani, M. a., Bologna, 1685

Garani, N., Naples.

Somewhat

Yellow varnish.

date.

1715.

good maker,

Also a good maker of a later

refined style with

light edges, but rather deeply built.

An

Gaspan.

known but

the

early

maker

viol

name and

Gattanani, Piedmont.

of

whom

Italian.

nationality

nothing

is-

Another mere name.

Gattinara, Enrico, Turin, 1670.

Violin maker (?)^
Gattinara, Francesco, Turin. About 1704. Early
Guarnerius model generally.
but too highly arched.

Warm

Well made instruments

brown varnish.

Gaulard, Troyes. About 1835.

Gautrot, Mirecourt.

Some time

Gavinies, Francois, Bordeaux.

early part of the i8th century.
in

1 741.

the

He was

He removed

dean of the Paris Makers' Guild

made

year 1762, although he never

common
finest

of

amateurs

instruments.

French

the

for

other than

His son became one of the

violinists

and

is

well

known among

for his studies for the instrument.

Gazzola, Prosdocimo, Crespano.

maker

in

to Paris

of double basses,

and a good

About

1822.

repairer.

Geiffenhaff, Franz, Vienna, 1812. Good

Copied Stradivari. Branded F.G. on back.

work.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

l68

Gemunder
Contempory.
1816.

It

Senr.,

Born

George,

New

Astoria,

Ingelfingen in

at

York.

Wurtemburg

in

appears that he learnt violin making early

and had a great

desire to

work

shop

in Vuillaume's

in

After knocking about for a while in Presburg,

Paris.

Vienna, and Munich, he turned his steps towards Paris

and, on the way, got employment in Strasburg, but on

going to the establishment found the

of brass instruments.
for that,

and was

for a

man was

Gemunder had
time a

little

maker

not brass enough

upset, but one

day

while lying asleep in the English Park, he heard

voice saying to him " Cheer up

Sam " or words

to that

and he cheered up. On the third day after this

dream he received information from a friend who had

effect

written

to

effect that

maker.

Vuillaume on Gemiinder's behalf

to

the

he was to go to Paris and see the great

This he did, and entered his employment,

staying with him for four years, during which time he

says he distinguished himself considerably.

went

to

He

America where he has since remained.

then

Some

of his copies of the old masters are quite surprising in

external appearance, and recall the

himself at certain times

rift

when he

work

of Vuillaume

imitated

ev- ery

little

and scratch with such marvellous and questionable

Gemiinder's two brothers were in America

fidelity.

before him.

Gemunder, August and Sons, New York.

Contem-

makers
whose instruments have been highly praised.
Gemunder, George, Junr. A son of George, Senr.
Gentile, Michele, Lucca, 1883. Violins.

pory.

Another large establishment of

violin

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Gerans, p., Cremona, 1614.

Geranie, Turin. About 1750.
Gerles, Nuremberg. Old lute makers.
1

169

15th and

6th century.

Geroni, Domenico, Ostia, 1817.

Germain, Joseph Louis, Paris.
1822.

Learnt business there.

where he worked
Vuillaume

to

for

whom

Gand

he

left in

Gands, where he remained

pere.

1850,

until

Born

Went

in

Mirecourt

Paris 1840,

to

At his death went

and returned to the

1862,

when he

started

He returned to Mirecourt in 1870 and

same year. It is needless to say that he was
a fine maker and that much of his work is to be found
in Gand's and Vuillaume's.
Germain, Emile. Son of preceding.
Born 1853,
and sent in 1865 to Mirecourt to learn. He returned
At the death of the
to Paris in 1867 to his father.
latter he became a partner with a M. Dehommais, an
for

himself.

died there

arrangement which ceased

in

1882.

Since this date in

business alone.

Gherardi, Giacomo, Bologna, 1677.

double basses of early style.
Giamberin,!

Giovanni,

Florence.

maker

About

of

1700.

Guitars.

GiAMBERiNi, Alessandro, Florence.

ing.

maker

of violins

and

Son

of preced-

guitars.

Giannotti, Achille, Sarsanza, 1872.

repairer.

GiANOLLi, Antonio, Milan, 1731.

GiBBS, James, London.

maker who worked

for

others, such as Gilkes, etc.

GiBERTiNi, Antonio,

Parma and Genoa, 1830

1845,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

170
or later.

Good maker, who

employed a red varnish of

GiBERTONi,

GUIDE.

copied

Stradivari,

and

fine quality.

GuiSEPPE

(called

Paninino),

Modena,

19th century.

GiGLi, Julius Caesar, Rome, 1700

61.

Gilbert, Simon, Metz.

About 1701.
About 1737.

Gioffreda, B., Turin.

About i860.

Gilbert, N. L., Metz.

Giordane, a., Cremona, 1735

Viol maker.
Viol maker.

40.

GiORGi, Nicola, Turin, 1745.

GiRANiANi, Leghorn, 1730.

Good

maker.

Fine

yellow varnish, thin.

GiovANNETTi, L., Lucca, 1855.

Violins.

Giquelier, Cristoforo, Paris, 1712.

It is said that this

in

maker had

Viol maker.

his instruments varnished

Japan.
GiRON, GiROLAMo, Troyes, 1790.
Violins.
GiNGLiANi. A 'cello maker of the 17th century.
Giuliani, 1660.

An

old viol

maker

Amati

school.

Gottardi, Antonio, Treviso, 1878.

Gouffe, Paris. A maker of double basses.

Grabensee, J. T. Diisseldorf. About 1854.

Gragnant, a. a Tyrolese maker. About 1780.
Gramulo. Italian, about end of 17th century. This
maker's name was first discovered in a novel by Dumas
It was communicated to Count Valdrighi, who wrote to
the late Gustave Chouquet, and asked if he ever heard
of him.
M. Chouquet set up inquiries, and a friend of
his assured him that he had the actual instrument
alluded to in the novel
The great French writer
makes his character say that Gramulo was highly
!

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

I7I

esteemed by Tartini, and on these circumstances

is

based the supposition that there was a maker of this

name.

An

Grand-Gerard,
maker, of end of

Grandson
medal

fils,

ordinary French (Mirecourt)

last century.

Mirecourt.

maker who obtained

in 1855.

Granzini, Verona, 1620

Gray,

J,,

25.

About

Fochabers.

Viol maker.
1870.

Greffts, Johann, Fiissen. About 1622.

Gregorj, Bologna, 1793. Violins.

Gregorio, Antoniazzi, Colle. About 1738.

Grenadino, Madrid, i8th century. Violins.
Griesser, Mathias, Inspruck.

About

1727.

viol

maker.

Grimm,

Carl,

Berlin,

1792

1855.

This

firm

originally declined to make more than thirty violins per

annum,
Grimm, Louis and Helmich.
Same business, later.

Grimaldi,

Cremonese

Carlo,

Messina,

Said

1681.

be

to

in style.

About

1650.

Grobitz, a., Warsaw, i8th century.

An

Griseri, Filippo, Florence.

imitator of

Stainer.

Grobliez, Cracow, 1609.

Groll, M., Meran, 1800.

Grosset, p.

F., Paris.

A maker of 'cellos,
About

1757.

it is

said.

This maker

is

described as a pupil of Claude Pierray, and to be an

ordinary workman, using a bad model with very high

arching, bad thicknesses, etc., and a
spirit varnish.

He made

'cellos also.

common

orange

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

ITl

About

Grossi, Guiseppe, Bologna.

Grulli, Pietro, Cremona.

GuARMANDi, FiLiPPO, Bologna, 1795.

GuASANT, F., French. About 1790.
GuDis, HiERONiMO, Crcmona, 1727.
exquisite taste in decorative work.

viol

Varnish

maker

light

of

golden

Beautiful wood.

-orange.

GuERRA, GiACOMO, Modeua, 1810.

brown

1803.

Modern.

VioHns, reddish

varnish.

GuERRA.

family of this

name

settled in

Cadiz as

guitar makers.

GuGEMOS,

Fiissen, 18th century.

This maker's name

Guggemos, Gugemmos, ^nd

His work is poor.
as I have given it.
GuGLiELMi, G. B., Cremona, 1747.
GuiDANTus, Joannes Florentus, Bologna. See

is

**

spelled in several ways,

Florentis Florentus," etc.

GuiDANTi, Giovanni, Bologna.

not

know anything about

this

About 1740.

maker.

He

do

appears to

have been a maker of viols also, and his violins are said
to be very tubby, and inartistic in several points.
GusETTO, Nicola, Florence, i8th century.
This
maker's

instruments

are

very careful

imitations

of

Stradivari.

HANSEL, Johann Anton, Rochsburg. About 181 1.

At this date he invented a violin which he said he had
invented before, namely, in 1801. He was a musician
in the Duke of Schoenburg's band.
He wrote an article
in the Leipsic Musical Gazette about his violin, but does

not appear to have made any more of them.

Haff, Augsburg, 17

CLAS^CAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Hamberger, Joseph, Presburg, 1845.

Hamm, Johann Gottfried, Rome,

i8th

His instruments are of the decorated

I73

century.

Ivory

sort.

borders, etc.

Harbour, London, 1785 6.

Hare, John, London, 1700 20. Neat, artistic work.
Somewhat prim-looking sound holes, and fine varnish.
Hare, Joseph, London.
About 1720.
Similarly

good work.

Harham, London, 1765 85.

Harton, Michele, Padua, 1602. A lute maker.
Hartmann, Weimar, i8th century.
One of the
Poor work.

pupils of Ernst in Gotha.

Hassalwander, Johann, Munich. About 1855.

He
violins, zithers and guitars.
Hassert, Eisenach, i8th century. Common work.
Hassert, Rudolstadt, 1 8th century.
Common

made lutes,

work.

Johann, Nuremberg,

Hayden,

1610.

of

sort

dealer.

Haynes, Foucher and Co., London.* This business

has been in
established

by

the year 1859.

existence

for

many

They produce high

and

'cellos

is

of

being

first

London, about

class instruments at

Their chief model in

exceedingly moderate prices.

violins, violas,

years,

W. Haynes in the north

Stradivari, but they

have

and Maggini models as well.

have seen a large number of their instruments, and
also Amati, Guarnerius,

I
I

can say that they deserved the highest praise in regard

to tone, style of work,

Haynes, Jacob,

and

finish.

London.

About

1752.

An

old

"THE FIDDLE fancier's GUIDE.

174

End maker, who

English West

used the Stainer model.

One

of his instruments was highly prized by the late

Samuel Summerhayes, of Taunton. " Jacob Haynes,
in Swallow Street, St. James', London, Fecit
" is the

tenor of his ticket.

Heaps,

Heesom,
violins

E.,

A maker of 'cellos

Leeds, 1855.

J. K.,

London.

About

1748.

on the usually exaggerated

chiefly.

Highly arched

lines,

which were

supposed to be Stainer's.

Heidegger, Passau.
Held, Beule, near Bonn. Modern.
Heldahl, Andrew, Bergen, 1851. Violins.
Hel, Ferdinand, Vienna. Modern.
Helmer, C, Prague, 1740 51. Good instruments.

Varnish a brownish colour, of a

warm

He was

tint.

pupil of Eberle.

Helmer, Carl, Prague. About 1773. Son of preHe also made lutes and mandolines.
Helmer, Carl, Prague. Later. Son of preceding.
Hemsch, Jean Henri, Paris, 1747. Dean of the

ceding.

Violin Maker's Guild for this year.

Hemsch, Guillaume,

Paris,

1761.

Dean

of

the

Violin Makers' Guild for this year.

Henderson,
work.

D.,

Common

spirit

an ordinary maple

Henoc, Jean,
Makers' Guild

Hesen,

Aberdeen.

Modern.

Very poor

varnish of a cold character, like

stain.

Paris, 1773.

for this year.

Giacomo,

Venice.

Dean

He

of the Paris

also

made

About

VioHn

zithers.

1506.

lute

maker.

Hesketh,

T.

E.,

Manchester.

Contemporary.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

pupil of

Chanot of Manchester.

75

and

Violins, violas,

basses.

Hetel,

G.,

Rome.

Henry Eugene,
HiLDEBRAND,

About

1763.

Paris, 1855.

Lutes and guitars.

Violins.

M., Hamburg,

1765

1800.

Violins,

and double basses.

HiLDEBRANDT, M. C, Hamburg, 1800. A repairer.
HiLTz, Paul, Nuremberg, 1656. A viol maker.
HiRcuTT, London. About 1600.

violas, 'cellos,

HocHA, Gasparo Dall', Ferrara, 1568. A repairer.

HocHBRUCKER, Douawerth. About 1699. Besides
making some good violins he invented the pedals for
harps.

HocHBRUcKER, Douawcrth, 1732 70.

He was a
nephew of the preceding, was a violin maker and also
continued to improve the harp in the direction initiated

by his uncle.
Hoffmann, Martin, Leipsic, 1680 1725. A lute
and viol maker who has become famous not only for his
own special work, but also because he was the first to
make the viola pomposa suggested by John Sebastian Bach.

This was a five-stringed

It

'cello

did not succeed, although

Hoffmann,
preceding.

Johan
lute

tuned to C, G, D, A, E.

Bach wrote music

Christian,

Leipsic.

for

it.

Son

of

maker.

Hoffmann, Ignazio, Wulfelsdorf. About 1748. A

violin, lute, and harp maker.
Hoffmann, Martin, Leipsic. Another lute and viol
maker, probably some relative, about same date as
previously mentioned Martin.

Hofmans,

Mathys,

Antwerp,

1720

50.

This

THE FIDDLE FaNCIER's GUIDE.

176

maker was very

clever in imitating the Cremonese

are also very well made, and
instruments
His
varnish.
covered sometimes with a fine golden varnish, and
at

other times with

The

tone

does

not,

of

such

dark

violins

however,

red

of

come

very

his

as

altogether

transparent.

have seen,

up

to

one's

expectations.

HoHNE, Dresden. Modern.

HoLLOWAY, J., London, 1794.
HoMOLKA, F., Kuttenburg. Modern.
HoRiL, GiAcoMO, Rome. About 1742.
HORENSTAINER, AnDREW.
^
HORENSTAINER, JoSEPH
HoRENSTAiNER, Matthias
HORENSTAINER, MaRTIN
This
than

is

1730 to present time.

a trade firm in Mittenwald, Bavaria.

150

years,

there

apparently, in existence.

has

been

For more

representative,

The instruments

are in

many

cases fairly good.

HosBORN, Th. Alf., London. About 1629. An old

viol maker, a specimen of whose work was in the Paris
Exhibition of 1878.

HuBER, Johann George, Vienna, 1767. Viol maker.

Good maker. Warm
1760.
brown varnish.
HuLLER, AuGUSt, Shoeneck, 1775.
Hume, Richard, Edinburgh, 1535. The earliest
known viol maker in Great Britain.
HuMEL, Christian, Nuremberg, 1709.
Hunger, C. F., Leipsic. Born in Dresden 1718.
Died in Leipsic 1787. A fine maker. He was a pupil
HuLiNSKi, Prague,

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

of

77

Jauch of Dresden and a worthy one of a worthyHis instruments are Italian in style.

master.

Instrumenti, Marco, Dagli, Ferrara, 1541.

viol

maker.

Indelami, Matteo.

when

Unknown

maker.

lute

either

or where.

Jacobi, Meissen.

i8th century.

Violins.

Jacobz, Heindrik, Antwerp, 1693

Jan'ck,

An

Johann, 1735.

old viol maker.

Jaspers, Jahn, Antwerp, 1568.

Jais,

Anton, Botzen.

Jais,

Johann, Botzen.
Dresden.

Jauch,

About
About

i8th

1704lute

maker.

1760.
1776.

century.

maker

fine

in the Italian style.

Jauch, Johann, Gratz, 1740.

Jori,

Leander, Sesso.

Jorio, Vincenzo, Naples.

Joseph,

J.,

maker.

lute

About" i8ig.
19th century.

Vienna, 1764.

JuLiANO, Francesco,
the beginning of

Rome.

century

i8th

about

it.

JuLLiEN, Louis, Antoine,

i8i2

6o.

This was the

great bandmaster, who, although not a violin maker,

was one

of those

who

invent fiddles.

His idea was a

violin

tuned a fourth above the usual pitch.

came

to anything.

It

was

to

It

never

be the same size as the

ordinary violin, which, probably,

made

it

difficult

to

invent the strings.

Kaiser, Martin, Venice. About 1609. A lute maker,

Kambl, Johann Andrew, Munich, 1635 40.
Kanigowski, Warsaw. About 1841. Besides being

a violin maker, he also

made bows.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

178

Karb, Konigsberg.

Kembter, Dibnigen,

viol

maker.
Violins of highly arched

1725.

model.

Kessel, Anton, Breitenfeld. Contemporary. Violins.

KiRCHHOFF, A. W., Lopenaja, 1855.

Kirschschlag. a Tyrolese maker.
KiTTEL,

and

About

also an exquisite

the

1780.

A fine repairer,

St. Petersburg, 19th century.

bow maker.

Klein, A., Rouen.

under

Violin maker.

Modern.

management

of

This establishment

M.

Antoine

Rubach

is

of

Mirecourt.

Kleinmann, Cornelius, Amsterdam,

Violin

1671.

maker.

Kloss, E., Bernstadt, 1855. Violin maker.

Knittle, Joseph, Mittenwald, 1791.

Knitting,

P.,

Mittenwald, 1760.

Knoop, W., Meiningen.

Kohl, Johann, Munich.

to the Bavarian court.
Kceuppers, Johann.

made

About 1599.

The Hague, 1760

reputation of being the

varnish, but well

Modern.
lute

80.

Has the

of the Dutch.

finest

maker

Thick

violins.

KoLB, Hans, Ingolstadt, 1666.

Kolditz, Jacob, Ruhmburg.

viol

maker.

Died 1796.

The work

maker is highly appreciated in Germany.

Kolditz, Mathias Johann, Munich.

of this

KoLLiKER, H., Paris,

1789

1820.

repairer

great ability.

Kramer, H., Vienna. About 1717. A viol maker.

Kriner, J., Mittenwald, 1786 91.
KuGLER, Max, Munich. A violin maker.

of

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

KiJNTZEL, Berlin.

79

Modern.

Lafleur and Son, London. Contemporary.

Lagetto, Luigi, Paris. About 1753.
Laine, Paris. About 1773.
Lambert, Jean Nicolas, Paris, 1745.
Dean of the
Paris Violin Makers' Guild for this year. The business
was carried on for a considerable time by his widow for
about half a century after above date. Lambert made
.

also viols, one of

which

Conservatoire.

He

this

is

the

in

branded

his

museum of the Paris

name on the side of

instrument, and used a ticket in his violins which

runs,"]. N. Lambert, rue Michel-le-Comte

Paris,"

surrounded with arabesque decoration, supported by a

violin

and

lute.

Lambert, Nancy. About 1750.

Lambert, J. A., Berlin. About 1760.
Lambin, Ghent, 1800 30. Violin maker and repairer.
Lamy, J. Thibouville, Mirecourt and London.

Contemporary.

Lancellotti,

maker

Modern.

Ottavio, Barigazio.

of double basses.

51.

Lancillotto, Jacopixo, Modena, 1507

known of makers and dealers

the oldest

in

One
viols

of

and

other musical instruments.

Landi, Pietro, Siena, 1774.

Violins.

1715.

Lanza, Antonio Maria, Brescia, 1650

He

was a contemporary of Stradivari, but copied Maggini,

and other Brescian makers in what has been called a
" slavish " manner.
tone.

He

also

made

Lapaix, Lille.

N2

His instruments have not a good

viols.

Modern.

Violin

maker and

medallist.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

l8o

Laprevotte, Paris, 1825 1850. He was an ordinary

maker, and subsequently in Paris.
Died

Mirecourt
in 1856.

Larne, p. M., Paris, 1767.

Guild

Dean

of the

Makers'

for this year.

Laska, Joseph, Ruhmburg.

He worked

Born

1738.

Died 1805.

with Kolditz in Prague, but chiefly

mandolines and

made

viols.

Laurentius detto Papiensis, Pavia. This was a

maker of the fifteenth and sixteenth
He was a maker of all sorts, but his
centuries.
lutes and viols were highly-decorated musical instruments.
He was patronised by Isabella D'Este, and
carried on some correspondence with her in regard to
distinguished old

different instruments,

I5i5>
1708.

between the years 1496

Lavazza, Antonio Maria, Milan, 1695

Lavazza Santino, Milan, 1718.

Leb, Presburg, i8th century.

Leblanc, Paris. About 1772.

Leclerc, Paris, i8th century

(1771).

He was

chiefly a repairer.

Lecompte, Paris. About 1788.

Leduc, Pierre, Paris.
One of the most ancient
Parisian makers.
About 1646.
Le Dhuy. About 1806. A French maker of the
bowed lyre.
Lefebvre, Amsterdam, 1720 40.
His model was

Amati.

Lefebvre, Paris. About 1788.

Lei, Domenico, Formigine. About 1848.
an amateur repairer of some skill.

This was

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Le Jeune,

Francois, Paris,

Makers' Guild
the

was

Museum

Dean

1764.

There

for this year.

is

1870,

believe,

the

of

a viol by him in

and the name

it became

of the Paris Conservatoire,

in the trade until

l8l

when

extinct.

Lemme, Brunswick, i8th century. A maker, or

dealer, who invented things for the fiddle.
Among these
was an improvement in working the upper table or belly,
which does not appear

to

also invented a mute.

know nothing about

Lembock, G.,

He

have been of any use.

About

Vienna,

1873.

either.

He was

repairer.

Dean

L'Empereur, Jean Baptiste.

Guild

of the Makers'

for 1750.

Le Lievre,
instruments.

about

Paris,

Made

1754.

fairly

good

Dean

of the

Yellowish orange varnish.

Leoni, Ferdinando, Parma, 1816.

Leper, Dominilo, Rome.

19th century.

Le

About 1754.

Pileur, Piero, Paris.

Lesclop, Francois Henri, Paris, 1746.

Paris Makers' Guild for this year.
Lessellier, Paris, 1640

60.

Gustave Chouquet has a good word

Levien-Mordaunt,

lute

maker

of

whom

to say.

Paris, 1825.

Lewis, Edward, London.

About

1700.

Good work

good wood and varnish.

LiEBicH,

Johan, Breslau,

i8th

century.

viol

maker.
LiEBicH,

Ernest,

Breslau,

1796

1862.

Violins,

harps, and guitars.

LiEBicH, Geoffrey, Breslau, i8th century.

Violins.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

102

GUIDE.

About

Light, Edward, London.

1798.

and

lute

harp maker.

LiGNAMARO, PiETRO, Mantua (San Martino).

Lutes and zithers.

Died

1569.

About

LiGNOLi, Andrea, Florence.

1681.

Ferdinando,

GuiSEPPE

LiEDOLF,

VioHns.

Vienna,

18th

century.

LiNAROLo, Ventura, Venice, 1514

and

Lipp,

An

20.

old lute

maker.

viol

Mittenwald.

LipPETA,

J.

About

1761.

Violins.

G., Neukirchen, 1771.

Livorno, Vincenzo Da, Leghorn, 1861.

About

Locicero, Luciano, Naples.

Violins.

1830.

Chiefly

guitars,

GiAMBATTiSTA,

LoLio,

Voltczza,

About

1727.

8th

century.

Violins.

LoLY,

maker.

Naples.

Jacopo,

Light yellow varnish.

LoRENzi, G. B. DE, Vicenza.

and

Ordinary

About

1878.

Violins,

also organs.

Gasparo,

LoRENZiNi,

Piaccnza,

i8th

century.

Violins.

LouvET, Jean,

One
Museum.
1759.

Dean

Paris.

of his viols

is in

LouvET, Pierre, Paris.

for

1742.

servatoire

One of his
Museum.

Loveri, Naples.

Lucarini
repairer.

(or

of the Makers' Guild for

the Paris Conservatoire

Dean

of the Makers' Guild

viols is also in the Paris

Con-

Modern.

Lucatini),

Faenza.

About

1803.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

LuDGE, Geronimo Pietro De, Conegliano,

This maker is also called " Ludici."

183

an amateur,

it

is

manuscript one.

1709.

He was

repairer.

supposed, from the ticket he used, a

" Hieronynius Petrus de
It runs,

Ludice animi causa

faeciebat

The

Conegliani, A.D."

any way justify such a conclusion.

Guiesppe, Venice.
About
An
1777.

inscription does not in

LuGLONi,

imitator of the

Cremonese

style.

Lupo, Peter, Antwerp. About 1559. Violins.

Luppi, Giovanni, Mantua, 19th century.

Macintosh, Dublin. Said to be a pupil of Thomas

Macintosh published a work on the

Perry, Dublin.

construction of the violin, and of this book

impossible to obtain a copy.

It

it

was issued

where about the year 1837. Macintosh

have died between that date and 1840.
McGeorge, Edinburgh. About 1800.

is

seems
some-

supposed to

Maffeotto, Guiseppe, Roveredo, i8th century.

Maffei, Lorenzo. An Italian repairer about end of
1

8th century.

Magno, Ferrara.

lute

maker, middle of

i6th

century.

Maier, a.

F., Salzburg.

1746

50.

Malagoli, Fulgenzio, Modena, 1856.

Maldonner, Fussen.

About

1650.

maker of

double basses.

Maller, Laux

(or

Luca), Bologna, 1415

1475-

famous old German maker of lutes.

Maller, Sigismund, Bologna and Venice, 1460
1526.

Another lute maker, also of German origin

judging, of course, only by the name.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

184

Mann (or Man), Hans, Naples, i8th century.

Mandoti, Guiseppe, Piacenza, 1713. Violins.
Manni, Pietro, Modena.
About 1827. Guitars,
tc.

Mansiell, L., Nuremburg.

Mansiedl, L., Wurzburg.

About 1728.
About 1724.

Mantegazza, Carlo, Milan, i8th century.

Mantegazza, Francesco, Milan, 1760.
Mantegazza, Pietro and Giovanni, Milan, 1737
This family of violin makers and repairers were
800.
distinguished in their day chiefly, however, as repairers
and restorers. There is a quartet of instruments by the
brothers P. and G., which appear to be the only speci-

mens oi new instruments known to one or two writers,

and the varnish on them is black. They, however, used
all kinds of varnish, and when they did make fiddles they
copied Amati, Stradivari, and Guarnerius
sorts

even

Stainer arching

were so famous

in

their

was not

day that

all

indeed,

rejected.

all

They

sorts of rubbishy,

dirty fiddles have got ticketed accordingly.

Mantovani, Parma, 1850 83. A violin repairer.

About 1700.
Marcelli (or Marcello), Giovanni, Cremona, about
A maker of double basses. Large pattern and
1696.
Maratti, Verona.

powerful tone. A decorative maker who used inlay

and carving. Inlay on sides sometimes.
Marchetti, Enrico, Turin, igth century. Violins
Marchi, Giannantonio, Bologna.
About 1806.

of

Violins.

Highly arched.

Beautiful wood.

a golden orange.
Marco, Antonio, Venice.

About

1700.

Varnish of

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Marconcini, Gaetano, Ferrara.

i8th century.

Marconcini, Guiseppe, Ferrara.

i8th century.

Marconcini, Luigi, Ferrara and

said that this

maker was a pupil

of

185

Bologna.

Omobono

It

is

Stradivari.

Gaetono and Guiseppe were his sons, and Guiseppe is

reported to have been a pupil of Storioni.
The
instruments of the latter have a fair reputation but I
^m not in a position to speak of any of them.
Marconi, Antonio, Conegliano. About 1878.
Marcus, Johannes, Busseto, 1540 80.
A viol

maker.
Maria, Giuesppe de, Naples.
.a

maker

About

1779.

Chiefly

of mandolines, etc.

Mariani, Antonio, Pesaro,

1570

1646.

School of

Maggini.

Marino, Bernardino, Rome, 1805.

Maris, Ferenzuola.

Marquis,

maker

de

Lair,

Violins.

Violins.

Mirecourt.

of comparatively small interest.

big fiddles, and out of proportion.

19th

century

He made

very

His sound holes are

not so bad in the matter of design, but they are poorly

cut and far apart.

His margins are usually large, but

Edges round. Ribs good height and figure.
Scroll tasteless.
Varnish of a brown colour with a
slight dull orange greenish tint about it here and there.
" Marquis de Lair d'Oiseau " branded across the back

vulgar.

just under the button.

Marshall, John, London, 1750 60. A good maker

the Stainer model, and also made flatter

who used

instruments.

Beef

id.

He inscribed

on one of his tickets " Good

all very Bad." He seems

pound But trades

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

l86

to

have been an observer of the times with a fancy

for

big, big B's.

Martani,

Antonio,

Reggio-Emil,

1804

66.

violin repairer.

Martin, London, 1790 4.

Martinelli (detto il Gobbo called the hunchback),
Modena, 19th century. A maker of double basses.

Martinez, Alonzo.

An

Martino.

Masencer,

Italian

Spanish violin maker.

maker

Giovanni

de,

chiefly of
Brussels.

'cellos.

and

Violins

pochettes.

Mast, Jean Laurent, Paris.

Thick, dark
good maker.

fairly

L. Mast, Paris
in the inside

Mast

"

branded

where the

century.

at the top of the

"J.
back and

ticket is generally seen.

Fils, Toulouse.

Nicolas aine at

18th

spirit varnish.

Son

of above.

Worked

with

Mirecourt and subsequently went to

Branded his violins " Mast fils Toulouse

same places. His instruments are rather
highly arched, and have an orange and a red orange
varnish.
They are fairly good violins.
Maucotel, Charles Adolphe. Born in Mirecourt
in 1820 where he learnt violin making.
He went to
Vuillaume in 1839, and five years afterw^ards began
business on his own account. He committed suicide in
He was a fine maker, and turned out some high
1858.

Toulouse.

(date) " in the

class instruments of all sizes except double basses.

Maucotel, Charles. Born in Mirecourt in 1807. He

Mirecourt and went to C. F. Gand in
Paris, 1834..
Ten years afterwards he came to London
and was employed by R. and W. Davis of Coventry
also learnt in

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Street (now

Withers).

iSj

In a few years he started for

himself and continued in Rupert Street

to

France

have a

till he went back

His instruments are also good and
about them
I do not know whether

in i860.

fine style

he was related to the previous maker or not.

that he

He was

was a brother and

the

first

suppose that

said

It is

correct.

is

employer of Mr. George Chanot, the

elder (of London).

Mansseil, Leonard, Nuremberg. About 1745.

good maker of Stainer copies. Light yellow varnish.
Mayerhoff, Andrew Ferdinand, Salzburg, 1740

Mayr, Adam, Munich.

i8th century.

6..

maker.

viol

Mayr, Andrew Ferdinand, Salzburg, 1726 77.

maker.
He was maker to the court

violoncello

A
in

Salzburg.

Mayson, Walter, H. Contempory. Violins, violas

and basses. His better class instruments are excellent.
A viol
Meares, Richard, London. About 1677.
maker.
Meiberi, Francesco, Livorno.

About

1750.

Melegari, Enrico Clodoveo, Turin, i860.

Melegari, Pietro, Turin. About same

Violins.

date

as

previous maker of same name.

Metelli, Luigi, Ferrara.

19th century.

Marconcini, and, consequently, of a good

pupil of

school by

descent and according to report.

Mellini, Giovanni, Guastalla.

Meloni, Antonio, Milan, 1694.
Menichetti, Luigi, Faenza.

About 1768.

About

new kind

This

1851.

maker was an inventor of a

a combination of wood and metal and was thought
of violin.

It

was

to

be

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

l88

The

suitable for military bands.

and the

tone,

although

an

of

belly

was

of brass,

abominably

diverse

character on the different strings, had a certain amount

of strength.
I

It

don't think

it

was exhibited

in 1851 at

Bologna, but

has ever been heard of since.

Mennegand, Charles.
Like so many other

fine

Nancy in 1822.
makers, he was taught his art
Born

at

Mirecourt, and in 1840 went to Paris.

There he
and became a firstclass repairer of old instruments.
He was a year with
Maucotel, and then went to Amsterdam. In five years
he returned to Paris, and died in 1885. He made good
instruments, but his chief distinction was gained in the
in

worked

for

Rambaux

for five years,

repair of old ones.

Mennesson, Emile, Rheims.

This
About 1878.
maker started a business in a kind of trade instrument
which he called the Guavini violin, I suppose it was a

He made

trade mark.

double basses.

Mensidler,

violins,

They have

tenors,

Nuremberg,

Johann,

'cellos,

and

a red, transparent varnish.

1550.

viol

maker.

Merighi, Antonio, Milan, 1800.

Meriotte, Lyons.
maker.

Up

About

1755.

fairly

good

to 1770, his tickets are written " Meriotte,

Lyon," but

after

Latinised and printed.

His

luthier, sur le pont, pres le change, a

that date the inscription

is

instruments are, at the same time, of improved quality.

Merlin, Joseph, London.

About

1780.

His

.ments are highly built.

Merosi, Guiseppe, Firenzuola.

Methfessel, Gustave, Berne.

About
About

1846.
1883.

instru-

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Mette, Father, Rouen,

maker

1855.

Alessandro,

Mezadri,

189-

Ferrara,

1690

1720.

some little merit, but poor Amati model.

Mezadri, Francesco, Milan, 1700 1720. A

of

fairly

Nice golden varnish with a reddish tinge,

good maker.

transparent and thin.

MiCHAUD, Paris. About 1788.

MicHELOT, Paris. About 1788.
Michiels, Gilles, Brussels, 1779.
MiLANi, Francesco, Milan, 1742. This maker was a
pupil of

Lorenzo Guadagnini, and an accurate imitator

of Stradivari.

About 1786.
maker at Aix in the Bouches du Rhone

Mier, London.
MiLLE.
the

8th century.

in

Violins.

Miller, London, 1750.

MiNELLi, Giovanni, Bologna.

About

1808

9.

Violins.

MiNozzi, Matteo, Bologna, i8th century.

MiQUEL, Emile, Mirecourt.

Contemporary.

MiREMONT, Claude Augustin.

in 1827.

was

He

maker

learnt
in

under

his

Born

father

at

Mirecourt

Sebastien,

who

Mirecourt, and afterwards worked for

Miremont went
and was first with Joseph Rene Lafleur,
who was a bow maker, chiefly. Miremont soon left him
and engaged with Bernardel Pere, with whom he
remained until 1852. He then went to New York for
three years with C. N. Collin-Mezin.
to Paris in 1844,

ten years,

and returned

from business

in

1884,

to Paris in

and died

1861.

in 1887.

maker, and received several medals.

He retired
He was a fine

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

190

S GUIDE.

MiRANcouRT, Joseph, Verdun.

About

1749.

viol

maker.

About

Moitessier, Louis.

One was

violins.

belly of

Made some good

1781.

a very curious instrument, having a

maple the same as the back.

It is

described as

being well made, and of good tone.

MoERS, Jean

Dean

Henri, Paris, 1771.

this

for

year of the Paris Violin Makers' Guild.

MoHR, P., Hamburg. About 1650.

MoLDONNER, Fusseu, 1756 98.

Molinari, Antonio, Venice, 1672

MoLiNARi,

GuiSEPPE,

viol

maker.

1703.
He made

Venice.

stringed instruments, such as mandolines, etc.

made violins. There

museum of the Paris

are two of

the

various

He

also

in

the

former

Conservatoire, and bearing dates

1762 and 1763.

MoLLENHAVER, Loudou.

who proposed

inventor,

to

About

make

and double basses with two

bellies,

He

an

two compart-

it would
volume and roundness of the tone of

claimed for his suggestion that

largely increase the

the violin tribe, without altering

principles

is

one under the other,

-dividing the interior of the instrument into

ments.

This

88 1.

violins, violas, 'cellos,

of

the invention

its

The

quality.

are explained

in

Musical

November, 1881.
MoLZA, Nicola, Modena, 1620. A repairer.
MoNCHi, P. de, Lyons, 1633. A viol maker.
MoNGENOT, Rouen. About 1763.
MoNTADE, Gregorio, Cremoua, 1720 35. A maker

Opinion of ist

-who copied Stradivari.

MoNTALDi, Gregorio, Cremona.

About

1730.

This

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

maker

said to have

is

IQI

used the same model as the

same place at the same

and he has the same Christian name. On the

preceding, to have Hved in the

time,

whole,

it

may be

reasonably supposed that there has

been some error in reading

his

surname. But a conclusion

of that kind, for the reasons already stated, should only

We have Smith," Smyth,

and Smythe
Brown, Broun, and Browne.
These
might all be called John, they might all be anywhere in
be of a tentative character.
;

this

country at the same time, and any two of each

group might be drapers or grocers.

MoNTANi, Gregorio, Cremoua, i8th century.

name may

also be another " variant " of "

but then again, as Uncle

Remus would

This

Montade

say,

"

mightii't.

it

In the meantime, they are merely names.

MoNTicHiARO, Zanetto, Brcscia, 1533.

maker.

lute

and

viol

MoNTRON, Paris. About 1788.

MoNTURRi, GuiSEPPE, Piuniazzo.

About

1840.

Violins.

MoNZiNO, Antonio, Milan, 19th century.

and violas.
MoRELLO,

MoRGLATo,

Mantua, 1540.

Violins

Lutes and

viols.

Morella-Odani,

Guiseppe, Naples,

1738.

Made

good violins, having a very dark-coloured varnish.

Chiefly
MoRETTi, Antonio, Milan. About 1/30.
mandolines.

About 1812.
MoRi-CosTA, Felice, Parma.
MoRONA, Antonio, Isola. About 1731.
Morrison, J., London, 1780 1823.

Violins.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

192

MouDOiT.

He

maker

GUIDE.

of viols in the i6th

said to have reduced the

is

number

century.

of the strings.

MuccHi, Antonio (called Bastia), Modena, 1800.

Died 1883.
He was a magnificent restorer of old
violins.
He was a pupil of a Modenese maker named
Soliani, and his instruments have something of the style
Varnish golden amber.

of Guadagnini.

Murdoch, A., Aberdeen. Modern.

MusAN, DoMENico, Venice, 1756. A maker

of double

basses.

MUZZARELLI, OSPITALETTO, 1880.

Nadermann, Jean Henri,

ViolinS.

Dean

Paris, 1774.

of the

He was not

Paris Violin Makers' Guild for this year.

maker, but one of a family of harp makers.

violin

Nadotti,

Guiseppe,

About

Piacenza.

1767.

Violins.

Naldi, Antonio, Florence.

musician, and

Namy,

is

About

Paris, 1772

1806.

into raptures, stating that he could

ever he saw a violin repaired by

This

is

famous repairer regard-

ing whose talent in this direction the

tell at

He was

1550.

said to have invented the theorbo.

tell

Abbe

Sibire

at a glance

Namy,

just as

went

when-

he could

glance whenever he saw a Cremona violin.

"
a specimen of connoisseurship " unconditioned

as philosophers would say, and now-a-days

teristic

only

surmounted the

of

those

is

charac-

whose self-confidence

level of their experience.

has

Had the Abbe

just qualified his statement with " sometimes," " often,"

" very frequently," or even "nearly always," one would

have had

less inclination to discount his

Naylor, Isaac, Leeds, 1778

92.

enthusiasm.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Nella, Raffaello, Brescia.

maker who practised the

ments with inlay

manner

On

sum dura

occisa

mortua, dulce cano."

fine

of Maggini

and the

the backs and round the

sides of his instruments he used the legend, "

sylvis

1740.

art of decorating his instru-

after the

earlier Brescian school.

About

I93

securi

dum

Viva

Duiffoprugcar had used

fui in

tacqui,

vixi,
it

before

him.

Neuner, Luigi, Berlin. 19th century.

Neuner, Mathias, Mittenwald. About 1817.
Like Hornstaney, the name of Neuner occurs frequently
in Bavarian work and the members of the two families
have been

in

one firm.

Newsiedler,
Lutes and

Giovanni,

Nuremberg.

Died

1563.

viols.

Newton,

Isaac,

London, 1775

1825.

Nezot, Paris. About 1735. There is a six stringed

viol by this maker in the museum of the Paris
Conservatoire.

Nigetti, Francesco, Florence.

About 1645.

viol

maker.

NiGGEL, SniPERTius, Fvissen, 1672 1755. He made

on the Stainer model, and employed a dark

violins

coloured varnish.

Instruments of a

flat

model are

also-

noted as having been seen Avith N. S. branded inside.

Norborn, John, London. About 1723.

Born 1739. Died 1818.

Norris, John.

Wamsley school, having been a

Smith. The firm became Norris and

the

Trained in

pupil of

Thomas

Barnes.

NovELLO, Marcantonio, Venice. i8th century.

NovELLO, Valentino, Venice. i8th century,

*^HE FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE.

194

About

NovERci, CosiMO, Florence.

1662.

lute

maker.

NovERSi, CosiMO, Florence.

very like the same

name

17th

Looks

century.

down

preceding written

as

from a foreign pronunciation.

About 1712. A dealer somewhat after the style of Dodd and others, who had the
instruments made for him and placed his own manuObbo, Marco, Naples.

script tickets inside.

Ordinary work.

About

Obici, Bartolomeo, Verona.

Obici, Prospero, Marano.

1684.

19th century.

A repairer.

Died 1695.
^^ was
only twenty-eight years old when he died. He was a
young man of considerable genius, and is said to have
Odoardi, Guiseppe, Ascoli.

made upwards

of

two hundred instruments of exceed-

ingly great merit, into which subsequent dealers have

put Cremonese and Brescian tickets.

named

writer

Galeazzi says that he rivalled the finer Cremonese makers.

About

Ohberg, Johann, Stockholm.

maker.

1773.

good

Chiefly yellow varnish.

Oliveri, Felice, Turin, 1883.

Olivola,

Francesco

De,

Violins.

Rome

(Sarzana),

1667.

Violins.

Ongaro, Ignazio, Venice, 1783. Violins.

Orlandelli, Paolo, Codogna. 17th century. A
dealer of the same type as Ohbo.
Orzero, Tommasso, Turin, 19th century. Violins.
About 1730. A viol
Ostler, Andrew, Breslau.
maker.

Yellow orange varnish.

Ott, Johann, Nuremberg.

maker.

Common
About

work.

1463.

lute

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Otto,

Died

work which
the

title

He was

is

Born

popularly

known

in this

sons,

in Halle.

August, in Cologne.

Hermann, son
business,

of

that

Christian,

in Jena.

Carl, in Mecklenburg.

son

George

of

Louis, son of Carl, in Diisseldorf.

Ludwig, in
grandsons

three

day, very

own work, nor

Ludwig,

Stockholm.

1762.

settled in various parts

Heinrich, in Berlin.

C. U. v., in

sons and

who were

his

George August,

of the continent.

Gotha,

and wrote the

country under

It is, to this

have never seen any of

numerous

at

a pupil of Ernst,

of " Otto on the Violin."

useful.

of his

Augustus.

Jacob,

in 1830.

I95

Thus

St. Petersburg.

went

all

and judiciously chose

to

into

five

the fiddle

settle in

different

Some of them are now dead.

OuMiR, Khosro, Punjab, India. About the end of

towns.

15th century.

OuvRARD, Jean,

Paris, 1743.

Violin Makers' Guild.

Pacherele,

Michel,

ordinary maker, orange

Dean

for this

year of

Style of Pierray.
Paris.

About

varnish, style of

An

1779.

Louis Guersan.

Name

branded at the top of back.

Pacherele, Pierre. Born at Mirecourt 1803.
Died at Nice 1871. He was first at Nice in 1830.
He also worked at Genoa and Turin. At the latter
place

Nice and

and a

In

Pressenda.

with

settled

fine

repairer,

1839,

He was

there.

but

employed

he
a
a

returned

good

to

maker,

thick-looking

style of varnish.

Pacquet, Marseilles.

About

1785.

He was

born in

Aix, and was, besides a violin maker, an inventor of a

harp guitar.
02

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

196

Violins, guitars, etc.

Padewet, J., Carlsruhe, 1855.
Padewet, Carlo, Munich, 1855. Violins, Stradivari

pattern.

Pagani,

J. B.,

A fairly good

Cremona, 1747.

maker.

Pagani, Pietro, San Martino, 1836.

Paganini, Luigi, Faenza, 19th century.

Paganoni, Antonio, Venice, 1712

50.

Palate, Liege, i8th century.

fair

maker who

copied the Italian style.

Pallotta, Pietro, Perugia, 1821.

Palma,

p.,

Violins.

Lucca, i8th century.

An

Paltrinieri, Giovanni.

Italian

maker

of 'cellos,

about the year 1840.

Pamphilon, Edward, London, 17th century.

Very

high model, but magnificent varnish.

Pandolfi, Antonio, Venice.

About

1719.

Pansani, Antonio, Rome, 1735.

Panza, Antonio, Finale-Emilia, 1873. Violins.
Paquotte Fr^res, Paris. A firm of violin makers

founded

in 1830.

Pardi, Paris.

About

1788.

Pardini, Bastiano, Florence.

Parlt,

viol

Michael Andrew, Vienna.

About

1764.

maker.

Parth, a. N.,lVienna, i8th century.

Pasciuti, Ferdinando, Bologna, 1882.

maker and

repairer.

Pasenali, Giacomo.

An

Italian

maker

of mandolines

chiefly, i8th century.

Pasta, Venice.

About

1661.

Pasta, Domenico, Brescia.

About 1718.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Pasta, Gaetano, Brescia, 1700

Good

1730.

I97

High model.

instruments, and nice looking varnish.

Patzelt,

J. F.,

Pazzini,

Giovanni,

This maker,

in

Modern.
Gaetano, Florence,

Vienna.

one of his

1640

60,

tickets, calls himself a pupil of

Maggini.

Pearce, G., London, 1834 5^'

Pearce, J., London, i8th century.
Pearce,

J.

and

T.,

London.

About

Peccenini, Alessandro, Bologna.

1780.

About

1595.

lute maker.

Pedrazzi,
Fra Pietro, Bologna.
About 1784.
Another maker among the ranks of the Dominican
fraternity.

Pedrinelli, Antonio, Crespano.

1854.

This

undertaker.

Born

Died
1781.
maker was originally a carpenter and
He was almost wholly deaf, and took to

copying violins of the fine makers, such as Maggini,

Stradivarius, and
selling

them

He was successful in
He made the backs of very old

Guarnerius.

in Russia.

beech from fragments of oars, the remains of the old oars

used in the Venetian galleys.

These,

it

is

said,

he

procured, by means of some patron's influence, from the

Venetian arsenal.

ments
'cellos,

in the white,

To some firms he sold his

and he made all sorts, violins,

and double basses.

instru-

tenors,

In 1854, ^^ exhibited some

specimens of his work at the Industrial Exhibition in

Venice, and had a medal awarded to him, but he

then dying, and never

knew

of his success.

Pelignino, Zanetto, Brescia, 1547

viol

maker.

was

50.

An

old

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

igS

Pemberton, Edward, London. About 1660.

Peron, Paris, 1755 88. A court maker, namely, to
He appears to have made
the Duchess of Orleans.
few violins, and to have been chiefly engaged in

fabricating other kinds of string instruments, such as

zithers, etc.

Petroni, Antonio, Rome, 19th century.

Petz, Fiissen.

About 1770.

Pezard, Brescia, 1560

Pfub, Hamburg.

80.

follower of Maggini.

Modern.

Pfretyschner, Neukircken. Common work.

Cremona. 1750 94. Common
J. G.,

Pfretzschner,
work.

Pianassi, Domenico,

Ginglia,

1770

80.

viol

maker.
PiANE, Delle, Genoa, 1800.

Violins.

PiccAiTi, Ippolito, Persiceto, 1850

56.

Violins and

double basses.

An

Piccinetti, Giovanni, 1677.

Italian viol

maker.

PicHOL, Paris.

'

PiciNO, Padua, 1712.

Picte,

Natale,

Paris,

1760

1810.

Violins

and

double basses.
PiERi, Costantino, 1865.

PiERRET, Paris,

An

Italian repairer.

6th and 17th centuries.

Pierrot, Lyons.
PiETE, N., Paris, 1760

80.

PiETRi, PiETRO, Venice, 1690.

PiETRo,

Alberto,

Rome.

About

1581.

lute

maker.

Pillementi, F., Paris.

About

1760.

His name

is

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

branded on the

He made

Not

inside.

I99

particularly good work.

tenors and 'cellos also.

PiLosio, Francesco, Gorizia.

About

i8th century.

1748.

A maker and repairer.

Bartolomeo, Florence. About 1664. A maker

PiNGRiER, Paris, 1882.

PiNi,

and

dealer.

PiNi, LuiGi, Florence.

19th century.

repairer.

maker who
employed a thick brown varnish having a red tint. His
instruments are fairly good. Arching somewhat high,
Pirot, Claude,

Paris,

1803

13.

but otherwise well designed.

PiTET, Paris.
tive sort

his

who

name,

PivA,

PivA,

1675.

maker

of the decora-

inscribed on the sides of the instruments

etc.

Giovanni,

violas, 'cellos,

the

About

Modena.

19th

century.

Violins,

and basses.

Giovanni, Piacenza.

same maker

About

1883.

Possibly

as the preceding.

Pizzorno, Davide, Genoa, 1770.

Violins and basses.

Plach, Francesco, Schoenbach, 1781.

Placht, Vienna.

About

1873.

Violins.

Instruments of a

trade character.

Plani, Agostino de, Genoa.

About

1778.

Ordinary

kind of instrument.

Platner, Michele, Rome.

About 1747.

makeir

whose instruments resemble those of Tecchler.

Plumerel, Paris. About 1740. A maker of basses.
Not particularly good work. Orange varnish.
PoGGi, Francesco, Florence, 1634. Various kinds of
instruments.

THE FIDDLE

200

KAN'CIKR S GUIDE.

PoLi, Giovanni, Milan, 1850

and

82.

Tenors

Violins.

'cellos.

LucA De, Cremona, 1731. Instruments in the

Andreas Amati.
A viol maker.
PoLLASTRi, Antonio, Modena, 1765.

PoLis,
style of

PoLLASTRi,

GuisEPPE, Modcna,

Viols and

1783.

guitars.

PoLLASHA (or
and 'cellos.

Pollusca),

Rome,

Antonio,

1751.

Violins

Pons, Cesare, Grenoble, 1750

60.

An

hurdy-

old

gurdy maker.

51.

Chiefly a guitar maker.

Como,

1853.

Italian

'cello

Pons, Paris, 1827

PoNTiGGio, v.,

Violins,

tenors,

and

basses.

PoPELLA.

An

maker

of

17th

the

century.

There

Porlon, Peter, Antwerp, 1647.

is in

existence

a bass by this maker, bearing above date.

About 1753.

PoscH, Anthony, Vienna.

etc.

Highly arched, common

fiddles,

Violins,

with very dark

varnish.

PossEN, Laux, Schevengau.

About

1564.

maker

of lutes and viols.

PosTACCHiNi, Andrea, Fermo.

of a

About

somewhat ordinary character,

1824,

Violin

of flat arching,

and

reddish-brown varnish.

PosTiGLioNE, ViNCENzo, Naples, 1881.

Violins, etc.

Powell, R., London, 1785.

Powell, Thomas, London, 1793.
PozziNi, Gaetano, Brescia, 1671

Instruments

in the style of

Maggini.

90.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

P02ZINI, Gasparo, Brescia,

same

the

1691

99.

20I

A maker

of

school.

Prediger, Anspach, 1694 9^- VioHns and tenors.

Preston, John, York. About 1791.
Pressenda, Giovanni Francesco, Turin.
This

maker was one of the finest of the post-classical period.

He was born on the 6th January, 1777, in LequioBerria, a small village in the neighbourhood of Alba in

His father was a

Piedmont.

Young Pressenda

as

astonished

frequently

some

local violinist of

child,

those

skill.

played the violin, and

who heard

him.

He

making violins
when he was barely ten

apparently, however, liked the idea of

better than playing them, for

years old, he determined to learn the art of constructing

them

in the

famous

city of

Cremona.

It

was rather a

long tramp for a lad of his years, but he took his fiddle

with him and played for a living from place to place,

until

time,

he entered within the renowned walls.

all

At

this

the the great ones he had heard of had passed

over to the majority except the last and least, Storioni.

He

employment with him, and so pleased that fag

school that the boy at the
termination of his engagement returned home with two
got

end of the Cremonese

fine violin
,of

moulds which

his satisfaction.

He

master gave hinl as a mark'

played his

forward, and remained at

years old.

his

way

back, as he had

home until he was thirty-seven

In 18 14 he went to Alba, and began fiddle

making there without great results. In 181 7 he went to

Carmagnola, and was not more successful. At last he
thought of Turin, and went there in 1820. He was now
Four years later, the
forty-three, but he triumphed.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

202

S GUIDE.

great violinist, Polledro, settled in Turin, and recognised

This recognition,

the excellence of Pressenda's work.

not being a mere advertisement,

and from that time

was the making

of him,

have surely though

his instruments

slowly risen in the estimation of fiddle-fanciers, and

now

deservedly occupy a high place in the esteem of

He

good judges.
December, 1854.

feally

The

style of

possesses

much

his

work

died in Turin

is

on the 4th

and massive, and

large

vigour not unlike that which charactises

of Lupot's later

and best

efforts.

In Pressenda's

of his backs is often of

later specimens, the iigure

are two

unusually bold marking, whether the backs

This

pieced or whole.

many

trait is

indeed so prominent that

people imagine he never used any other kind of

His arch

wood, quite a mistake, of course.

and

long,
his

flat,

quality of spirit

very

and

His varnish

full.

colour

fine,

About

good

his violins is generally

clear

and firm

which distinguishes many of Lupot's best

Prevot, Paris.

is

from darkish mahogany to a

The tone of
having much of the

amber brown.
.

broad,

is

can hardly, indeed, be called an arch, but

sides are fine

light

an

timbre

efforts.

1788.

PuppATi, Francesco, Udine, 1883.

PupUNAT, M., Lausanne,

1855.

Violins

and bows.

Another member of a religious confraternity who has

devoted' himself to fiddle making for some reason.

Pyne, George, London. Contemporary. A clever

maker who has done some good work.
Querci, Vincenzo, Florence, 1634. A maker of and
dealer in violins and various musical instruments.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

QuiNOT, Jacques, Paris,

existence a

About

pochette by this

branded on the back of

Racceris, Mantua.

There

1670.

maker, and

Orange varnish.

decorative character.

203.

is

in

of

His name

is

it

is

it.

About 1670.

Railich, Giovanni, Padua.

Rambaux, Claude Victor. Born at Darney in 1806',

his parents removed to Mirecourt, where, Hke .so many
fine makers before and after him, he was taught his art.
He was fourteen years old when he was apprenticed to
Moitessier, and afterwards worked for him as journeyman.
In 1824 he went to Thibout, at Caen, and in 1827 to
Gand pere in Paris. By this time he had attained
unrivalled fame as a restorer and repairer.
He was
eleven years with Gand, and then began for himsel
opposite the Conservatoire.
1857,

where he

still

He

retired to Mirecourt in

employed himself

at his favourite

pursuit until he died in 187 1.

Ramftler, Francesco, Munich, 1882.

Ranta, Pietro, Brescia, 1733.
Raoul, J. M., Paris, 19th century.
Raphael, Brescia.

About

1840.

Modern.

Violins, violas,

and

Violins, violas,

and

basses.

Rastelli, Genoa, 19th century.

basses.

Rasura, Vincenzo, Lugo.

About

1785.

Nuremberg. Modern.
An old German
Rauch, Hans von Schratt.
Rau,

J. F.,

viol

maker.

Rauch, Johann, Breslau, i6th and 17th

Rauch, Jacob, Manheim. About 1747.

centuries.

High modeL

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

204

Rauch, Wurzburg.
the preceding, and

GUIDE.

This maker was a brother of

made instruments

of similar type.

Rauch, Sebastien, Lietmente, Bohemia, 1742 1763.

Work somewhat coarse. Model, the highly built style.
Raut, Giovanni, Rennes, 1790.

Violins after the

style of Guarnerius del Jesu.

Rautmann, Brunswick. Modern.

Ravenna, G. B., Lavagna, igth
violas, and basses.
Ravilio, G. B., Ferrara,

VioUns,

century.

A maker

15th century.

of

various string instruments.

Raenzo, C, Barcelona, 17th century.

Razzoli, Felice, Villa Minozzo,

19th century.

repairer.

Reali, Cosimo, Parma, 1667.

Rechardini,

Giovanni,

maker

Venice,

of pochettes.
Violins,

1605.

violas, basses.

Reggiani, Francesco, San Martino.

maker

of violins

and

Reichel, Johann Gottfried, Absam.

of the 17th century.

He was

ing to his

own

ments

like that of

is,

About

1836.

guitars.

About the end

a pupil of Stainer, accord-

account, but the arching of his instrua

great

many

imitators of this

master, absurdly high.

Reichel, Johann Conrad.

trade

maker

in

About 1779.

Reichers, August, Berlin.

of Bausch of Leipsic,

it is

Contemporary.

said.

of considerable reputation from a

Reina, Giacomo.
'cellos.

kind of

Neukirchen.

About 1708.

He

is

German

An

A pupil

chiefly a repairer

point of view.

Italian

maker

of

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Remi, or Remy, Cremona, i8th century.

said there

made

was

maker

name

of this

in

205

It has been
Cremona, who

ordinary violins so far as concerns quahty.

He

name on them, and carved heads of

monsters, etc., on the scrolls. Dark coloured varnish.
Another maker of this name was
I have not seen any.
in London about fifty years ago, who doctored the wood
He came from Paris. In Paris
of his instruments.

branded his

there were established

Remy, Nicolas, Paris.

About 1760.
He made
and basses after the style of the earlier
French makers, such as Louis Guersan.
Remy, Jean, Mathurin, Paris. Born 1770. Died
Son of preceding. Somewhat of the same kind
1854.

violins, violas,

of work.

Remy, Jules,
business

in

Born

Paris.

recently,

until

Mathurin Remy.
Renaudin, Leopold, 1788

This maker was

1813.
and was a son of Jean

95.

basses which are sought after in

maker

of double

He made

France.

himself busy in the excesses of the French Revolution,

and

was one

untrained

in

those

of

the

art

political

of

blunder

murder, and then whimper when they are

That is the most
selves condemned to death.
able view of his character, but
in its details,

whose

birth

history

if

who,

splutterers

agitation,

into

themcharit-

accurate

is

he v/as one of those sanguinary creatures

in

the

ranks

of

appears to be quite inexplicable.

the

in 1795.

Renaudin, Ghent, 1781.

human

He was

repairer.

specie

beheaded

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

2o6

Renault, Nicolas, Nancy. About the end of the

Said to have been a pupil of Twersus.
Renault, Jacques, Paris. First half of 17th century.
Renault, S. B., Paris. There is a curious instrument,
a kind of lyre, by this maker in the Paris Conservatoire,
but nothing more is known of him.
i6th century.

Renault and Chatelain,

buy, and repair

all

This

Paris, i8th century.

" make,

firm state in their tickets that they

kinds of musical instruments."

Reynaud, Andreas, Tarascon. About 1766.

Requeno, Y., Vivez Vincenzo, Calatrato.
1743.

hire,

sell,

About

Violin repairers.

About

Ricevati, Aurelio, Florence.

Richard, Robert, Paris, 1756.

Violin Makers' Guild for this year.
RicoLAZi, Ludovico, Cremona.
Ricozali, Ludovico, Cremona.

1650.

Dean

of the Paris

About 1729.
About 1729.

These makers, one might almost be certain, are one

and the same. They made violins.
Riess, Bamberg, 1740 60. A very good imitator of

Stainer.

The name

is

sometimes

spelt " Ries."

RiGHi, Antonio, Modena, 1817.

basses.

He was

a painter also.

His

maker
fiddle

of double

work

is

not

of a high character.

RiNALDi, Celeste, Modena, 19th century.

Violins,

and basses.
RiNALDi, Gioffredo, Turiu. Contemporary.

violas,

3.

Chiefly

dealer.

RisuENO, ToMMASo, Madrid.

new instruments made,

About

1783.

Got

their

probably, in Mirecourt.

RiTTiG, Cristoforo, Genoa, 1692.

A maker of 'cellos-

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

RivoLTA, GiAcopo, Milan, 1800

22.

10']

good

fairly

who keep

maker, who was one of that class of egotists

constant condition of pleasant excitement by

US in a

threatening to revive the" glorious epoch of Stradivari,

either

by rediscovering the varnish or reproducing the

Rivolta's work is not very refined,

magnificent tone.

but his tone

is

good.

RizzoTTi, NicoLA, Novellara, igth century.

and

violas,

Violins,

'cellos.

About 1840 1865.

Antonio.
Joseph
and basses. He was a pupil of Pressenda,

RoccA,

Violins, violas,

and a maker of undoubted ability.

RoccA, Enrico, Genoa, 19th

century.

Chiefly

mandolines.

This

Rodiani, Giovita, Brescia, i6th century.

whose name

maker

Budiani."

The

error

has

probably

His work

is

as

is

the

" Javietta

through

arisen

some rare specimen of

Gasparo da Salo

partial illegibility in the ticket of

his work.

given

usually

is

in the style of

and Maggini, having golden amber-coloured varnish,

His tickets are

finely tinted with red.

" GiouiTA Rodiani in Brescia."

An

RoDDLi, LuiGi, Nancy, 1511.

who was

patronised by the then

RoiSMANN, JoHANN,
fiddle

maker.

Duke

Breslau,

early viol maker,

of Lorraine.

1630

RoL, Paris, 1753. A violin maker.

RoLiNi, GiAMBATTisTA, Pesaro, 1471.
maker,

it is

80.

Porcelain fiddles, and such

said, of violins

fancy

like.

Avery

Romano, Pietro, Pa via, i8th century.

RoMANiNi, Antonio, Cremona, i8th century.

ancient

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

2o8

RoMARiNi, Antonio, Cremona, i8th century.

These two appear

to

be one and the same.

of the latter runs, " Antonio

Romarini

ticket

fecit

Cremonae

RoNCHiNi, Raffaello, Fauo, 19th century.

A maker

anno 17

of violins

."

and bows.

Rook, Joseph, Carlisle. About 1777.

RopiQUET, Paris. About 1815. This maker was a
player in

An

the opera band,

amateur, in

and made several

violins.

fact.

About

RosiERO, Rocco, Cremona.

Violins,

1700.

and
RosMANN, JoHANN, Breslau. 17th century.
Ross, John, London, 1562 1598. A viol maker.
Ross, John, London. About 1596. A son of pre-

violas,

'cellos.

ceding.

The name

Also a viol maker.

is

occasionally

spelt Rosse.

RossELLi, GiAMBATTiSTA, Sassuolo.

i8th

century.

Violins and violas.

Rossi, Enrico, Pavia, 1883.

Rossi,

Ferdinando,

Violins.

Modena.

19th

century.

repairer.

Rossi, Gaetano, Milan.

19th century.

maker

of

double basses.
Rossi, Giovanni, Perugia, 1820.

Rota, Giovanni, Cremona, 1705.

Violins.
Violins, violas

and

basses.

Roth, Johann, Darmstadt.

About 1675.

A German

maker.

Roth, Christian, Augsburg. About 1675.

RoTTA, Carlo. Lecco. An Italian maker

violins.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

209

RoTTEMBouRG, Albert,
Brussels.
Died
1764.
Violins, violas and basses.
RoTTEMBOURG, FRANCESCO, Brussels. About 1771.
RoTTEMBOURG, G. G., Brussels. Born 1672. Died 1756.
RoTTEMBouRG, G. A., Brussels, 1758 73.
RoTTEMBOURG, G. A., Brussels. Born 1705. Died
Son of G. G.
1783.
RoTTEMBOURG, G. A. G., Brussels. Born 1642.
Died 1720.
ROTTEMBROUCK, BrUSSCls, I7OO 25.
Several of the members of the Rottembour^ familyseem to have copied the Amati model. Some of
instruments have a warm brown varnish.
RovELLi. An Italian maker about 1744.
RovETTO, Bergamo, 1840 70.
RozE, Orleans. About 1757. A fairly good maker.

Yellowish varnish.

Wide sound

holes and solid looking^

scroll.

RozET, Paris.

About

1691.

court

maker

of the

period.

Rub, Augusto Da, Viterbo, 1771. Violins.

RuBATi, Milan. About 1700. A maker of porcelain
fiddles.

RuBiNi, Bologna, 19th century.

Chiefly guitars.

RuBRECHT, Vienna, igth century, A repairer.

RuDET, P., Warsaw, 19th century. VioHns, violas.
RuELLE, Pierre, Paris. Dean of the Paris Violin.
Makers' Guild

for this year.

RuF, Hall, 1780 1877. A maker chiefly interestingfor the labour and care with which he collected information regarding

Jacob Stainer.

THE FIDDLE FANCIERS GUIDE.

2IO

An

Italian maker of pochettes or kits.

i8th century.
A maker of
Erfurt,
He neither purfled his
violas and 'cellos.

RuFFiNO.

RuppERT,
violins,

They

instruments, nor put corner blocks in them.

all

of flat model,

are

and have a dark brown, amber varnish,

according to Otto.

Sacchni, Sabatino, Pesaro,

who

i686.

maker

violin

copied Maggini, but was also familiar with the

Cremonese models of that time, and who succeeded in

styles by giving to the back something of the Amati arching while he retained elsewhere
combining the two

many

One

points of Maggini's habit.

specimens

is

known

of his

of small size.

Sacquin, Paris, 1830

60.

fine

maker, who has

produced some excellent double basses, as well as good

violins

and

Sainpra,

violas.

Jacques,

Berlin,

17th

century.

viol

maker.

Saint-Paul,

Pierre,

Paris.

ordinary maker of violins, violas,

dull,

About 1741.
An
and basses. Poor,

yellow varnish.

Saint-Paul, Antoine, Paris.

Makers' Guild

for the

year 1768.

Dean

He

of

the Violin

succeeded Louis

Guersan, and employed an orange varnish.

Saint-Cecile Des Thermes, Paris.

maker of

About

'cellos.

Sajot, Paris.

Salzar, Paris.

About 1734.
A mere name.

Salle, Paris, 1825

1850.

A very fine repairer,

and a

among

Paris

great authority on old instruments, even

dealers.

1855.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

211

Salomon, Jean Baptiste Deshayes, Paris. Dean

V.M. Guild in the year 1760. He made

of the Paris

some

fine-looking

varnish.

He

Tone not

basses.

so

fine.

Hard

died before 1772.

Salomon, Rheims. About 1747. A maker of the

school or style of Louis Guersan. Yellow varnish, and
plenty of wood, but poor workmanship.

Salomon, B., Paris, i6th and 17th century. Violins

and basses after the style of Boquay.
Saltinari, Giacomo, Marano,
19th century.
A
repairer.

Salvadori, Guiseppe, Pistoia, 1861.

Sanoni, G. B., Verona.

Santagiuliana, Giacinto, Vicenza.

Sante, Pisaro, 1670.

Violins,

i8th century.

Violins, violas,

Sante, Guiseppe, Rome, 1775.

Santi, Guiseppe, Rome, 1778.

About 1770.
and basses.

Violins.

Violins, violas,

and

Violins, violas,

and

basses.

Santo, Giovanni, Naples, 1730.

basses.

Sanzo, Santino, Milan, i8th century.

Saracini, Domenico, Florence, 1655.

Violins.
Violins, violas,

and basses.
Sardi, Venice, 1649.
Sassi,

Alessio.

Violins and violas.

About

1784.

An

Italian

'cello

maker.
Saunier,

Paris.

French provincial maker who

started in Paris about 1770.

His

appreciated in France, and he

is

violins are fairly well

said to have been the

instructor of F. L. Pique.

Saunier, Bordeaux.
P2

About

1754.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

212

GUIDE.

About i8og.

Savani, Guiseppe, Carpi.

maker

of

double basses.
Savitzky, Vienna, i8th century.

About

Sawicki, Vienna.

Scarampella,

1830.

Guiseppe,

Florence,

century.

19th

Born in Brescia in 1838. His father was a carpenter,

and also made violins, but after learning the elements of
his business in Brescia, Guiseppe went to Paris, where
at that time a countryman of his, Nicolo Bianchi, was
famous as a judge and repairer.
Scarampella soon
made himself expert under Bianchi's guidance, and

own

returned to Italy, where in 1866 he started on his

There he has been entrusted with

work of very considerable importance, not only from
account in Florence.

private amateurs, but also from the Florentine Royal

Musical Institute,

for

whom

he restored the famous

made
Grand Duke Ferdinand, son of Cosmo III., of Medici.
In 1884 he was appointed Conservator of their Museum

viola

and

an

office

by Stradavari in 1690 for the

violoncello

which,

believe, he

still

ScHiENDL, Anton, Mittenwald.

ScHEiNLEiN,

Joseph

Michel,

holds.

About

1753.

Langenfeld.

Born

1751-

Scheinlein,
1

710

71.

Mathias

Friederich,

Langenfeld,

This maker was also a musician.

His

instru-

ments are well made, but of a high model, and too thin
in the wood.
Dark coloured varnish. The precedingJoseph Michel was his son.

Schell, Sebastian,
lute maker.

vatoire

One

Museum

Nuremberg.

of his instruments

at Paris.

About
is in

1727.

the Conser-

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

SCHENFELDER (or
About

Neukirchen.

ScHCENFELDER),

213

AdAM,

JoHANN

1743.

ScHLicK, Leipsic.

ScHLEGET,

Elia,

Altemburg,

Violins

1730.

and

other string instruments, such as harps and lutes.

Schmidt, Cassel, 1800

1825.

Not a

particularly

Schmidt, Carlo, Coeten, i8th century.

Invented a

fine

maker.

keyed

Stradivari model.

violin.

Schmidt, C.

F., Vienna,

1873.

Violins, violas

and

Violins, violas

and

basses.

ScHNCECK,

Brussels, 1700

30.

Amati model.
ScHONGER, Franz, Erfurt, i8th century. His instruments are of large size, and good looking, but of poor
'cellos.

tone.

ScHONGER, Georg, Erfurt.

He was

a son

of pre-

ceding maker, and a fine repairer, chiefly.

Schorn,Johann, Inspruck. About 1680 99. Violins

and viols. His vioHns are tubby. Good varnish. Also
at Salzburg.

Schorn, Johann Paul, Salzburg, 1699 1716. Violins

He was patronized by the Court.
viols.
Contemporary.
ScHLOssER, Hermann, Ehrlbach.

and

Violins, violas, basses.

ScHOTT,

Martin,

Prague,

century.

i8th

lute

maker.

ScHOTT,
ments.

Mayence.

About

1780.

Various instru-

Chiefly a dealer.

Schrot, Jacob, Inspruck, 1838.

ScHULz, Peter, Ratisbon, 1855.

repairer.

Violins and guitars.

"THE FIDDLE FAN'CIER S GUIDE.

214

Schuster, Michel, Markneukirchen. About 1873.

Schwartz, Bernard, Strasbourg. Died 1822.

Schwartz, George Frederick, Strasbourg. Born

Died 1849. Son of preceding.
Schwartz, Theophile Guillaume, Strasbourg. Born
Died 1861. Also a son of Bernard Schwarz,
1787.
1785.

who

trained his two sons,

and they succeeded

business under the style of " Freres Schwartz."

Frederick

The

made bows,

first violin

his brother

of this firm

is

Theophile

violins, etc.

dated 1824, and

1852 they turned out 80 violins and 30

to the

George

down

to

In that

'cellos.

year succeeded to the business

Born

Schwartz, Theophile Guillaume.

1821.

Son

Violins

and

of the previous Theophile Guillaume.

Schewitzer,
violas.

flat

ScoTTO, Verona, 151

also a musician

About

Pesth.

Good work,

1800.

model.

1.

Viols and violins.

He was

a lute player.

Secco, Del, Venice, 19th century.

Violins, violas

and basses.
Segizo,

Girolamo

Maria, Modena.

Violins, violas, basses, viols

Sellas,

and

Matteo, Venice.

Died

1553.

lutes.

About

Chiefly

1639.

mandolines and guitars.

Seni, Francesco, Florence, 1634.

Violins

Senta, Fabrizio, Turin, i8th century.

Serafin, Georgio, Venice.
violas

and basses.

About

and

violas.

Basses.
1747.

Violins

Probably some relative of Sante

Serafin (Sanctus Seraphin) already mentioned.

Seresati, D., Naples, i8th century.

and basses.

Violins, violas

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Sgarbi, Guiseppe, Finale Emilie, 1841

and basses.
Shaw, J., London, 1656 98.
Siciliano, Antonio, Venice,

75.

215
Violins,

violas

Viols and violins.

Varnish of a dark

1600.

The terminal squares in the

The tops smaller than the

red, very thickly coated.

sound holes very small.

lower ones, the main stem having no notches.

SiGNORiNi, Serafino, Florence, 1877.

About

repairer.

and basses.
Simon, Salzburg, 1731. Violins, violas and basses.
SiMONiN, Charles. Born at Mirecourt, he was sent
to Paris and apprenticed to J. B. Vuillaume, and graduated with him a high-class workman.
He returned to
Mirecourt for a time, and moved to Geneva in 1841, and
Simon, Paris.

eight years afterwards

Violins

1788.

to

He

Toulouse.

has gained

several medals.

Simpson, John, London, 1785

90.

city

maker

at

the back of the Royal Exchange.

Simpson,

J.

and

J.,

London.

SiRjEAN, Paris, 1818.

Sirotti,

Nicola,

Later.

Violins, violas,

Spilamberto,

and basses.

19th

century.

repairer.

SiTT, A., Prague.

Modern.

About 1672.
Slagh-Meulen, Vander, Antwerp.
An old maker of good traditions. Varnish dull brown.
Decorative sort of work.
'cellos

was

open

at

curious specimen of his

The head was

in the 1878 Paris exhibition.

the

back, and the volute terminated in a

carved head with a crown.

One

singular feature

was

seen on the inside of back, namely, purfling and gilding.

Smith, Henry, London, 1629

33.

viol

maker.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

2l6

Thomas,

Smith,

Peter Wamsley.

London, 1756

Smith, W., London, 1770

About

and basses.

Henri Auguste,
kind of work as preceding.
Snceck,

Copied Amati.

Brussels,

Vincenzo,

one of

is

this

Bologna,

Same

1672.

Snueck, Mark, Brussels, i8th century.

There

Violins,

1703.

Amati arching.

Snceck, Egidius, Brussels, 1731.

Socchi,

pupil of

86.

Sneider, Guiseppe, Pavia.

violas

99.

Chiefly 'cellos.

1661.

repairer.

Pochettes.

date in the Paris Conservatoire

Museum.
SocoL, Pio, Genoa, 19th century.

Violins, violas,

'cellos.

Socquet,

common

i6th

Paris,

century.

maker

of very

violins.

SoLiANi, Angelo, Modena, 1752

1810. A fine maker,
whose instruments have an exquisite silvery tone and

considerable power.

golden, amber-coloured varnish.

Dean

Somer, Nicolas, Paris, 1749.

Guild for this year.

SoNCiNi, LuiGi, San Martino, 1831.

Sarsana, Spirito, Cuneo, 1714

Violins.

34.

Souza, Gio Guiseppe De, Lisbon.

SovERiNi, Bologna, 1883.

17th century.

Violins, violas

Stanguellini, C, Modena, 1883.

Speiler. a Tyrolese maker.

Statelmann, D., Vienna, 1730

excellently.

of the Maker's

A
50.

and basses.

repairer.

Copied Stainer

Varnish yellowish.

Statelmann,

J.

J.,

fine copier of Stainer.

Vienna.

About

1759.

Also a

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

M.

Stautinger,

W.,

Wurzburg,

217

1671.

viol

maker.

Staube, Berlin, 1775.

Stecher, Carl, 1880.

Violins and basses.

repairer.

Mantua.

Steffanini, Carlo,

Chiefly mandolines.

18th century (1790).

Steininger, Francois, Paris, 1827,

good maker

of 'cellos.

Stephannis,

Cremona,

violas

Violins,

1507.

and

basses.

Sterningre, Jacob, Mayence, 1705.

Stirrat, Edinburgh. About 1815.

Statwolf.

a German

Stauffer, Vienna.

of double basses.

i8th century.

Francesco,

Stoff,
violas

maker

repairer.

1750

Flissen,

98.

Violins,

and basses.

Stoss,

F.,

Fiissen,

1750

98.

These two

names

Stoss and Stoff appear to represent the same person.

Stoss, Prague.

Stoss,

i8th century.

End of last
Good model.
many German makers.

Bernard and Martin, Vienna.

and beginning

of the

present

Not the high tubby models

The work is also good.
Straub,

J.,

Neustadt.

century.

of so

About

1745.

Strauss, Michele, Venice, 1680.

Straut, Michele, Venice, 1686.

Pochettes.
Violins

and

Stregner, Magno, Venice, 17th century.

violas.

lute

viol

maker.

Strobl, Johann, Hallein, i8th century.

Strong,
maker.

John,

Somerset,

17th

century.

THE

2l8

FIDtoLE FANCIEr's GUIDE.

Struad, Gasper, Prague.

Also

made

About

Viol maker.

1789.

'cellos.

Sturdza, Vienna, 1873. Violins, violas and basses.

Sturge, H., Bristol and Huddersfield. 181 1 53.

SuLOT, Nicolas, Dijon, 1829

who

maker

violin

took out patents for original notions with regard to

violins

One

and basses.

of these

in the interior of the violin

reinforcing the tone.

seems to be almost

MoUenhaver some
instrument a

was

for a

second belly

and which was put

munication with the upper

is

39.

belly for

com-

in

the purpose of

This notion, propounded in 1839,

same as that proposed by

the
fifty

years later.

" violon a double

dated 5th May, 1839, and,

Sulot

The

echo."

fifty

called

his

patent

years hence,

it

may

again be resuscitated, with a few additions or alterations

in detail,

and with probably similar success.

Suover, Giovanni, Florence, 1637. A lute maker.

Tachinardi, Cremona, 1689. A maker who copied
the

Amati

style.

Tadolini, Guiseppe, Modena, 19th century.

ally of

Bologna.

Settled in

Modena

Origin-

as a repairer of

and a maker of new instruments and bows.

Carlantonio, Milan, i8th century.
ticket of his runs, " Carolus Antonius Tanegia fecit
via Lata Mediolani anni 1730."
old

Tanegia,

Taningardo, Georgio, Rome. About 1735.

Tantino, Sesto, Modena, 1461 90. A maker

A
in

to the

Court of Ferrara.

Tardieu, Tarascon, i8th century.

writer,

An

Laborde, stated that the bearer of

invented the violoncello.

He was

an

old

French

this

name

ecclesiastic,

and

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

was

his brother

khown

in Italy a

a chapel master, but as the 'cello

hundred and

Tardieu's day, this

extended

219

He

belief.

little

fifty

was

years before Father

romance has not had very

is still,

however, in some quarters,

supposed to have been a maker of

and

'cellos,

cannot

well exclude his name.

About

Tarr, Manchester.

1855.

Tartaglia, Francesco, Stroppiana, 1883.

Tassini, Bartolomeo, Venice,

common

what

1750

His

maker.

tickets

Violins.

54.

some"

run,

Opus

Bartholomaei Tassini Veneti."

Taylor,
violins,

London,

1780

1820.

Made

very

Teoditti, Giovanni, Rome, 17th century.

violas

good

but they are not very numerous.

Violins,

and basses.

Terapatini, Sant Agata Lugo, 1879.

maker

of

'cellos.

Termanini, Guiseppe, Modena, 1755. Violins.

Teslar, Giovanni, Ancona, 1622. A viol maker.

Testator,
centuries.

Vecchio,

II

This

is

Milan,

maker who,
had assigned

the

days of fiddle history,

inventing the violin.

The

notion

discarded, nothing whatever being

15th

and

i6th

in the irresponsible

to

him the

is,

at present, quite

credit of

known regarding

this

ancient.

Theress, C, London. About 1850.

Thibouville-Lamy, London, Paris, and Mirecourt.
Contemporary.
Thierriot, Prudent, Paris,

1772.

Paris Makers' Guild for this year.

Thin, M. and G., Vienna, i8th century.

Dean

of

the

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

220

GUIDE.

Thiphanon,
Paris.
About 1780 88.
Tickets
" Tiphanon, rue St. Thomas-du-Louvre, a Paris."
Thir,

Johann

George,

About

Vienna,

1791.

Chiefly mandolines.

Thomassin, Paris. From about 1825

1825, he

to

1845.

Previous

He was

worked with Clement.

a good

maker.

Thorowgood, H., London, i8th century.

Thumhardt, Munich, i8th century.
Thumhardt, Strasburg, i8th century.
TiELKE, Joachim, Hamburg, 1539 1686.

way

maker may, perhaps, be

the

for nearly a

a peerless

justifiably called

artist in his particular style.

on

In

of decorated instruments of the antique class, this

century and a

The

business

half,

and any one who has

was

carried

seen the beautiful Kensington lute by this maker will

not

fail

to realise

arouses in the

work
and lovers of

the great interest which his

bosoms

of

antiquaries

artistic bric-a-brac.

TiLLEY, T., London.

About

1774.

TiRLER, Carlo, Bologna, i8th century.

maker, chiefly of guitars.

the form of inlay,
*'

His "

decorative

sometimes took

then

run as follows,

and would

Carlo Tirler, Leutar in Bologna fece."

TivoLi, AuGUSTO, Trieste, 1873

ToLBECQUE, AuGUSTE.
a

ticket "

clever

Born

Belgian musician, he

considerable distinction.

83.

Violins.

at Paris 1830.

became a

Son

'cellist

of

of

He began to make instruments

under the guidance of Claude Victor Rambaux, whose

shop opposite the Conservatiore used to be frequented

by numbers

of intelligent

amateurs and professionals.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Tolbecque had taken

first

the Conservatoire

prize at

and one can

for 'cello playing,

221

how eminently

realize

was in that direction, to begin with. After

he made some new instruments he turned his attention
to the reproduction of old ones, and became extremely
qualified he

clever at

His

it.

Tolbecque

fils

manuscript, runs " Ate.

ticket, in

Parigi,

fecit,

He

anno."

made

also

organs, and acquired considerable fame by reconstructing"

perfectly

Winkel's Componium, referred

by

to

Fetis.

This instrument had been purchased by an amateur of

some
it

he

mechanical

little

occupied

skill,

and

himself for

purpose.

At the end

destroyed

its identity, for

organ

builder.

there

had pretty nearly

was hardly a single piece

After his death the case

and the mechanism by another

The latter sold the mechanism to
in

eighteen

months,

restored the instrument which took

It is

collection at the Brussels Conservatoire.

work

is

completely

previous owner

its

a quarter of a century to almost ruin.

violin

now

in the

Tolbecque's

not often seen.

ToMASi, Carlo Gaspare, Modena, 17th century.

viol

maker

no

one,

who,

Tolbecque,

to

of that time he

that did not defy recognition.

was bought by

repair

in his efforts to

twenty-five years

chiefly.

Fine varnish.

Toppani, Angelo de, Rome.

About

1740.

arched instruments with a golden yellow varnish.

Highly
Style

of Tecchler.

Violas and 'cellos.

Violins, violas and basses.
ToRRANUs, Turin, 1700.
Born 1802. Died
Crespano.
Torresan, Antonio,

Torelli, Verona, 1625.

1872.

Instruments of a

common

type.

THE FIDDLK FANCIER

222

GUIDE.

ToRRiNG, London.

Rome,

ToRTOBELLO,

violas

Violins,

1680.

and

basses.

TouLY, Jean, Nancy.

Trapani, Raffaele,

Made

century.

About

1747.

Naples.

Beginning

instruments of a large

of

size,

19th

and of

rather curious style, the top and bottom portions of the

>sound holes not being cut

Thick reddish

through.

Model flat, and coarse purfling.

Trevillot, Claude, Mirecourt. About 1698.

brown

varnish.

An

old violin maker.

Giovanni,

Trinelli,

Viols and

centuries.

Villalunga,

i8th

and

19th

'cellos.

Troiani, Francesco, Rome,

19th century.

Violins,

and basses.
Trunco, Cremona, 1660.

violas

About 1734.
S. J.
Turner, William, London. About 1650. A very
fine viol maker who had his place of business in Gravel
Lane, E.C. An instrument by this maker is described
Trusk,

as superb.

The

It is in

the collection of A. Gautier of Nice.

English work

highly creditable representative of

runs as follows, " William Turner, at

ye hand and

crown

ticket of this

London,

in

gravelle lane

was

neere aldgate,

Turner who
name under the button of his violins
and who was of a much later date.
His work is in no
way to be compared with that of William Turner of

stamped

1650."

There

another

his

"gravelle lane."

Tywersus, Mirecourt, i6th century.

This was a

court maker in Lorraine, some of whose Princes are

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

That

said to have been his patrons.

to be

all

223

tradition appears

that remains of him.

Udene, Natale

da,

Udine.

Violins, violas,

and

basses.

Ugar, Crescenzio, Rome, 1790. A viol maker.

Ugar, Pietro, Arezzo. About 1802. A repairer.
Ulrich-Fichtle, Johann, Mittenwald, i8th century.

and basses.
Ungarini, Antonio, Fabriano, 1762.
Unverdorben, Marx, Venice, 1415.

Violins

viol

An

maker.

old

lute

1877.

An

maker.
Vaillot.

French maker

Valentine, W.,

London.

of 17th century.

Died

about

excellent maker of double basses.

Valenzano, Naples. A violin maker.
Valdastri, Modena. About 1805. Pochettes.
Valler, Marseilles, 1683.
Vandelli, Giovanni, Fiorano Modena. Born 1796.
Died 1839. Violins and basses.
Vanderlist, Paris, i8th century. This maker was
apparently an excellent workman, judging by a copy of
He marked
the Guadagnini School which he made.
his instruments under the button by branding his name,
and placing inside a ticket, "Vanderlist, Luthier, rue
des Vieux Augustins, pres de I'egout de la rue Mont-

martre, Paris."

Vanvaelbeck, Louis, Valbeke, 1294 1312. A maker

and viols. This maker is within measurable
He is supposed to
distance of being the oldest known.
have been the inventor of the mechanism for organ

of rebecs

pedals.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

224

Varotti, Giovanni, Bologna,

and

Violins

1813.

basses.

Vauchel,
Vantrim.

Damm.

Modern.

French maker of double basses of the

19th century.

Vecchi, Orazio, Modena, 19th century.

maker

of

small-sized double basses.

About 1534.

Venere, Undelio, Padua.

lute

maker.

Ventura, Anibale, Viadana, i8th century. Violins.

Venzi, Andrea, Florence, 1636. Violins and basses.
Verbeeck, Gisbert, Amsterdam, 1671. Violins.
Verini, Serafino, Arceto. Born 1799. Died 1868.
A sort of amateur maker of 'cellos and double basses,
not

much above

ultimately

became

the

common

a bee farmer.

class

He

work.

of

He was

a bee fancier

all his life.

Verle, Francesco, Padua, 17th century.

Vermesch,

Beaumont sur

This maker was

Vermesch.

called,

He was

maker, and not very

Oise.

and called

Violins.

About
himself,

1781.
le

pere

an ecclesiastical amateur fiddle

skilled.

Veron, Pierre Andre,

of the times of Boquay.

Paris, i8th century.

Veronesi, Camillo, Bologna, 19th century.

Verrebrugen, Theodore, Antwerp,

1641.

maker

Violins.

maker

of double basses.

Vetter, Johann Christopher, Strasburg,

maker of 'cellos and other basses.
Vettrini, Brescia.
ViARD, Nicolas, Versailles.

About

1760.

1744.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

GiSBERT, Amsterdam, 1700

same maker as " Verbeeck."

ViBRECHT,

may

be the

225

10.

This

ViGONi, A., Pavia, 19th century.

Violins.

ViLLAUME and Giron, Troyes.

Beginning of i8th

century.

Work

fairly good.

ViMERCATf, PiETRO, Brcscia.

About 1660.

ViMERCATi, Gasparo, Milan.

A maker

probably also violins.

nella contrada della

Dogana

di Milano."

Vinaccia, Naples, 1736 to 19th century.

family of

Antonio, Mariano, Pasqualino, and

four in succession.

a son of the latter.

and guitars.
Died 1881.
Born 1765.
Well made instruments.

All chiefly lutes

ViNCENZi, LuiGi, Carpi.

Violins and double basses.

Varnish of a

of mandolines,

Ticket runs, " Gaspare Vimercati

light

amber

Tickets " Aloysius

colour.

Vincenzi Carpensis."

Vinzer, Gregory Ferdinand, Augusta.

About 1737.

and basses.
ViR, HiERONiMO Di, Brescia.

Violins, violas

About 1642. Violins.

famous luthier but

VivoLi, Giovanni, Florence.

VoBOAM,

Paris, 1682

chiefly decorative.
vatoire, there

is

1693.

In the

-^

museum

a beautiful

of the Paris Conser-

guitar

by him made

of

tortoiseshell.

VoEL,

Good

E.,

Maintz.

About

1840.

fine

maker.

Stradivari model and varnish.

VoGEL, Wolfgang, Nuremberg.

Died 1650.
VoGLER, J. G., Wurtzburg, 1750.
Volpe, Marco, Spilamberto. Died 1839. He made
viols, violins and double basses.
VoiGT, Martin, Hamburg. About 1726. Viols and

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

226

Same

lutes.

beautiful

class of

work as

that

of

the

Tielke firm.

Wachfer, Anthony, Fiissen. About 1772.

Wafele, Conrad, Mittenwald, 17th. century.
Wagner, C. S., Medingen, 1786 1800.

Violins.

Violins,

violas, bashes, etc.

Wagner, Benedict, Estwangen.

calls himself in his tickets a

About

court maker.

.1769.

His

.He

instru-

ments are very highly arched and of common work.

Wagner, J., Constance. About 1773.

Waldaner, Fiissen, i8th century.

Walker, A., Aberdeenshire. Modern.
Walther, Jean Baptist, The Hague, 1727.
Weaver, S., London, i8th century.

Weber, Prague,

Violins.

i8th century.

Weigert, J. B., Linz. About 1721. A small viol

by this maker is in the collection of the Musical Society,
Vienna,

Weiss, Jacob, Salzburg.

Weisz, Jacob, Salzburg.

About 1733.
About 1733

These two are evidently the same.

above date,

1733, runs,

Geigenmacher

in

1777.
A

ticket with

"Jacob Weisz, lauthen und

Salzburgh."

Wettengel, G. a., Neukirchen. About 1828. He

is a maker who published a book about repairing and
making, but his own instruments are not much, if at all,
known.

Wenger, G. F., Salzburg, 1761. Violins.

Werner, Frankfort, 1855. Chiefly a lute maker.
Wey, H., Besancon. 19th century. An amateur
violin

maker.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

Wyemann, Cornelius, Amsterdam.

227

and 18th

17th

century.

WiGHTMAN, London, 1761.

Wilde, John, St. Petersburg.
maker

This

i8th century.

making

by

himself

distinguished

an

iron

fiddle.

WiLLE-MS, Antwerp, 1730

60.

violin

maker who

followed- the Italian school.

WiLLER, Prague.

18th century.

Woldemar, Michel.
Died

at

with

five strings, or, at

Born

in

Clermont-Ferrand 1816.

any

rate,

Orleans

He

in

1750.

invented a violin

suggested the notion

which was never, probably, carried into practice.

was

It

the reverse of Jullien's five stringed fiddle, being

intended to have a

above E, as was

Jullien's

string (below G), instead of one

Woldemar was

idea.

violinist.

WoLTERS,
viol

J.

About 1749.

N., Paris.

decorative

maker.

Wood, G.

F.,

careful maker,

London.

who has

of the characteristics

Contemporary.

decidedly

caught, very felicitously,

of

the

kinds of

finer

many

modern

French work.

WoRNFE, George, Mittenwald,

WoRNUM, London,

1786.

1794.

Wright, Daniel, London, 1743.

Young, J., Aberdeen. Modern.
Younge, John, London. About
was famous in his day. He had
violinist,

Violins.

and both have been made,

1728.

son

This maker

who was

in a sense,

immortal

by the English composer, Purcell, who has put them

Q2

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

228

into one of his catches.

his valuable

Zabel,
VioHns,

quoted by Mr. Hart

1792

in

1803.

etc.

Zach, Vienna.

and

It is

work on the violin.

Tausermunde,
Geoffry,
Contemporary.

very clever maker

restorer.

Zanabon.

An

maker.

Italian

Born 1756 1822.

A
maker of considerable merit. He made violins, tenors
and basses, and generally employed a clear yellow
varnish.
He was one of those handy men who manage
For
to combine one or two separate professions.
example Zanfi was a government servant, and he was a
music teacher. His instruments are in the style of
Casini another Modenese already mentioned and how
he succeeded in teaching music, making double basses,
'cellos, violas and violins, while, at the same time not
Zanfi,

Giacomo, Modena.

neglecting his

now

to

official

enquire.

One

duties,
ticket

it is

hardly worth while

runs

"Jacobus

Zanfi,

musical professor fecit Mutinoe, iSog."

Zani, Francesco, Reggio-Emilio,i765.

Zanoli, Giacomo, Verona, 1730.

Violins.

Viols and 'cellos.

Zanoli, Guiseppe, Verona, 1730. Violas and 'cellos.

These two are probably the same.
Zanoli, Giambattista, Padua, 1740.
Zanotti, Antonio, Lodi and Mantua.
About 1727.
Zanotti, Guiseppe, Piacenza, 18th century.
Zanti, Alessandro, Mantua. About 1765 70. An

imitator of P. Guarnerius.

Zanure, Pietro, Brescia, 1509. A viol by this maker,

and exhibited in London in 1872, bore this date.

CLASSICAL AND POST-CLASSICAL MAKERS.

229

Zeitter, Fr., Brunswick, 1835. This maker

was a maker combined pianos with violins.
Zenatto, Pietro, Treviso. About 1634. A

if

he

ticket

bears this date.

ZiNBELMANN, FiLipPO, Florence, i66i.

Zolfanelli, Guiseppe, Florence, 1690

ZwERGER,
fairly

Anthony,

good maker.

Mittenwald,

viol

maker.

97.
1750 60.

Varnish of a cold, weak-looking

brown, but in other respects, nice violins of their type.

CHAPTER

VIOLIN
kind

bow making has come to be such

of work that it is now quite

Ever since the days

industry.

importance of a

fine

the

of

bow has been

Tourtes in the world are

make, but

special

the

increasingly recog-

now

in

The two

America, and

about a hundred and forty pounds.

cost, together,

may seem

Tourtes

beyond the reach of ordinary players.

finest

a delicate

day the better Tourtes are

nized, until, in the present

quite

Vll.

That

a somewhat bold and startling statement to

it is

One

quite correct.

have been acquainted with

having frequently played

for

with

of these

two bows

considerable

and

it,

experienced a slight feeling of regret

confess

when

it

time,
I

was sent

It was not that I grudged it to our

had become familiar with the lovely thing

across the Atlantic.

kinsmen, but

in its exquisite furniture of Oriental

pearls, sapphire,

and all the rest of it in the shape of jewellery. These

were merely tasteful bagatelles, having, of course, their
decorative value, but the stick was so superb a specimen
of

Tourte's

skill

and judgment, and

splendid condition, that

see

it,

felt

in

such

should probably never

again, unless I happened to be visiting

and had an opportunity of seeing it there.
once our American friends get hold of these

or

its like

the States,

When

was

VIOLIN

BOW MAKERS.

perfect things, they usually keep

other grand Tourte stick

and

also in America.

is

was made

23I

them

Larochefoucauld,

for

There are many very

and on the Continent, and

in this country,

The

steadily.

fine

ones

their prices,

according to style and condition, run as high as forty

pounds.

Under twenty pounds they

having.

great deal of

Lupot

Tourte and

nonsense

regard

in

sticks,

not

worth

written

about

are

is

which the

to

connoisseur amateur should be on his guard.

chiefly

and are not acquainted with

Tourtes,
value,

comes

current

their

information being drawn from published

their

and perhaps

sources, ten, fifteen, twenty,

One

It

from the pens of those who have not seen any

result of this writing

is,

that

fifty

years old.

when an amateur

finds he is offered a genuine Tourte at ten or twelve

pounds,

does not strike him that there

it

is

anything

and he expects to have a

first-class stick for the money.
Two or three years ago
a v-ery good Tourte might have been had for twentyabnormally low in the

five

pounds, but not now.

stick indeed
in

figure,

a year or

two more they

neighbours say,

The

difference
is

will

be a very ordinary

will, at present,

will

buy, and

be almost,

as

our

introuvable.

other good makers will be referred to in their

places, but

bows

It

which that money

would

between a

like to

fine

say here that although the

Tourte and the

quite measurable,

it

is

finest of

need alarm any but the very highest class of

Even among them

exist without

there are individuals

a Tourte, and

play with a modern bow.

modern

not a difference which

many

artistes.

who manage

to

by preference,
Fiddle fanciers, and bow
w^ho,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

232

do

fanciers, should

their best to

S GUIDE.

keep level-headed, and

not allow themselves to be driven from the exercise of

own judgments.

their

If

they are not in a position to

them go to one who knows. Someby a leading player quite unintenHe may have dropped some
tionally on his part.
remark, either in pubHc or private, which is immediately
He
seized, and made the basis of almost a revolution.
round
stick,
Tourtes
one
a
may be trying together two
form' a decision,

times

di

let

fashion is set

He

the other an octagon.

Immediately

happens.
the circle

of

his

all

seek

influence

octagons for rounds.

prefers the

round, as

it

the owners of Tourtes within

Then

is

to

exchange

their

the opportunity for the

bargain hunter, and a beginning of the season of regrets.

It

so happens that a fashion has set in for the round

stick,

but the lovely Tourte to which

referred

is

an octagon.

Almost

all

stick

can be got

octagon, but

bow

have already

much more easily

for much less money than an
the latter, when well worked, is a delightful
Finally, let me say that unless you can get

round, they are

round

modern bows are

made, and a fine

to use.

a good example of the older makers, leave them for the

cabinets of collectors

that

is,

if

your object

is

bow

to play with.

Adams, Jean, Mirecourt, i8th century.

Adam, Jean Dominque. Born Mirecourt 1795. Died
Son of preceding. His father taught him his
1864.
business.
A great many of his bows are very ordinary,
but those marked with his name, Adam, are sometimes
good, and his octagon sticks are the best.
Baroux, Paris.

About

1830.

fairly

good maker.

BOW MAKERS.

VIOLIN

Bausch and Son,

233

About

Leipsic or Dessau.

1840.

Fairly good bows.

They are highly esteemed in
Germany.
Braglia, Antonio, Modena. About 1800.
DoDD, E., Sheffield and London, 1705 1810. Not
many of this maker of great importance.
DoDD, James, London. About 1864. I do not know

these bows.

DoDD, John, Kew. Born 1752. Died 1839. This

was the greatest of English bow makers.
He passed
his life in struggles, and died in Richmond Workhouse.
Dr. Selle, of Richmond, was very kind to him many a
time, and so was Mr. Richard Piatt, of that place.

perfect " John

Dodd

"

bow

is

an exquisite piece of

work, but of proper length, and in good condition, they

by no means common. The great majority of them

worn out at the nut, or otherwise destroyed.
People seem to have experimented with not a few of
suppose their
them by thinning down the stick.
I
originally graceful proportions had awakened in some
persons what they recognized as their artistic sense, and
they proceeded to make them still more slender. Of
course these are quite destroyed, and not worth buying
are

are either

at

except as

all,

Tourte.

have

his

all

that remains of

They are generally quite dark

name "DODD" stamped on the

on the side of the nut.

or

many

of them,

so that the

All the

good

have been re-mounted

name may

and that

is

in colour,

and

and

also

stick,

sticks,

however,

in various

only be seen on the stick.

are usually slender, and very light.

short,

"
the " English

Many

a decided disadvantage.

of

ways,

They

them are

"^HE FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE.

234

DoDD, Thomas, London, 1786 1823. He was a bow

maker only in the sense in which he was a violin maker.

He

employed other people to make

About 1820.
bows are exceptional in

EuRY, Paris.
of his

name under
nut

A very fine
quality.

maker.

Some

He stamped

his

the whipping, or thread covering above the

but not

always.

FoNCLOusE, Joseph,

He

for him.

Born

Paris.

1800.

Died 1865.

learned bowmaking with Pajeot in Mirecourt, and

afterwards went to Paris, where he was employed by

B. Vuillaume.
usually

marked

He
his

J.

afterwards started for himself, and

He was

a fine

Paris.

Contemporary.

This

their

bows, which are of

fine

name on

his

bows.

maker.

Gand and Bernardel,

firm stamp their name on
quality.

Harmand, Mirecourt, 1830 40.

Henry, Mirecourt. Born 1812. After learning in his
native town, and working there for some time, he went to
Paris when he was twenty-five years of age.
He was
employed first by Chanot, then by Peccate, and latterly
was partner with Simon. The last arrangement endured
from 1848 to '51. He then commenced to work alone,
and died in 1870. He was also a fine workman, and
sometimes marked his bows " Henry, Paris."
Kittel,

St. Petersburg, 19th century.

This maker's

t>ows are about as nearly equal to Tourte's as those of

any maker that has lived since his day.

many of them to be found here.
Knopf, Heinrich, Berlin, 1882.
Knopf, Ludwig, Berlin, 1882.

There are not

BOW MAKERS.

VIOLIN

Lafleur, Jacques.

Born

at

255

Nancy

Died

1760.

in

This maker's bows have the reputation on

Paris 1832.

the continent of being quite equal to Tourtes, which

may be

some

quite justified in

cases.

Lafleur, Joseph Rene, Paris. Born 1812,

Son of preceding, and a very good maker.
1874.

Died

Alfred Joseph. Born at Mirecourt 1850.

He learnt when very young between thirteen and
Lamy,

and

worked with the firm of Gautrot at

Chateau-Fleurry. In 1877 he went to Paris to F. N.
Voirin, and remained with him for eight years.
Voirin
then died, and Lamy started on his own account. He
is also a good maker.
LuPOT, Francois. Born at Orleans in 1774. Died
fourteen

This maker, in his

in Paris 1837.

finest efforts, stands

He was

next to Francois Tourte.

the brother of the

famous Nicolas Lupot, but did not make anything but

bows.
of

He made

the

which

nut,
is

a great

is

to the

ebony where

it

groove

slides over the

This prevents the wear of the ebony.

quite ordinary.
" Lupot,"

cannot say.

fine indeed,

great

many

of

while others are

them are stamped

but whether he did that himself or not

I

am

inclined to think

him by dealers afterwards.

by Lupot.
Tourte. At any

It is

rate,

it

in

every case

sometimes much easier

whenever

about the quality of the

has been done for

by no means an easy

It is

matter to make absolutely sure

is

mechanism

considerable diversity in the quality of Lupot's

bows, some being very

bow

in the

being the inventor of the metal

cemented

slot in the stick.

There

improvement

there

any doubt

is

stick, as a stick,

when

to tell a

it

is

safe to

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

236
reject

it.

They

are generally

strong,

dark coloured

sticks, and not quite so light as Tourtes, but

them

in

grey wood

have seen

also.

Maire, Nicolas.

Born

in

Mirecourt.

pupil of

Jacques Lafleur, afterwards went to Paris.

MiQUELi Emile, Mirecourt. Contemporary.
Pajeot.

40.

Mirecourt, 1830

This maker taught

who became one of Vuillaume's

Joseph Fonclouse,

best

men.
Modern. Made
Panormo, George Louis, London.
some very good bows, more especially double bass sticks.
Peccate, Dominique. Born at Mirecourt 1810. Son

of a barber, he forsook his father's calling for that of

and bow making. In the latter he became expert,

and in 1826 J, B. Vuillaume heard of him as a clever
fiddle

apprentice on the look out for a master.

employed him and he soon

justified

Vuillaume

his choice.

He

remained there eleven years, and then took over the

business of Fran9ois Lupot who had just died.
In 1847
he went back to Mirecourt, but continued his connection.

He

^^ was

died in 1874.

a splendid maker.

Peccate, Jeune, Paris. A brother of Dominique.

He also worked for Vuillaume. He died about 1856.
His work is finely finished and the wood good, but the
sticks are heavy,

and lack balance.

Pellegri, Parma.
Persoit,

Paris,

workmen whom

J.

19th century.

1823

41.

One

of

those

skilled

B. Vuillaume succeeded in securing.

Those which he made for the great luthier were of course

marked Vuillaume, but those he sold for himself were
marked P. R. S.

BOW MAKERS.

VIOLIN

237

PuPiNAT, Padre, Lausanne, 1855,

Rakowsch,

a., Paris, 1834.

RoNCHiNi, Rafaello, Fano, 19th century.

Schwartz, George Friedrich, Strasburg.

Born
Died 1849. A good maker. Marked his work

1785.

" Schwartz, Strasbourg."

Born

Simon.

Peccate

in

Vuillaume
himself,

at Mirecourt, 1808.

Went

Paris for a short time in

for

seven years.

and two years

later

to

Dominique

1838,

In 1845,

then to

he began for

succeeded to Peccate's Paris

Henry for three

know little of this

shop, and entered into partnership with

years.

In 1851, he

was again

alone.

maker's work, having only seen one or two specimens.

These were

fairly

good

sticks.

About 1818.
Tadolini, Ignazio, Modena, 19th century. He made
violin and violoncello bows, and originally hailed from
Bologna. He and his brother Guiseppe were established
in Modena as instrument makers, the latter being as
well a distinguished double bass and 'cello player at
the Modenese Court.
Ignatius, the bow maker, was
Sirjean, Paris.

born in 1797, and died in 1873.

TouRNATORis, Paris, i8th century. Died 181 3.
Tourte, Savere (called " Tourte-l'aine," the elder)
Paris.

Tourte,

Francois

(called

" Tourte

jeune,"

the

Born 1747. Died 1835.

The latter of these two artistes is universally recognised as the finest bow maker that ever lived.
I think
younger), Paris.

this

must be admitted. One or two of his own comand according to report, such a maker as

patriots,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

238

Kittel, of St. Petersburg,

run him

now and

again very

John Dodd of Kew, in the matters

of slender elegance, and lightness of stick, occasionally
But elegant slenderness and
actually surpasses him.
lightness are not the only things wanted in a bow, they
close indeed, while

When I was quite a lad

whom I knew, wishing to
offered to improve my own bow, which,

are not even the chief things,.

a very artistic cabinet maker

do

me

he'

pointed out, was not elegantly finished.

a service,

with pleasure, and when

was elegant and

light

a feather in

my hand,

my

and besides,

strings,

but

was

it

its

consented

had it returned,
beyond conception.
I

it

certainly

It

was

like

also like a feather on

back was gone, as

flexible

almost as the top of a fishing rod. Thinness and lightness

when they are accompanied by strength

and balance. Strength, elasticity and balance are really
The strength of a stick is
the main points in a bow.
determined by the regular manner in which, and the limit
to which, its tapering is produced. Of course, the wood
are only tolerable

must be

of proper quality to begin with, but there should

be no weak place, none unduly weak, in the whole length.

In some bows of ordinary make, the strength in the back
is

obtained by keeping a certain thickness after a time,

well on towards the end,

thin to finish with.

enough probably, and

knew

it

would be

balanced bow.

and then suddenly dropping

stick like that

will not

tested, but

certain

it

yield

will not

addition

strength of the stick by the cambre, that

backwards.

If this cambre is

will

where

be strong
its

maker

be a properly

is
is,

made

to

the

the bending

properly done, the line of

pull will almost coincide with a symetrical axis.

That

BOW MAKERS.

VIOLIN

is,

of course, an exaggeration, but

23^:

may

it

which

stick is that equipoise

gradations in
holds

it

does

there

not

so

weight

sufficient

That

fall.

by the
the

at

as concerns balance, but

strength and cambre of a

end

thin

the player

in

appear

his

hand,

be

quite

to

cause

to

bow

to

it

so

far

success will largely depend

its

One way

on the player's sense of weight.

two

end

rough way of trying a

is

to

when

that

thicker

speak

how

balance of

secured by the regular

is

thinning, so

its

lightly

indicate

The

the cambre aids the strength of a stick.

bow

to screw

is

and

until the hair is straightened out,

of testing the

it

up a turn or

is

just free of

Then press the thumb on the hair at the

nut as far down as it will go, watching in the meantime the movement of the stick from beyond the middle
the stick.

to the end.

If

to either side,

however,
yield to

it

is
if

is

it

not likely to

pretty severe

the hair

is

is to screw the hair up

backward curve, and watch
is the fairer

bows

best

will,

way

test,

and any

stick

until the stick has lost its

if it

gives to either side-

to judge an ordinary bow.

however,

all

stand the former

Besides the ordinary backward curve, a maker

knows

will

Another

sufficiently tightened.

way

This

much, or goes out

be a good bow. This,

loses the curve very

it

left,

test.

who

That

his business gives a little side as well.

he slightly cambres the stick to the

The

is,

looking from the

nut outwards, so as to resist the tendancy to the right,

which proper
finely

bowing always

tempered

bows, this

gives.

should

In

examining

be remembered,

otherwise a very knowing person might fancy a stick

was

just a little

off the

straight.

The next

point

is

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

240

Too much

elasticity.

bow

a very good

responsible for

cane which

is

is

It is

it.

makes
But
the wood is

a nuisance, and

powerless.

respects,

be some, and the quaHty of

there must

ticity,

of that

in other

not the flexibiHty of a piece of

required, but the firm, yet responsive elas-

which, to a certain extent, guarantees a pure and

even tone. All these points were splendidly illustrated by

Fran9ois Tourte, and, in some
brother.
I

am

by

degree,

slight

his

have never seen a bow by Tourte pere, and

beginning to think there was no such person

employed

published by Fetis

Vuillaume

but

The name was

business.

this

in

on

suppose,

first

the authority of

do not know of any other source from

The bows

whence the information comes.

of Tourte

aine have rather quaint-looking, small heads, not unlike

the profile of the bell of a trumpet, but having the top
line of the

head a

little

head of a Fran9ois Tourte has a much

the

same

Some
wood

kind, but infinitely

of the finest

called

looking.

The

The

shorter than the under line.

fuller outline

more graceful and

of

artistic.

Tourtes are of a lightish coloured

grey Pernambuco, which

is

very rich

majority are darker.

The Tourtes never marked any

two instances, Frangois Tourte
the slot a very diminutive

is

little

inscription to the effect that he

of their sticks, but in

said to have glued into

ticket containing an

made

the article.

From

one of these inscriptions the date of his birth has been

deduced.

It runs,

" Cet archet a ete fait par Tourte en

1824, age de soixante-dix-sept-ans."

made by Tourte

in

1824, aged

(This

bow was

seventy-seven years).

F. Tourte invented the ferrule for keeping the hair

flat.

VIOLIN

and applied the

BOW MAKERS.

24I

tortoiseshell slip to the nut for

keeping

it

concealed at that part.

London.

TuBBS,

much

makers,

known family

well

work

whose

of

is

of

of

bow

excellent

quality.

ViGNERON, A., Paris. Contempory. A fine maker.

Born at MireVoiRiN, Nicolas Francois, Paris.
Died in Paris 1885. He was taught his
court 1833.
business in his native town, and afterwards went to

Vuillaume

in 1855,

where he remained

during which time he

of the finest

made probably

for fifteen years,

the great majority

bows which bear Vuillaume's name.

In

Vuillaume's show case in the Paris Exhibition of 1867,

name appeared

Voirin's

as a

workman

in bows,

received honourable mention on that occasion.

years afterwards

Almost

all his

deserves
sticks

all

work
the

both violin

works of

art,

he

on

started
is

of a very high

praise

and

his

it

'cello

technically

has got.

are

and

own

and he
Three

account.

character,

Some

of

and
his

really quite beautiful

decoratively,

and,

of

course, there are a flood of sticks in the market, bearing

the stamp " N. F. Voirin a Paris," and which have

been made since his death.

all

His own heads are strong

and beautifully finished.

He was stricken down by apoplexy on the 4th June,
1885, while he was carrying a bow home to an amateur.
The occurrence happened as he was passing along the
Faubourg Montmartre, and the bystanders seeing "N.
F. Voirin. Bouloi 3 " on the paper case in which the

bow was, concluded to take him there.

So he was
carried home dying to his wife.
He did not rally from

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

242

same evening between nine and

the stroke and died the

His widow carried on the business.

ten.

VuiLLAUME,

man was

J.

If this distinguished crafts-

B., Paris.

bow maker except in the sense

make, and may have made a few, in his

not himself a

that he could

day

GUIDE.

he

certainly

was instrumental

in

keeping before

This was

others the grand qualities of Fran9ois Tourte.

a great service.

He knew

Tourte

well, and,

on his own

admission, frequently watched him at his work.

all

one or more competent

and

it

will

bow makers

was made by one

already referred
period,

or

to.

when he was

to

his time he

From

Simon and

a kind of

was always

well

Persoit, Fonclouse, Peccate,

Voirin, themselves cover the whole time.

invented a steel tubular

which was

was famous,

clever

the earliest date of his

the time of his death he

artistes to

employment,

bow hands
own
managing man to Lete,

other of the

supplied in that respect.

He

in his

be safe to say that almost every one of those

beautiful sticks for which in

down

During

however, he never was without

his business career,

bow which he induced some

employ, and he also invented the fixed nut

to secure that

a player will also always have

the same length of hair to use.

sight to suppose that

It

was a curious

over-

because the nut changes position

in tightening or relaxing, the length

of hair available

was, in consequence, variable.

chief

Its

advantage

hand could always hold the bow in

exactly the same place.
However, both of these
inventions were discontinued. Vuillaume stamped his
name on all the bows which he sold as his own make,
and, of course, there are thousands of bows so stamped

was that the

VIOLIN

at present,

which are not genuine.

ticularly well liked

almost
years,

all his

which

among

243

He was

the " trade "

in

woi-kmen remained with him

is

fairly

considerate employer.*

R2

BOW MAKERS.

not par-

Paris, but
for

many

good evidence that he was a

CHAPTER

VIII,

WioiinxBiB.

As crowded

the face of the heavens on a clear night seems

with stars, so

the vista

of

musical

with the more or less lustrous

history appears filled

presences of individual artistes whose combined radiance

lights

up the past

for those

who have a deep interest* in

They are quite as

the record of their achievements.

numerous as the fixed

equal magnitude.

stars, but, like

them, not

all

of

shall include in these brief bio-

graphical notices the more important of the performers

known from
to
it

do

early times,

and

it

this in chronological order

will

be more interesting

than

it

would be

to

do

alphabetically.

There were, no doubt, performers on the violin who

played pieces " all by themselves " long before the time
of the publication of the

first

known

solo for the instru-

ment, but nothing definite can be said about them as

yet,

and

will therefore

begin with the author of that

remarkable " piece."

BIAGIO MARINI.

This artiste was born

sixteenth century.

in Brescia

about the end of the

Date information

of that kind

is

provokingly vague, but nothing more precise with regard

him can be given. It might have been in any year

between 1560 and 1600, and there may come a time
when, if more definite information is* not available, some
to

VIOLINISTS.

245

was

to say he

irresponsible writer will feel disposed

That time has not yet arrived, and we

two incidents of his career, and that
he died in 1660 at Padua. He was chapel master first
in Brescia, then in Vincenza, and subsequently seems to
have had some kind of appointment either in Venice or
He was a distinguished violinist,
the neighbourhood.
without doubt, and issued three separate musical
publications which are at present known.
Other two
he appears to have printed and published, but they are
born in 1580.

only

know one

or

The

n6t known.

and
music which

violin

solo

alluded to

quite an attractive

Romanesca,

is

of

is still

is

and

called

La

original piece

played at odd moments.

Marini

enjoyed court favour, visited Germany, and was

made

a Knight.

GIAMBATTISTA FONTANA.
This player seems to have been
Brescia, although that

is

writer

at

of the violin sonata form.

died

in

was the inventor

or,

Padua, and

published for the

first

a native

also

not an ascertained fact.

is

his

least,

the earliest

He

works

known

appears to have

were

time in 1641.

of

He

collected

He

is

and

described

by contemporary eulogium as a distinguished player and

composer.

TOMASO-ANTONIO VITALI.
This distinguished player was, according to report,
born

in

century.

Bologna

He

in

certainly

the middle

was

alive

of

the

seventeenth

and active on the 19th

October, 1685, for on that date he signed a petition to

his patron,

begging him to send someone to overhaul

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

246

two swindlers who had

"
a " Franceco Rugerius

as a " Nicolas Amati." " Other times," as the

violin,

French

say,

but

the

played.

The beautiful
name famous, is still

same ways.

made
He was

Chaconne which has

often

him

sold

Vitali's

by the

patonised

Court of

Modena.
HEINRICH,

suppose

F.,

J.

this great

VON BIBER.
should be

artiste

called

At any rate, he was born on the Bohemian

Wartenburg, somewhere between 1638 and

Bohemian.
frontier,

1650.

It

has not been found possible to specify the

He was

time of his birth within closer limits.

a famous

player in his day, a favourite composer, and one

had

his share in

his

death has not

Fetis gives

it

modelling the sonata.

been

ascertained

as in 1698, which

is

date of

with certainty.

wrong, a document

bearing Biber's signature, and of date

been discovered.

The

who

1704,

having

Another positive statement makes

his death occur in 1710, but

no authentic record of

it,

or

He was much

other specific indication has been seen.

favoured by several courts, having been ennobled by

Leopold

Dukes

treated with distinction by two

and appointed by the Bishop of

at Vienna,

I.

of Bavaria,

Salzburg to an important
Italy,

office.

He

travelled through

France, and Germany, arousing great enthusiasm

wherever he went.
violin music.

He

published two or three sets of

First, a set of six sonatas,

second, a set

of twelve, third, a set of pieces with seven real parts,

called Harmonica Artificiosa,

Salzburg.

and two

His music, some of

it,

is

other works in

decidedly of a

VIOLINISTS.

247

most refined character, and of a very advanced type

for his day.

GIOVANNI BATTISTA LULLI.

This distinguished

was born

violinist

His parentage

about 1633.

Florence

in

was

not clear, but he

is

taught the guitar by an old

Franciscan.

When

he

quite a childa member of the French

was very young

royal family

who happened

to

be travelling

in Italy

heard him play, and as he had a commission from his

sister, Mile,

de Montpensier, to get her a page boy from

he selected this gifted lad and took him to France.

Italy,

Lulli's youthful soul

had not been assigned a very

able shrine for the antechamber of a princess and

saw him a little imp

him to the kitchen.

she

relegated

twelve

years

Lulli's love of

not, however, to be extinguished

old

she

music was

by the noise

and pans or quenched by a ilood

suit-

when

of pots

of dripping, so he

bought a cheap fiddle and by-and-by was the delight

of the kitchen,

and indeed,

of the whole livery.

One

day while he was playing, he was overheard by a

person of some importance,

who communicated with

and the result was that she procured a

him under whose instruction he made
amazing progress. The age was not a delicate one,
and he was silly enough to be misled into the performhis

mistress,

teacher

for

ance of a coarse
After

some

little

jest

which brought about

trouble he

was admitted

his dismissal.

to the King's

band, and considerably astonished them there, pleased

the

and was promoted to the leadership of a

band which very speedily surpassed the senior

King,

junior

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

248

From

one.

this

point

his

fame

is

derived from his

operas and ballets, etc., etc., and the vioHnist merges

in the composer. He entirely reformed, and considerably

advanced the character of French music and

a

honoured place

highly

composers.

He

in

the

roll

of her

holds
great

died in the greatest favour with Louis

XIV., who had covered him with honours and rewards.

He was made director of the King's music, was made a
one of the King's secretaries, etc. His death
was caused by an accident. After the recovery of the
King from an illness Lully composed a Te Deum and was
conducting it when he smashed his toe with the cane he
noble,

An

used in directing his orchestra.

in spite of varied treatment

abscess formed and

he succumbed a few months

afterwards, viz., 22nd March, 1687.

GIOVANNI BATTISTA BASSANI.

This player was born in Padua about 1657, ^^^ was

chapel master of the Cathedral in Bologna. He was
not only a violin virtuoso, but

he was also a highly

appreciated composer and orchestral conductor of his

day.

He

went to Ferrara about 1685 and became chapel

master there, while he had other distinctions of a more

honorary character conferred upon him. He is known
chiefly in violin literature as
Corelli.

It

is

the supposed teacher of

merely a statement which has passed

current without having any particular verification.

was

four years younger than Corelli.

at Ferrara.

He

He

died in 1716

CORELLI.

VIOLINISTS.

249

ARCANGELO CORELLI.
This great player was born at Fusignano on

His

February, 1653.
Corelli

and

school.

name was

i6th

Arcangelo

also

mother was Santa Raffini who died

his

just before her child

for the

father's

He was not intended

saw the light.

musical profession and was sent to Faenza to

While

however, he acquired the rudi-

there,

ments of music and kept up the study

at

Lugo, and

subsequently at Bologna, where he practised the violin

This

in regular fashion for four years.

which

circumstance

has

given rise

is

to

probably the
ancient

the

suggestion that Corelli was a pupil of Bassani.

suggestion

was seen

is, I

The

think, an absurd one.

In 1680 Corelli

Duke

of Bavaria as a

at the Court of the

famous performer who had been travelling about Gerto him as

work was published
there, and in 1685, his second.
In 1686 he was playing
the violin in the Opera band, and was chosen that year
to lead the orchestra at the fete given to Lord
Castlemain in Rome by Christina, ex-Queen of Sweden.
Here Cardinal Ottoboni saw him and took to him.

many.

In

68 1 there

is

vague reference

being in Rome, and in 1683 his

From

first

Monday

this time Corelli played at the Cardinal's

Here it was
concerts, and looked after the music.
where the famous interview between Corelli and Handel
took place,

when

of the Italian's

the latter rudely caught the fiddle out

hand

in order to

show him how

to play

something of Handel's own which happened to be on

the desks.
tale,

free

which

have no great

is, I

of history

faith in the

accuracy of the

imagine, one of those growths on the

caused

by

the

puncture

of

some

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

250

Corelli's fourth

biographical insect.
in

1694, and

concerts in

and

it

1700.

his fifth in

Rome

GUIDE.

from

all

work was pubhshed

People flocked to these

parts of the civilised world,

must have been a dreadful experience

to

the

great player when, a few years later, he visited Naples

and

found

probably
it,

orchestra

Scarlatti's

felt

as

if

he were

little

instead of a great solo player.

borne in

mind

perfect

so

It

he

that

more than a

ripieno in

must, however, be

that these stories of his failure in Naples

who was
became leader of this
very Neapolitan orchestra, but was dismissed from the
post because he could not keep correct time, and that
not long previous to the period when he says Corelli
are entirely on the authority of Geminiani,

himself a pupil of Correlli's and

failed.

There

stories,

and when they are put together they involve

is

a great deal of confusion about these

such improbabilities as to render them almost incredible.

This

visit to

Naples appears to have been made a few

years before his death,

a young

violinist

popular favourite

the

for,

named

when he returned

to

Rome,

Josefo Valentino had become,

so

it

is

said

and

that

the

circumstance so weighed on Corelli's sensitive nature

as to seriously affect his health.
for

it is

nothing more

This

last conjecture

rests on as slight a foundation as

the previous stories.

Among

the traits

of

personal

which

have been noted are mentioned

"sweetness of disposition," " parsimoniousness of habits"

character

a quite exceptionally curious combination of

not,

of course,

absolutely

but, at the least, distinctly interesting.

plain

and unassuming, and

qualities,

paradoxical or impossible,

his

His dress was

ways were simple.

On

VIOLINISTS.

251

combined with Handel's remark that

see pictures without paying for them

this circumstance,

Corelli liked to

a merely passing
to be

epigrammatic touch probably

seems
These

raised the theory of parsimoniousness.

appear

conjectures

more

be

to

penny-a-liner

like

reminiscences than anything approaching the dignity of

historical

He was

facts.

honoured musician of

the

his day,

and

greatest

and

most

lived a simple

life,

He

considerable pomp.

apparently in the midst of

composed and published some of the most noble and

beautiful music for violin and orchestra that is in

and he died

existence,

January,

There

17 13.

Pantheon

in

on the i8th of

full

of honours

monument

is

to

him

in

following inscription, " Corelli princeps

Musicorum

" Corelli

The

him

is

first

the

the form of a marble statue, bearing the

(greatest) of Musicians."

from a good print

in

my

"

portrait of

possession.

FRANCESCO GEMINIANI.
This very clever

He was

1680.

pupils, but

violinist

was born

at

Lucca about

reckoned to be the best of

all

Corelli's

he had the advantage of previously passing

through very good

hands.

He

began

his

musical

studies with Alessandro Scarlatti, and was taught the

violin by a very able man, C. A. Lunati, whose bodily

deformity interfered with his success as a public performer.

After

this

preliminary

training,

Geminiani

where he developed fine tone and style.

Naples, where Scarlatti had, at this
first
went
to
He
period, gone for the second time, and who gave him the

went

to Corelli,

appointment

of

leader

in

the

orchestra

there.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

252

GUIDE.

Geminiani's nature as a player was so uncontrollable

that he could not keep time himself, and was, therefore,

This would be between 1709 and

Here he met
to England.

useless as a leader.

1714,

when Geminiani came

with the greatest success professionally, and published

all

his works, besides editing

addition, he

published

music and musical

He made
made

it

some

and

not keep time

as rapidly as he

he was, according to

violinist's point of

view

He moved

contemporary

his " Art of Playing

is

about a

remaining there

all

buying
he could

His great work from a

testimony, a glorious player.

Violin."

it

more rapidly sometimes in

His nature was a restless one

but

for

In

books on

work on memory.

style, as well as a

plenty of money, but spent

pictures, etc.

in 1750,

of his master's.

various theoretical

little,

about

and went

on the

to Paris

five years.

Coming

back, he resumed his career with similar success, and

visited Ireland in 1761.

His

pupil,

Dubourg, was then

master of the King's band in Dublin.

He and

the old

man were

and

curious

very fond of

each other,

accident happened to the latter during this

was not without

visit.

He

and a conspiracy seems to

have been got up to rob him of the manuscript of a
Treatise on Music which he had been working on for

many

years.

against

his enemies,

Such

man

of

a heartless piece of blackguardism

eighty-two

years appears hardly

But Dubourg's son duly authenticates the

story.
A domestic servant was recommended to him by
the thieves, who were among his so-called friends and
acquaintances, and she stole the manuscript from his
bedroom, and handed it over to his enemies, who, precredible.

VIOLINISTS.

suniably, destroyed

it,

as

was never afterwards

it

man up

This cut the old

253

terribly,

broke his

seen.

and

spirit,

he died the same year, namely, on the 17th September,

1762.

PIETRO LOCATELLI.

This great

He was
a

in

was born

violinist

manner which,

as appears

in

1693.

described

of

his

as

is,

have

people have

technique far too exclusively by

Corelli's

standard

us, should

to

But the truth

astonished his master.

judged

Bergamo

in

also a pupil of Corelli, and distinguished himself

of

published
the

character, but, at the

music.

most

same

It

dignified

may

and

all

the

be

excellent

time, of comparatively great

no

simplicity.

It

gives

technique.

He

turned out far too

indication

highest character to justify us in

whatever of his

many masters of the

supposing that he knew

no more than he published.

Locatelli established him

Amsterdam, and published his famous works
called " The Labyrinth," and " The New Art of
Modulation," which set Paganini to compose his
celebrated "Twenty-Four Studies."
He also published
various other things, among them being one called
*' Harmonic
Contrasts," which establishes his reputaself

in

He

tion as a musical scholar.

till

remained

in

Amsterdam

his death in 1764.

ANTONIO VIVALDI.

distinguished performer, born in Venice about 1660.

His father was a musician

Antonio travelled about

in the
little,

Chapel of

St. Mark.
and went into the

"^"^ FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE,

254

service of the Court of Hesse-Darmstadt, but returned

to Venice in 1713,

where he died

voluminous composer

in

He was

1743.

for his instrument,

and

also ot

vocal and other instrumental music. He is the putative

author of the well-known " Cuckoo Solo," and was
called in Venice the " red priest."

FRANXESCO MARIA VERACINI.

This

was a

artiste

was born

in

He

Florence about 1685.

pupil of Antonio Veracini, his uncle.

He did

not

play in public until he was about thirty years old.

In

1714 he played in Venice, and at once took his position

In the same year he came to London,
and led the Italian Opera Band here. In 1 716 he went
back to Venice, where he was engaged by the Elector of
Saxony for his chapel in Dresden. Here he remained
for five years, when, in August, 1722, he, in a moment of
mental aberration, threw himself from his bedroom
window, and was lamed for life. When he recovered
as a virtuoso.

he

Dresden, and went to

left

Prague.

There he stayed

London about

1736.

for

Count de Kinsky
some years, returning

in

to

For ten years he remained here,

composing operas and playing, and

in 1747 retired to a
small property he had at Pisa, where he died in 1750.

He

is

credited with being the possessor of two violins,

one or both of which were said to be by Jacob Stainer,

and that he.

lost

these in a storm while crossing from

here to the Continent.

GUISEPPE TARTINI.
It

would, perhaps, be

whose memory

is

difficult

to select

a vioUnist

entitled to greater respect than that

GUISEFPE TARTINI.

VIOLINISTS.

As a musician and virtuoso combined,

of Tartini.

doubt

if

255

He

anyone has surpassed him.

is

a colossus

and grace, as Corelli was one of strength

and simplicity. He was born at Pirano in Istria on the
of refinement

He

8th April, 1692.

received the elements of a good

education in the College of the Padri Delle Scuole.

may,

in fact, be said to

He

have been very well educated,

as matters of that kind went in those days.

the beginning of 1709, he

was sent

to

Padua

About
to study

In the monastic schools in Pirano he had been

law.

taught, along with other things, music and the violin,

and although, while

seriously,

thrown
not

in

with,

he

in

Padua, he took to fencing very

apparently,

still

little

swashbucklering

kept up his violin playing.

It

has

been hinted, in any source of information with

which

am

acquainted, that Tartini ever heard Corelli

and there has not even been a suggestion of such

But it is not a very unlikely circumstance.
a thing.
We have very little information as to Corelli's travels in
the early part of his career, but we know that he was in
Germany, in Bavaria, in fact, and as the most direct
and cheapest route to that district was through the
north of Italy, and over the Brenner pass, it would
play,

almost appear certain that he took the chief towns of

Padua would, in such a

The only weighty
that
when
Corelli was seen
this
would
be
objection to
But during the
in Bavaria, Tartini was not born.
years 1701 and 1710 we have exceedingly little informaWe know he was
tion regarding Corelli's movements.
absent from Rome, and that by the time he got back, he
Northern Italy on the way.

case,

be directly

in

his

route.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

256
had,

we

somewhat out

are told, fallen

of public favour.

That leaves plenty of time for an artistic tour or two in

Italy, and also in Germany, and if he were anywhere
near Padua, we may be pretty certain Tartini went to
hear him. In 1708 or 1769, Tartini was there, and four
years after that date he was a magnificent violinist. It
a curious coincidence that in the very year Corelli

is

had

died, 1713, Tartini

came

Devil

to

" Trillo del Diavolo."

piece of music
if

not,

his

it

is

his celebrated

no doubt,

About

daughter of

the

this

He

danger.

wandering

time he

Cardinal Cornaro,

which created a great uproar, and placed him

after

and

to all violinists,

He was then twenty-one, and earning

bread by music and fencing.

able

that the

This famous and most beautiful

familiar,

should be.

secretly married

Dream

played to him the

bedside aad

his

in consider-

and

disguised as a pilgrim,

fled

towards Rome, found

He

religious establishment in Assisi.

refuge in

remained con-

cealed here for a short time, and carried on his musical

studies with the help of an organist in the fraternity

named Boemo, and

astonished the neighbourhood by his

He was

violin playing in the services.

nised here by an old

matters

acquaintance,

were mending

in

he became reconciled to
marriage, and returned to

absent in this

sometimes
parison

definitely

dates

of

Shortly after

where

the

way from

this,

lady

one day recogtold

him that

and by-and-by
his distinguished relative by
Padua.
How long he was

his

his

favour,

home

stated as

do not
he and

had

who

is

relatives,

It is

two years, but com-

support
his

uncertain.

this

wife went

conclusion.
to

Venice,

and while there

he

VIOLINISTS.

met Veracini, and heard him

257

This

play.

is

generally

supposed to be about 1714, I presume because Veracini

was playing in Venice in that year. But I think that
date

is

wrong.

It

seems

to

have been forgotten that

Veracini was also playing in Venice in 171 6, after his

return to Italy from London, and
to

think

it

more

likely

be the date of this meeting, as the former date crowds

a great deal of incident into the

Florentine player,

of Tartini during a

life

When

very brief period of time.

he heard the great

who was only seven

years his senior, he

determined to renew his studies, and

retired

to

Ancona.

He

there

for this purpose,

made

that

famous

discovery of his which has been called the Tartini

tones,

phenomenon which has puzzled the most celebrated

acousticians for a hundred and fifty years.
Only as
recently as 1862 was the cause of them found out by
Professor Helmholz. Tartini's splendid ear enabled him
to tabulate them all correctly, with the exception of one
a

or two, which he fixed an octave higher than they really

are.

The discovery was of

the following nature.

When

any two notes were played together, he detected a third

sound in the harmony which no one has left any record of
having discovered before. He found this phenomenon
constant,
to

make

it

and made exhaustive studies

the basis of a system of

of

it,

trying

harmony which he

published in 1754, entitled a " Treatise on Music according to the

is

True Science

of

Harmony."

Any player who

may

test the thing for

not already acquainted with

it

These Tartini tones are best heard when the

player takes truly stopped major thirds and sixths, but
they are present when any two notes are played, whether

himself.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

258

They

concordant or discordant.
discriminated

when one note

many

a great
to

not

so

clearly

stopped, and the other

is

Tartini had indicated the pitch of

an open string note.

lead

are

of them,

and that was, of course, a valuable

who knew

investigator,

scientific

that

all

had fixed vibration numbers.

Still,
Professor Helmholz has the credit of having settled
the matter.
He found that the third sound was due to
the difference between the vibration numbers of the two
musical sounds

The reader who may

notes played.

not be acquainted

with this side of musical study will understand when

is

explained that every musical sound

fixed

number

from some body.

of beats on the air,

it

the result of a

is

In

the case of the fiddle these beats are produced by the

friction of the

bow on

string throbs

and communicates

bridge,

the string in the

which transmits

From that

passes by

it

to the

this

it

way

of

first

place.

The

throbbing to the

upper table or

sound post and

belly.

ribs

to

the back, and the whole fiddle throbs on the air inside,

and so the original weak sound of the string is reinforced

and strengthened until it comes out through the sound
holes of the loudness which
is

at the

note has

same
its

own

hear.

rate of throbbing.

notes, such as treble C,

To make

we

rate so long as one note

All the throbbing

is

played.

Each

Let us take any two

and the major

third

above

it,

E.

the pitch of treble C, 512 throbs in a second

640 throbs in a second are required.

E above
Now when

two notes are

a third sound

are required, and to

make

the pitch of

truly played together,

heard along with the other two notes.

in this case, as the C, but

It

is

two octaves lower.

that,

these
is

the same,

Helmholz

VIOLINISTS.

259

discovered that this low C was produced by 128 throbs,

and the difference between 512 and 640 is 128.
Throughout the whole scale of musical sounds whenever

two notes are played together they seem

third sound, very weak, of course, but

which the difference

to generate a

which

is

always

numbers
would naturally produce. From this circumstance these
tones are now called by scientists the " difference tones,"
but they have always hitherto been known as the
that

They

" Tartini tones."

but that

is

not correct.

of the vibration

are sometimes called harmonics,

A harmonic

is

generated by one

third sounds are generated

string, while these

by the

simultaneous vibrations of two strings.

When
went
years.

was twenty-nine he became

Tartini

an orchestra

in

director of

Padua, and when he was thirty-one he

Prague, and remained there for over three

to

He made

distinction,

a great impression

among

and considerable pressure was

people of

tried in order

keep him with them, but he was in bad health, and

was dreadfully troubled by family worries in connection
with his brother and his children. He stayed with a
friend named Antonio Vandini, a 'cellist, while on this
visit to Prague, and returned with him to Padua in 1726.
to

He

soon began to recover health, but the family troubles

many years. He was a man

and very high character, and bore
himself throughout them all, during a period of over
twenty years, in the most exemplary fashion. His first
continued to worry him for

of great patience,

work was published

in

Rome

in

numerous, but he
S2

in

1745.
left

Amsterdam in 1734, and another

These published works are not

a great

many

in manuscript.

His

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

26o

works

theoretical

comprise

mentioned

already

the

" Treatise on

Music," a pamphlet replying to some

strictures on

he published in Venice

it

in 1767.

In the

same year " A Dissertation on the Principles of Harmony " saw the light in Padua, and a " Treatise on
Musical Embellishments" was issued in Paris in 1782.
The famous letter of instructions on violin playing has
been frequently printed, and besides this he left a
manuscript treatise which has never been printed.

was

called " Practical Lessons on the Violin."

It

This

great master of the violin died on the 26th February,

He

1770, after a period of great suffering.

robust man.

His eager

face,

tion of his surroundings,

nature,
life.

and he appears

When

he died

it

to

never was a

of nervous apprecia-

shows a very highly strung

have lived a self-sacrificing

may

He was

into mourning.

full

be said that Padua went

buried in the Church of St.

Catherine, where an imposing funeral service was per-

formed, and

has been said that his

it

demise was

considered in the light of a public calamity.

Although
indeed, to

his

all

appear to have

fame had spread

all

over Europe, and,

parts of the civilized world, he does not

left

Italy after his professional journey to

Prague, where he managed the music for the coronation

of the Emperor, Charles VI.

He was

pressed to go to

Germany and France, and Lords Walpole and Middlesex

did their best to get him over here, but failed.

a very nice

He wrote

London,
and in it referred in compHmentary terms to the judgment of English musicians and scientists in regard to
letter

his discovery of

regarding a proposed

the third sound.

visit to

His most famous

VIOLINISTS.

pupils

were

Pugnani,

Nardini,

261

Pagin,

Ferrari,

and

He

was,

Lahoussaye.

GIAMBATTISTA SOMIS.
This master was born in Piedmont in

1676,.

quite evidently from contemporary testimony, a player

of broad
to

him

and

lies in

fine style,

but the chief interest attaching

the circumstance that he has always been

considered one of the finest pupils of Corelli, and

known

have been the teacher, or one of the teachers, of

Pugnani, thus forming a link in the direct chain which

to

binds our finest modern players to the earlier grand

Italian Schools.

confess

he was a pupil of Corelli.

am not quite satisfied that

He was, undoubtedly, a

great admirer of the latter, and, in the days of his youth,

included

Rome in

his travels, the object of

which was to

hear the best executants and composers of his time.

But

have not found

in the course of

definite information in regard

Corelli,

while his

visit

to

my

reading any

his connection with

to

Venice on the other hand

resulted in an acquaintance with Vivaldi, which appears

to

have had a most lasting

effect

on his

style.'

He,

in

fact,

took Vivaldi as his model, and carried along with

him

to Turin,

where he

settled, the traditions

of the

great Venetian performer.

The King

of Sardinia appointed

him

to the post of

director of the music in the Chapel Royal, as also of the

Court music, and he enjoyed an extended reputation

throughout Italy.

In the spring of

1733,

he went to

and performed there at the " Concerts Spirituals,"

where his success was of a marked character for the
Paris,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

262

purity of his tone, and the brilliancy of his technique.

He

died in Turin in 1763, leaving the traditions of his

who

school in the hands of Pugnani,

most important of his

his

own

perhaps, the

is,

pupils, seeing that he

combined

in

style the results of the tuition received not only

from Somis, but

also,

according to report, from Tartini.

Somis had a brother named Lorenzo, who was also a

imitated the style of
violinist, and, to some extent,
Corelli.
G. B. Somis published in Paris, six sets of
sonatas for the violin and bass.
GAETANO PUGNANI.
This magnificent player who,

it is

generally supposed,

had the advantage as explained in the previous article,

of tuition both from Somis and Tartini, was born either
in the Canavese in 1727, or in Turin, in 1728.
Both
dates are given.
He succeeded Somis as principal
violinist
at the King of Sardinia's Court, and as
director of the music.
He was also a great operatic
conductor, and succeeded in a marvellous way in bringing the various elements in such representations into the

most complete harmony.

He visited Paris in 1754
had a great success, and made the European tour. He

also

came

to

London more than

once,

He

occasion stayed for a year or two.

and on one

had, of course,

resigned his appointment in Turin to enable him to

these lengthened absences, but

London

for good,

and returned

once reappointed music director.

tviition

from Tartini

is

when
to

1770 he

Turin, he

The

a curious one,

in

make

was

left

at

story about his

and wears such a

VIOLINISTS.

pleasantly simple look that

When

Pugnani was

it

263

may be worth recounting.

much about

Paris he heard

in

Tartini, and, determining to see him,

and called on

went

Padua,

to

countryman, by

his distinguished

he was asked to play something.

whom

When

Pugnani had
bars,
Tartini
caught
over
a
few
him
got
by the arm
suppose the bow arm and said, " Too loud, my friend,
When Pugnani tried again, Tartini
too loud."

repeated the interruption at the same point, and said

"

Too

soft,

my

friend, too soft."

him as a

desired Tartini to take

of the

cally concise description

Thereupon Pugnani
This patheti-

pupil.

manner

famous and accomplished performer

in

which one
another

listens to

distinguished artiste's playing only suggests to

my mind

one comment, which might reasonably be addressed to

" Too thick, my friend, too
the author of the story
:

thick."
It

is

related of

Pugnani that he snubbed Voltaire

about his verses on one occasion when that

genius

said to have

is

shown

little

brilliant

under-breeding by

talking loudly during one of the former's violin solos.

One

or

two

trifling,

gossipy anecdotes of this kind,

true, indicate that the great

Piedmontese

if

violinist was of

a slightly irritable and impressionable nature.

He was

a prolific composer of secular, as well as sacred music,

and those

of his violin pieces

which have been published

display a fine sense of melody.

He had

a violin school

number of fine players, among

whom was Viotti. The circumstance that Pugnani
was the teacher of this father of modern violin playing
in Turin,

is

and trained

alone sufficient to stamp him as an

artiste

of the

THE IIDDLE

264

He

highest grade.

I-ANCIER's GUIDE.

died in Turin in 1803

an old

man.

His works include four grand operas, two or three

comic operas, and ballets, and cantatas, some nine
concertos for the violin, and a
trios,

quartets,

quintets,

lot

duets,

of sonatas,

symphonies,

etc.

Very few

have been published.

FELICE GIARDINI.

This was another distinguished pupil of G. B. Somis

He was

of Turin.

born there in 171 6, but was sent to

Milan while quite a child to learn music and

of the choir boys in the Cathedral there.

was one

He

received

shown
him

instruction in singing from Paladini, but having

a decided inclination for the violin, his father sent

whom

back to Turin and placed him with Somis, with

he remained
attempt on

for

number

own account was

his

Giardini's

of years.
in

first

Rome, where he was

not successful, and repaired without delay to Naples.

There he was more fortunate and got employment

the orchestra of the theatre.

performer
his

own

who was

He was

in the habit of

to

it,

in

florid

adding decorations of

music of the composer, and that not only

to the

in leading parts but also in ordinary

The

somewhat

accompaniments.

public were not accustomed to this, but they took

and used

to applaud him.

How

relished this sort of thing done to his

other man,

thought of

we do not know, but we learn what

One evening when Giardini was

it.

in the orchestra while

composer

he would have

own music by any

sat

down

Jomelli

playing

an opera of Jomelli's was on, that

beside him.

He

had, very likely,

265

VIOLINISTS.

heard,

either

or

At any

things.

heard

rate,

to decorate his part in the

of doing

Giardini's style

of,

when, as usual the

latter

began

approved manner, Jomelli

suddenly gave him a smack in the face with his open

which

hand,

an end.

that

credit

learnt

brought

the

the

rude

embellishments

florid

Giardini was very

lesson

young, and
appears

to

it

is

to

to his

have been

even in a story book.

When he was twenty-eight years old he appeared in

London and stayed there for a year or two. In 1748
he went to Paris and became very popular. In eighteen
months he returned to London and had increased
success in every way.
He was a favourite in Court
circles and made large sums of money both by teaching
and playing.
Italian opera

In an evil hour in 1756, he undertook

and

in a very short time lost every

penny

In 1763 he began again teaching and

he had made.

giving concerts, but, in a year or two the tide of fortune

turned,
public

and another
favour.

returned to

He

violinist
left

this

Naples as poor

divided with him the

country
as

in

1784,

and

had come. Sir

him there and he

he

William Hamilton was of service to

spent a few years in the place of his earlier triumphs.

He then went to Russia and died in Moscow in 1796.

He composed a good deal, and almost all his work was
He composed the operetta
published in London.
"

Love

in a Village "

and one or two grand operas, the

and a number of Italian songs,
and a good deal of violin music in
duets, trios, quartets, quintets, and

oratorio of " Ruth,"

duets, catches, etc.,

the shape of solos,

also several concertos.

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

.266

GIOVANNI BATTISTA VIOTTI.

This player was by far the greatest performer of his

day, and

many

Tartini,

and

virtuosity

named

is

He,

a day previous to his appearance.

Corelli,

share

awarded down

the

highest

to Viotti's time

honours

and the

of
last

very justly called, as already noted, the father

modern violin playing. He was born in Fontanetto

Piedmont in 1753. His father was in a comfortable
position in life, and being a good amateur musician
gave his son some elementary instruction in music.
He had his first cheap fiddle when he was eight years
old and when he was eleven he had a year's tuition in
music from a guitar player, who was an excellent
musician and also played the violin. For two years
after this he had no personal supervision but studied
from books. In 1766, he was noticed by an ecclesiastic who afterwards became Archbishop of Turin, and
who had him sent there for tuition. In several tests
to which young Viotti was submitted the lad acquitted
himself in quite an amazing manner, and showed himself
possessed of a musical memory which was absolutely
astounding.
He was at once placed under Pugnani as
soon as that artiste opened his famous school, which was
of
in

shortly after Viotti's arrival in Turin.

cost of Viotti's education

was about

was borne by the Prince

Cisterna

of

munificent and kindly manner.

patronage and encouragement

Altogether the
;^iooo,

So

for

in

and
the

this

most

as concerns

do not know that any

other violinist has had the opportunities with which

Viotti

was favoured

in

his youth.

He

bore himself

throughout in a manner which has done honour to his

G. n. VIOTTI.

VIOLINISTS.

When

profession.

drawing

him

close that master personally

to a

to all the musical centres of

company

Pugnani were

under

studies

his

267

Europe,

where they arrived

in Paris

introduced

finally parting

in

1782.

Viotti

had, in the French capital, an overwhelming reception

on his
the

appearance, and he was soon taken up by

first

But

court.

only

two

about

for

popularity

his

France continued

in

some unexplained

For

years.

reason he was very coldly received by a small audience

at

one of the Concerts Spirituels, while at the very next

of the

same

series

an

had quite an

inferior performer

Whether

This was towards the end of 1783.

ovation.

Viotti read

between the

the circumstance galled

one cannot say but

lines or not

him

so

much

that he resolved

never to play publicly in Paris again, and only once

twenty years afterwards, did he do

to play at

this year (1783)

he paid a hurried

and bought some property

place,

He

so.

continued

Court, however, and in private circles.

to

visit

there,

his

In

native

returning to

Paris in the following year, where he enjoyed honours

and emoluments

among
Opera

having

been appointed to the post,

other offices, of musical director of the Italian

until

the

period

of the

French

Revolution,

when

(1792) he came to London in an almost ruined condition pecuniarily. In this country he at once succeeded

professionally, but the

not

remain

government fancied he had better

goodness

some panic-notion that

only
it

knows

why.

unnecessary offence to the revolutionary party.

rate he

went

to

remained there

the neighbourhood of
until

Probably

would be as well not

1794,

to give

At any-

Hamburg and

when he was

at liberty to

THE FIDDLE FANXlEU's GUIDE.

l68

He made

return to London.

supposed
Society.

to

his

home

here and

is

be one of the founders of the Philharmonic

He

Once in 1802, and

when he stayed two years directing the
He came back to London in 1822. He had
a wine business in London which was not very
revisited Paris twice.

again in 181 9,
opera.
started

and this, and his want of success in the opera

management, appears to have greatly depressed him.
His brother died at this time and the intelligence of his
demise weighed him down still farther. He died in
London on the loth March, 1824. Viotti's works are
profitable,

too

well

known

require

to

consist of concertos,

symphonies,

etc.,

special

sonatas,

almost

all

of

mention.
trios,

They

which are

still

quartets,

duets,

played.

PIERRE MARIE FRANCOIS DE SALES BAILLOT.

was born at Passy

when he was
His family had moved about a

This distinguished French

in

771.

He

began

about seven years

violinist

to play the violin

old.

when the lad's father died, they were in

Corsica.
The Governor offered to have Pierre educated
along with his own children, and he was sent with them
to Rome, where he was placed with a violinist named
PoUani, who had been a pupil of Nardini. He returned
little

and,

to Corsica in 1785,

and then relinquished the

violin as a

profession for that of secretary to the Governor.

office

The

In this

he remained until 1791, when he went to Paris.

revolution was just about to burst, but they still

had the play and Baillot got employment as second
violin in the Theatre Feydeau, where he became
acquainted with Rode. He remained in this orchestra

VIOLINISTS.

269

only for a few months, until he obtained an appointment

He was

at the Treasury.

at the

Treasury

for ten years,

and laid aside the fiddle except as an amateur.

mean

does not, however,

He

That

that he relinquished practice.

merely did not play professionally.

After that period

he went into the army and served for nearly two years,

From

but returned to Paris in 1795.

date until

named

the last

he died in 1842, he was exclusively devoted to

his instrument,

became professor

in the

trious roll of

French

violinists.

But

say that he was a pupil of Viotti's.

newly-founded

name

Conservatoire and added one more

it

is

That he never was.

Viotti was driven out of Paris a ruined

Baillot entered

to the illus-

a mistake to

man

just as

Baillot published a quantity of

it.

for the violin, besides

music

being one of the joint authors of

the fine violin school which

is

known under

the

name

of

" Rode, Baillot and Kreutzer."

JAMES PETER JOSEPH RODE.

This artiste was the most distinguished of the splendid

band

of performers

He was

Viotti.

on the

who owed

their training to

G. B.

born in the Rue du Loup, Bordeaux,

6th February, 1774, died at

Damazan on

the

26th November, 1830, and was buried at Bordeaux.

He

played the violin as a boy in his father's shop, and

used to be heard and admired by the neighbours and

passers by.

His

was himself a

first

pupil

twelve years old he was

virtuoso,
it

will

teacher was A.

of

known

in

J.

Fauvel,

who

When Rode was

Gervais.

Bordeaux as a young

and as he had been with Fauvel

be seen that he began young.

for six years

He went

with his

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

270

teacher to Paris

GUIDE.

when he was fourteen, and had an

who was so struck with the boy's

introduction to Viotti,

him as a

ability that he received

time (1790) he

made

his

master's sixth concerto

In three years

pupil.

appearance

first

and gained a

with his

distinct success.

He then entered the band in the Theatre Feydeau, and

was soon promoted from the sixth desk in the first to the
second desk in the second violins. In the same year
(.1791)

and these two

Next year he met Kreutzer, and
produce the famous violin school

Baillot joined the second violins

became

fast friends.

the three joined to

From

referred to in the notice of Baillot.

there

is

1793 to 1797,

a large amount of confusion in the biographical

accounts of this

Some say he became

artiste.

a soldier,

or rather, played the clarionet in a regimental

Angers.

band

at

Others that he sailed for Hamburg, but was

driven towards the English coast, and took the people of

this

country by storm.

We catch

sight of

him again

in

Paris in 1797, where he entered the opera as solo violin,

and the Conservatoire as professor. Two years later he

went to Spain and was splendidly received there. In
1803 he made a progress towards Russia, where he
arrived

in

1804 and

reappears in Paris.
thirty-four

but

he

remained

He was

until

still

now began

to

1808,

when he

young man only

fail, and from this

was rather a downward one.

He started a new tour in 1811, and married a wealthy
lady in Berlin a widow named Madame Galliari. He
stayed there for some years but did not play much in
public.
About 1820 he returned to Bordeaux and
point onwards, his career

worked at his compositions.

Eight years afterwards he

VIOLINISTS.

271

thought he would Hke to play again in Paris, but the

had when he did it so thoroughly

went back to Bordeaux really a
dying man. His wife took him to a country seat she
had bought at Damazan, but he lingered on in the same
reception which he

broke his

that he

spirit,

condition

the

till

13th

November, when a stroke

of

paralysis brought the end of this melodious soul near,

same
knows " Rode's Air in G," his
A," his Concertos and Caprices the

and, as already stated, he died on the 26th of the

Every

month.

violinist

" Martial Air in

last

named being

He composed

really indispensible to every player.

altogether between forty and

fifty

pieces

and voice, in addition to his share in the

famous Conservatoire " School " already mentioned.
for violin

RODOLPHE KREUTZER.

The
the

third

member

magnificent

of the famous trio

violin

founded Conservatoire,
a high place

He was

among

school

for

who made up

the then

recently

and

receives,

this artiste claims,

the ranks of great violin players.

His father was a

born in Versailles in 1766.

musician in the king's chapel there, and so was young

Rodolphe's teacher, Anton Stamitz, the second son of
the founder of the
early, for

it is

composition

Mannheim

School.

Kreutzer began

said that he played a Concerto of his

when he was

thirteen.

He

own

had, of course,

almost lived in an atmosphere of music, but so have

other distinguished composers, such as

Beethoven, and
musical
instinct,

Haydn, Mozart,

think the statement that Kreutzer's

nature was so gifted that he composed by

and without having received a

single lesson in

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

272

harmony

GUIDE.

one which need hardly be pressed. He is

When he was
famous without its aid.
father died, and Marie Antoinette, who

is

sufficiently

sixteen his

had taken an

interest

him, had him promoted to

in

vacant through his father's

the desk

of first violin,

decease.

In 1782, he heard Viotti in Paris, and then

own

developing his

set himself to

talent until he

one of the greatest exponents of the

In 1790 he was admitted as

his day.

became

fiddle fingerboard of
first violin in

the

compose dramatic music.

travelled Germany and Italy a short time, and then

opera, and he began then to

He

The Conservatoire had

returned to Paris.

been

just

founded during the revolution, and he was appointed

He

professor.

time,

and

King did

member

Solo violin at the opera,

First

many appointments

held a great

" whatsoever

reign," he
of the

Consul's Chapel, solo violin of

private

was

music

the

in his

there.
in the

Emperor's

band, Chapel Master to Louis Philippe, and

Conductor

Throughout

at the opera.

all

these changes,

ranging from 1792, when he was in Louis XVI. 's band,

was professor at
named year he ceded

1827, he

till

last

the Conservatoire.

In the

the chair to his brother

Auguste, another fine performer.

He had

public performing through an

to relinquish

accident to his

left

by a fall from
was upset, and he
was never properly

shoulder, sustained

his carriage, or rather, his carriage

was thrown

out.

The

dislocation

adjusted, and his health greatly deteriorated in conse-

quence.
at

Geneva

He had
in

several strokes of apoplexy,

June, 1831.

again be said,

is

familiar

Every
with

and died

violin player,

" Kreutzer's

it

may

Studies,"

VIOLINISTS.

273

an absolutely colossal work, without which

difficult to

would be

it

imagine how violin classes could now-a-days

get on, although

we

all

know

that they got on very well

indeed for perhaps a century and a half before they were

written.

such

Still,

is

if

they dis-

like

dropping

the force of habit,

appeared from our curriculum,

it

would be

a book from the canon of scripture.

CHARLES PHILLIPPE LAFONT.

This great representative of an earlier French school
was born in Paris in 1781. His mother was a good
player, and she gave him his early lessons.
His
was
Isidore
brother
Berthaume,
mother's
quite a
distinguished performer of the pre-revoiution school, and

he afterwards took the child in hand, and by the time

Lafont was eleven years of age, he was playing solos at

Germany his uncle was settled in OldenSomewhat later Lafont became a pupil of Rode,

concerts in
burg.

and afterwards travelled over all the continent, receiving

the most enthusiastic plaudits everywhere. He challenged
Paganini to a contest, and although the latter considered
it

extremely injudicious

for

two public performers to

engage in such a warfare, and he was quite right, the

Paganini is reported to have
affair came off, and
courteously admitted that

Lafont " probably excelled

him in tone." In 1808, Lafont was at St. Petersburg,

and remained there for six years, occupying the post of
first solo violin

to

France,

player to the Emperor.

he

was

King's private band,

appointed

first

and

other

filled

On

his return

violin

of

the

appointments.

After 1815, Lafont went on the Continent again, and also

"T^E FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE.

274

In the year 1839, an accident,

travelled about France.

similar

Kreutzer's

to

immediately

fatal

befell

him,

He was

results.

with

but

more

on tour with the

and was sitting outside the diligence, when

was overturned between Bagneres de Bigorre and
Tarbes. Lafont was killed on the spot.

pianist Herz,
it

NICOLO PAGANINI.

There can be very

which

this

there need be as

doubt as to the position

little

man

wonderful

occupied in his day, and

doubt regarding the place he

little

holds in the ranks of violinists

An

easy

first

he

still

down

to the present.

The

remains as a violin player.

most striking testimony to

his matchless

skill

is

the

almost unimpeachable unanimity of judgment in his

favour displayed by the artistes in his

And what astounded

own

profession.

them, subdued them, and, in one or

two cases one might almost say, appalled them, was not
that was chiefly what astonished
his manual dexterity
his general public, and was wonderful enough, apparently, in all conscience
but that seemingly superhuman
power of intense expression which drew the majority of
artistes to his shrine, and those who were without envy
We can surely in some
to speak freely
to his feet.
measure realise what it must have been to hear him

when we

find

men of all

nationalities uniting in rapturous

plaudits of this man's genius.

of these

men

possible

means, within

It

was the

their

capacity,

expression in their music, and when, as

find

daily practice

to use, in their profession, the highest

them almost unanimous

in looking

of

emotional

have

said,

we

on Paganini as

NICOLO PAGANINI.

VIOLINISTS.

the " despair of their art "

is

275

to use an

expression which

not particularly happy, but, judging from

employment, seems
risk

still

intelligible

its

frequent

enough we may

placing him at the head of

well

all violinists.

He was born in Genoa on the i8th February, 1784.

His father Antonio Paganini was a musician of some
skill, and taught him the guitar, an instrument on
which our hero became a magnificent performer. It is,
reported by those who heard him, that his
was as distinguished on that instrument as it
was on the violin. His mother's maiden name was
Teresa Bocciardi. She was also a musician, and she
must have held the art in very high esteem indeed,
when she felt that the wish nearest her heart was that
her son should become the greatest violinist in the
world.
It was undoubtedly a curious dream which

indeed,
ability

Paganini used to say she had.

her

people would

name her
first

now

say a

An

spirit

dearest wish and she

angel appeared to

and desired

named

it

her to

as above.

His

instruments were the mandoline and, probably, the

guitar,

but soon he took up

instruction of a player

named

the

violin

Servetto.

under

When

the

he really

commenced to play the violin is not known, but it is said

that he was about five when he began the mandoline.
He must have made great progress, because about this
time Kreutzer was in Genoa, and Paganini was brought
in to play to him, and the child actually played some of
Kreutzer's difficult music, as " difficult " was then
understood,

at

sight.

It

is

recorded that the great

French player was " amazed," and from that day the

fame of little Nicolo increased so

T2

rapidly, that

by the

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

276

time when he was seven years

It

would be impossible

he was quite famous.

old,

embody

to

in a

brief notice

anything approaching to detail in recounting

like this

his career.

His success was so marvellous, and the

exhibition of his exceptional powers on his instrument so

entrancing and inexplicable that people

who cannot

live

happily unless they are in a position to explain everything in a natural or a supernatural way, people to

a confession of ignorance

is

whom

a shameful humiliation, and

the more
began to cast

the expression of wonder an utter impossibility

ignorant portion, in short, of his public

about for reasons which might appease their hunger and

The

thirst after explanations.

devil was, of course, the

inevitable resource of these people

they never dreamt

of falling back on the mother's angel.

not

know

certainly not.

The man

Still, it

way

Perhaps they did

one

may

almost say

never struck them to try the angel.

himself was, apparently,

reckless in his

trouble

dream

the story of the

now and

again a

little

of living, and, of course, angels never

themselves

about

people of

that sort.

All

and profane, had made that quite clear.

They therefore fixed on the devil, and saw him at
Paganini's elbow, and they saw his cloven hoof also.
His Satanic majesty must be a sublime idiot after all to
walk about all these centuries with cloven hoofs. But,
history, religious

seriously,

stories

wherever he went.

had murdered

many

his

of this

kind were

nothing but practise the violin,

now

about

sweetheart, had been imprisoned for

years, and, during his

at all this

circulated

By-and-by, they found out that he

imprisonment, had done

etc., etc.

We

can look

as extraordinary foolery, but these horrible

VIOLINISTS.

277

man to every town, and upset

On one occasion, he appealed to

stories followed this

the

comfort of his

the

Italian

life.

Ambassador when he was

gentleman published a declaration

the effect that he had

man

for

subject of

all

newspapers to

as a respectable

This quieted the ridiculous tales

in that city for a time, but

Even

Vienna, and that

known Paganini

twenty years.

revived.

in

in the

wherever he went they were

Paris he was

in enlightened

When

in

he ventured to walk, people followed him

in

having not a shadow of truth about them.

London

if

made the

kinds of lampoons, and virulent attacks,

the street, ran in front, and stared at him, while others

had the temerity

I

to touch him, handle his clothes, etc.,

suppose, in order to ascertain

and blood.

The man's

life

complete misery to him.

public since he

was

if

he really was

flesh

must have been made a

He had been before the

fourteen, constantly giving concerts,

and he had held, at sixteen, the post of leader and

director of music at the Court of Lucca, and yet there
were actually people at that time who asserted and
publicly the story about murdering

promulgated

sweetheart or his
in prison for
this

it.

made him

rival,

his

and that he had been eight years

They

did not stop to calculate that

a murderer at the

years, with a sweetheart

and a

advanced age of

rival to operate on.

six

We

They were not laughing

They worried the man to a degree
They caused people
of which we have no conception.
might have had his
shun
him
who
in these days to
life
brightened by their society. Even during his
latest visit to Paris, he had to get Fetis to draw

laugh at the absurd

matters to Paganini.

stories.

THE FIDDLE FANXIER's GUIDE.

278

up

embodying

declaration

malevolence

of

these

the

about

truth

which

tales

were

the

revived

him at that time, not only concerning the

murder and imprisonment, but all sorts of horrible
crimes which were imputed to him. I do not in the
least wonder that the man became soured in nature.
The mother of his son was, apparently, a violent
tempered woman who moved about the household,
threatening to smash his fiddles, and so on. Altogether, to
put it mildly,he seems to have had his fair share of troubles.
His affection for his son was of a deep and tender kind.
He was always thinking about him when absent, sending
against

his love to him,

begging the friends to

whom

he was

writing to be sure and give the messages, emphasising

them every other sentence, and beseeching them to let

him know about his Achilles his son's name. In his
lodgings he used to have sham fights with him, when the
little chap, with his wooden sword, would drive his long
lean parent up agaitist the bedstead, and threaten him

with the direst consequences unless he consented to die,

which he always had

Paganini tried to teach him

to do.

the violin, but he did not take to

all violinists

it.

This greatest of

died at Nice on 27th May, 1840.

CAMILLO SIVORI.
This

artiste is the only

was born on 6th June,

known

181 7, in

Paganini's art of teaching

Sivori went for his lesson

pupil of Paganini.

Genoa, and

was a
it

is

still

peculiar one.

He
alive.

When

consisted often of a good

deal of scolding and interruptions, ending by Paganini

playing the exercise, or whatever

it

was, and telling

Dk.

LOUIS SPOHR.

VIOLINISTS.

Sivori not to

come back

until

279

he could do

it

same

in the

Since 1836, Sivori has travelled a great deal in

style.

He was

Europe, and America in 1846 to 1848.

appreciated in this country and

is

at

highly

present living in

Genoa.
LOUIS SPOHR.

This great violin master and musician occupies a very

high place

Gernian
that
**

if

not.

very

the

It

may be

calls

himself

artistes.

he never

indeed

highest

among

pointed out, by the way,

"

Ludwig " but

always

Louis," in his Autobiography, as has been indicated by

the author of the article in Grove's

add
that

to this,

he

from documents in

also

signed

his

name

Dictionary.

my own

may

possession,

" Louis "

and

not

" Ludwig," not only in his correspondence, but also

he had to sign a piece of his

" Dr.

own

music.

if

Sometimes

what may seem a rather imposing

Spohr."
He was born at
Brunswick, in 1784.
When he was two years old, his
father, who was a doctor, moved to the small town of
Seesen, and Spohr spent there the early years of his
Both his father and mother were musicians
childhood.
of some culture, and when he was five they bought him
he also signed

manner

violin

little

in

Louis

on which he found out the notes

and played over, to his

himself

for

mother's piano accom-

paniment, the music they were in the habit of singing

The rector of the

Riemen Schneider, gave him

or playing.

place,
his

whose name was

first

lessons.

They

were necessarily of an amateur kind, and so were those

of his second instructor, but he was a more advanced

THK

2So

I-IUDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

named Dufour. At the

Spohr was sent to Brunswick

player

latter's

instance young

the grammar school

and at the same time began the serious study of
to

there

the violin under a player

the

Duke

named Kunisch, who was

He was

of Brunswick's band.

counterpoint
received any

by

Hartung,

an

other instruction in

in

also taught

and

organist,

never

musical composition.

He

had further instruction in violin playing from the leader

of the band, Mancourt, and when he was fourteen, or
rather younger, he played a concerto of his

He

school concert.

Hamburg, but could

own

at a

then tried a tour and went to

not get up a concert.

Returned to
and
Brunswick sorely depressed
without money, or very
little.

He

appointment

him

Duke asking for mea;is to conThe Duke heard, and gave him an

wrote to the

tinue his studies.

in

his band,

to receive further

and by-and-by arranged

violin

for

Franz
1802 meant to

instruction from

Eck. They were to travel together, and in

go to Russia but made a prolonged wait at Hamburg

and Strelitz. By-and-by they arrived in St. Petersburg,

and

remaining through the winter there

after

Spohr

returned to Brunswick the following summer, where he

heard Pierre Rode play.

on Spohr.
to

He

This made a great impression

then gave a concert himself and started

go to Paris, but had his Guarnerius stolen from him,

and had

to return to

Brunswick

in order to

another instrument.

He

towns and

became leader

Gotha's

in

band.

1805
In

the

arrange for

the

German
Duke of

he

married

next went to several

following

of

year

and began to write

arge instrumental and other works.
Between 1805 and
Dorette Scheidler, a harp-player,

VIOLINISTS.

281

toured through Germany, accompanied by his

81 3 he

named year accepted

wife,

and

ment

of conductor at the Theatre-an-der-Wien, Vienna.

in the last

the appoint-

In 1815 or 1816, the two went to Italy on a concert tour

with great success and returned to

ing year.

In

181 8

Germany in the follow-

he was conductor of the opera at

Frankfort where he produced his Faust.

In 1820 the

Philharmonic Society invited him to London, and he

paid his

first

visit to this

From

country.

that date his

was one continuous triumph till a few years

before his death.
He was immensely pleased with the
Philharmonic, admitting that he had never heard such
splendid performances.
He frequently came here after
career

he accepted the

life

1853,

and shortly

way.
1836.
violin,

He

appointment of music director at

The

Cassel in 1822.

last

time

after that his

wife in

lost his

he

was over was

in

health began to give

1834 ^^^ married again in

In 1857 he broke his arm, and had to give up the

and

in 1858,

his last public

appearance of importance was

when he conducted

the jubilee celebration at the

Prague Conservatoire. He died in Cassel on October

1 6th, 1859.
These facts are almost wholly taken from
his Autobiography, which is one of the most interesting
musical works of a personal character published during

the present century.

CHARLES AUGUST DE BERIOT.

This

artiste

is,

perhaps, the best

tive of the Belgian

known

school of the past.

representa-

He was

born

in Louvain
1802, and although he attended the
Conservatoire in Paris for a few months under the
in

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

282
guidance of

Baillot,

he really derived no assistance in the

development of his powers from that school.

Before he

went to Paris in 1821, he was an artiste of the highest

class, and when he consulted Viotti on reaching the
French Capital, the latter strongly advised him to follow
his

own

bent, seeing he

had nothing

He was

could not teach himself.

former

for brilliancy

The

melodic sense.

much

and delicacy

to learn

which he

a magnificent per-

of touch, with a fine,

latter quality is strongly

marked

in

and especially in his " Airs Varies."

He is one of those examples of the developing power of
individual genius, of which we have instances in Paganini,
Ole Bull, and one or two others, for although, like them,
of his music,

he received instructions from a resident teacher, a

violinist

Louvain named Tiby, he Was not burdened with the

traditions of any school, although his style is classical
enough for all that. He met with successes wherever
in

he played, and, beginning with Paris, he travelled

over Europe except Russia.
this country

was

after that.

He

Malibran, but

in

1826,

His

first

and he was very often here

married the celebrated singer,

am

sorry

all

appearance in

am

Madame

not in a position to say

when with any sense of exactitude. The event occurred

before I was born, and I have not yet had an opportunity
of examining into the matter at

first

selection of the various dates given

One important

biograpical

hand, so

by various

give a

authorities.

work gives the date as 1830.

Another says 1832. One of the finest and most authoritative works in existence, and which is also the most recent,
states that they

were married in 1835, and in another place

If it is any
was 1836.

of the same work that the date

OLE BULL.

VIOLINISTS.

satisfaction to the reader,

may

283
say that

lean to the

opinion that they were married on the 26th March, 1836,

She died
after

Manchester a few days

in

that

and De Beriot went

date,

Brussels to look

known each

other for

in

the

after

concerts together.

remained

than six months

less

some

off at

years,

After his wife's death,

Brussels

four years,

for

was

appearance afterwards

once to

But they had

and had given many

property.

De

and

Germany.

in

Beriot

his

first

He was

appointed chief of the violin school at the Brussels

Conservatoire in 1843, and remained in the chair for

He became

nine years.
died at his

native

blind in 1852, and retired.

place

in

publication gives the year of his birth as 1770.

an

error.

and

is

yet,

His music, as every

very popular.

exceedingly beautiful.
duets,

some books

of

He

violinist

Some

He

One important

1870.

This

is

knows, has been,

of his

melodies are
a great

many

studies, seven concertos,

and a

also wrote

" school."

OLE BORNEMANN BULL.

This great Norse magican was born in Bergen on

February 5th, 1810.

His father

and

mother

were

musical, but an " Uncle Jens " used to have quartets on

Tuesday evenings, and

to these

Ole Bull could probably

Even as a
baby he would be found under the table or sofa listening
His
to the quartets of Hadyn, Mozart, and Beethoven.
'cello,
him
inside
uncle, who played the
would put
the
case and play to him, while he bribed him with sweetmeats not to move. This was when he was about three
have traced his

earliest musical longings.

THIC FIDDLE FAXCIER'S GUIDE.

284

When

years old.
violin,

and

his

he was

widow

his first tune on

it

he

felt

uncle bought him a

five, his

relates that

as

if

when

the child played

he had ascended to the

young children are delighted when they

accomplish something which they see done by their elders,
clouds.

All

but the after career of this

magnificent

man

places

was more than the

ordinary glee of childish satisfaction. The whole life of
Ole Bull was a poem, and one of the most elevating
kipd.
He had the highest possible appreciation of the
power of executive art, and he employed that power in
the noblest manner.
His first teacher was a Dane
beyond a doubt that the joy he

felt

Mr. Paulsen

but the

little

fellow really played the violin

tolerably well almost from the

it,

first

moment he handled

although he had to stand at his mother's knee while

she screwed the pegs for him

his

being strong enough for the duty.

probably exhausted his

of

Ole, for

baby

fingers

not

This Mr. Paulsen

own knowledge

in the teaching

when

on one of the Tuesday evenings

Paulsen should have led the quartet, he was so drunk

as to be useless.

my

boy,

candy."

Ole's uncle called out to him,

do your best and you

Ole Bull at

this

shall

have a

"

time was eight years old.

took up his violin, and, to the amazement of

all,

Come

stick of

He

played

through a quartet of Pleyel's which he had frequently

movements accurately. After

this Paulsen's lessons were given more regularly, but he
soon suddenly left Bergen, and the boy had no regular
instruction from the time he was nine until he reached
the age of twelve.
Then a Swedish player named
Lundholm took up his abode in the town, and Ole was
heard, and played

all

the

VIOLINISTS.

sent to him.

When

285

he was fourteen his grandmother

got him, at his earnest .request, Paganini's Studies, and

he actually mastered these in a very short time, and

By-and-by he was sent

nonplussed his teacher.

to the

University at Christiania to study for the church and

was duly plucked

and

played the violin

all

little

wonder, seeing

that he

night previous to the day of his

examination, and as far on as seven in the morning,

The professor
while his "exam." came on at nine!
remarked to him, " It is the best thing that could have
happened

to you,''

and had him appointed Director of

the Philharmonic and Dramatic Societies of Christiania.

From
and

it

this point his artistic career

was, with two

may

be said to begin,

notably exceptional

periods, a

triumphal progress through the whole civilised universe.

The

first

exception was on the occasion of his^visit to

Paris in 1831.

He had

the world of art,

gone there to take his place in

having

in his pocket the^proceeds of

some concerts he had given just before leaving Norway.

He met with no encouragement, could not even get heard
and to crown all, an old rascal who stayed in the same
hotel in which he lodged, robbed him of all his money
and belongings, leaving him nothing but an old suit of
Absolute want stared him in the face, but he
clothes.
happened to meet an accquaintance who introduced him
to his own landlady, and became security for him to the
extent of sixty francs per month until^he could^hear from
This is the time when that
his friends in Norway.
singular stroke of luck befell him at play, and which is
so often referred to in a vague and inaccurate manner.
His landlady and his
The circumstances are as follow

THE FIDDLE FANCIEr's GUIDE.

286

friend

were beginning

to look

askance at him when, one

morning, a stranger of somewhat odd appearance was

and Ole

at the breakfast table,

was

that he

suspected as

Bull's friend

remarked

The former replied that he

and
these
comments being overheard,
much,
a detective.

the visitor became very angry, but on Ole Bull responding

in a quiet, gentlemanly

manner,

his

mood changed, and

he presently began to take an interest in the Norwegian.

He

appeared to divine Ole Bull's position, and requested

him

go with him to a small public house in the

he had something to tell him. When they

to

vicinity, as

I know you are

You must try your luck
have no money."
'You must get

arrived there the stranger said to Bull, "

at play."

"But

five francs

o'clock,

my

Follow

in want.

ad%dce.

then go to-night, between ten and eleven

not

to

earlier,

Montmartre.

Mount

Frascati's, in

the stairs, ring

the Boulevard

the bell, and give

your hat boldly to the liveried servant in attendance

enter the hall, go straight to the table, put your five

them remain there." Ole Bull

and when he found himself
at the table in putting his money on the red he did it
awkwardly, and it rolled over to the black and was lost.

francs on the red, and

did as he

was

let

told, exactly,

He almost lost consciousness, but at the next coup he

heard the cry, " Play, Gentlemen," and he called out,
Norwegian accent made it sound
and a hundred francs were passed over to
placed these on the red and won, again, and

cinque francs but his

like cent francs,

him.

He

won, and again, and again,

were lying beside him.

decorated hand

slid

until eight

hundred francs

Suddenly a small diamond-

over the table and covered his

pile.

VIOLINISTS.

He

seized

it,

Immediately
"
"

287

and there was a scream and an uproar.

a clear and commanding voice said,

Madame, leave this gold alone," and,

Take your money, Sir, if you please."

to Ole Bull,

When

the

turned to look at the speaker, he found him to

violinist

be his friend of the morning, and afterward learned that

he was Vidocq, the chief of the

police.
The other
was when he found himself
utterly ruined, after paying the price of an American
estate on which to settle a Norwegian colony, and having
the company
to restore the land to the rightful owner

exceptional period of his

life

from

was

whom he bought it
man of marvellous

recovered

from

that

having no

title

He

whatever.

energy, or he could never have

shock,

but

he

started

again

with his violin and bow, and righted himself completely.

Another interesting episode

his

meeting

with his first wife.

in this artiste's career is

The

cholera

in Paris shortly after the time of the

and a house

He

was raging

Vidocq incident,

which he removed was invaded by it.

no employment, and night after night he

to

could find

used to wander about the street in positive want

his eight
last

hundred

very long.

streets,

he saw a

for

francs, after paying his debts, did not

One
little

day, while roaming through the

ticket in the

in the rue des Martyrs, "

window

of a house

Furnished rooms to

let."

He

and when he rang the bell and the

door was opened, a young lady cried, " Look at him,

ascended the

stairs,

Grandmama."

Grandmama

put on her glasses, looked

and the tears welled up in her eyes. He was

the picture of a son she had just lost, and was told to
He had
come back next day. It was high time.
at him,

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's

288

GUIDfi.

stopped opposite that house because he

he could
go no farther from sheer exhaustion, and he was no
sooner in it than he was attacked by brain fever.

When
by

as

felt

if

consciousness returned, the old lady was sitting

him as

his bedside nursing

if

she had been his

own

mother, and the young lady was Alexandrine Felicie

Villeminot, his future wife.

Sometimes

his irrepressible sense of

an impediment

in his path.

from fever he applied

for

humour proved

Shortly after his recovery

an appointment

in the Opera

Competitors for the place were tested

Comique band.

when he went forward to the

him was so extraordinarily
the
spur
of the moment he asked at
simple, that on
which end he was to begin. The examiner did not see
the fun of it, but, without replying, rejected him without
in

playing at sight, and

desk the music placed

He had

a hearing.

the discovery

another very laughable experience

with fiddle varnish.

made

for

gentleman named Lacour had

like

so

many

others

that by the

use of his particular varnish an ordinary fiddle could

be made equal to a Cremonese instrument.

was thqn a

little

Ole Bull

over twenty-one, and a good old chest-

nut like this was quite a novelty to him, so he arranged

with Lacour to play on a fiddle varnished by his pro-

by the Duke of
Riario, the Italian minister at Paris, and was a splendid
opportunity for the young man, so, armed with the
cess.

It

precious

was

to be at a Soiree given

instrument,

he determined

to

possible, the turning point in his career.

the apartment,

filled

make it,
The heat

if

of

with a brilliant company, was so

intense that the varnish on the fiddle began to smell in

VIOLINISTS.

a most offensive degree.

289

Assafoetida entered largely

into the composition of the varnish,

paratively new.

At

first it

and

it

was com-

merely annoyed him

slightly,

but as he played on and the heat of his chin and neck

worked up the varnish

at the tail piece, the smell

dreadful just under his nose, and

when he

was

realised that

room in his
became quite excited.
The warmth of the contact between fiddle and chin
increased, the heat of the room increased, and the
He was a
odour seemed to treble in pungency.

the horrible odour must be permeating the

immediate

player

neighbourhood,

who

could

but he could

not

he

turn his head round a good

remove the

became almost unendurable.

fiddle,

bit,

and the agony

Furiously he played on,

the hideous odour growing worse and worse, until he

quite expected to be saluted with smiles and laughter

amid a general stampede from

had
of

finished, the smiles

congratulation

were

from

all

his vicinity.

his,

When

he

but they were smiles

sides,

no

one seemingly

having observed what was so painfully near his own

olfactories.

It

was an awful experience, however, which

made him duly cautious in similar circumstances

From this time
for the whole term of his natural life.
onward his evil fortune passed away and almost every

probably

important town in the civilised world had a

him,

and many

His

first

of

them more than

appearance in

1836, a feat

this

country was on

which he succeeded

visit

from

May

21st,

one.

in

achieving after the

most extraordinary, tricky intrigue against him on the

part

of that

curiously envious violinist, Nicolas Mori.

After this, his successes were of an altogether exceptional

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

290
character,

and

GUIDE.

about eighteen months, he almost

for

The Duke of Devonhad him down at Chatsworth for rest and quiet,
and forbade him to play, but on one occasion he played
there till midnight, with results which caused the Duke
to make the prohibition absolute, and take means to see
wore himself out giving concerts.

shire

was enforced. In this year he was married in Paris

young lady whose grandmother had been so kind
Shortly after,
to him, and they returned to London.
he arranged for a tour in the United States, and subsethat

it

to the

quently passed

many

years of his

he evolved that scheme

for

ended

but

so disastrously,

circumstances of his

widow

in her

memoir

life

America, where

in

Norwegian
so

All

young man,

the

by

his

of her distinguished husband,

and

life

are delightfully told

When

the above details are taken from that work.

was

which

settlers,

honourably.

had the honour

to receive

some

slight

personal directions in violin playing from him,

and

have a very vivid recollection

of the

extreme

kindness of his manner, and the dignity of his bearing.

He was an exceedingly tall, and exceptionally handsome

man. He was a very enthusiastic student of old violins,
and was fond of carrying out, and seeing carried
out, experiments in the direction tending to reveal the

supposed mysteries of their manufacture.

at different times,

many

which he called his

quite famous.

He

is,

He

possessed,

and the one

" Gasparo da Salo," has become
I

fine instruments,

fancy,

the

only violinist

who

ever played a solo on the top of the pyramid of Cheops,

a curious feat which he accomplished on his sixty-sixtli
birthday,

completely enthralling the

Bedouins about

VIOLINISTS.

him

until

291

he had finished, when they sprang to their

on the summit of the old world structure, as

charged with

electricity,

and

shouted

feet

suddenly

if

name

the

of

"Allah! Allah!"
In the

month

of July, 1880, Ole Bull

was taken

ill

in

Liverpool after landing from his last trip from America.

When
to his

the symptoms grew violent, he insisted on sailing

home in the island of Lysoe, where he had built him-

self a beautiful

house.

Dr. Moore, of Liverpool, accom-

panied him and attended him to the

When

last.

melancholy home coming was ended, and the great

was

laid in his

music room overlooking the waters of the

Bjorne Fjord, after a short period of

fears, there

the

man

fitful

hopes and

he died, regretted by the whole world of

music-loving people high and low.

He

is

and the

when

buried in the centre of the old Bergen Cemetery,

finest of all tributes

after all

memory was

paid to his

the funeral orations had been delivered,

and the wreaths put on

his

grave, and

mourners had departed, poor peasants from

the country around

Bergen slipped up

hundreds, placed their

in

green

the

regular

all

parts of

to the grave,

and

boughs, ferns, and

flowers on the last resting place of their great friend.

WILLIAM BERNHARD MOLIQUE.

This master was born in Nuremberg

had

his first

tuition

in

from his father, who

1802.
filled

He
some

King Maximilian L of Bavaria,

young Molique's talent, and had him sent to
Munich to be trained by Pietro RoveUi. Two years
civic post as musician.

noticed

later,

Molique accepted a position

V2

in the

Court Chapel

THE FIDDLE FANCIERS GUIDE.

^92

Vienna, and a year after that Rovelli died, and the

in

young viohnist was recalled to Munich to fill Rovelli's

Spohr is understood to have given him some
suggestions both in regard to violin playing and

place.

composition.
1826, he

Molique made his

first

tour in

went to an important appointment

1822.

In

in Stuttgart,

and from there he made annual tours throughout Europe

during his vacation, and until 1849, when he almost permanently settled here in London.
He remained twenty
years in this country, and wrote concertos, quartets,

Some .of his melodies

and grand sonatas.

pathetic,

861 he

1836, but did not please the taste there.

was appointed

professor of composition at

Royal Academy of Music, and

the

later.

stadt

He

and of an exceedingly refined character.

tried Paris in

In

trios,

are extremely

He

retired five

years

Germany, and died at Cannon loth May, 1869.

He was a distinguished
went back

to

orchestral conductor.

HEINRICH WILHELM ERNST.

This exceptionally
Briin in 18 14.
toire

fine

He was

German master was born

at

trained at the Vienna Conserva-

under Joseph Boehm,

who

was, himself, a pupil

and a player of great eminence. It is said

that Ernst also had instruction from Mayseder, another
of Rode's,

German master
close
his

of distinction.

student of

style

sixteen,

largely.

and two years

remained there

He

was, besides, a

who probably influenced

Ernst was touring when he was

Paganini,

for

six

have enjoyed robust

later

years.

health,

he went to Paris, and

He
even

never appears to

when

travelling,

HENRY VIEUXTEMPS.

VIOLINISTS.

which he did

295

about sixteen years, visiting

for

chief towns in Europe.

His

first

appearance

all

the

in this

country was in 1844, but he ultimately resided permanently in London. In the course of time he had to
relinquish violin playing altogether in consequence of the

nervous trouble to which he eventually succumbed at

No one who has heard him

" Elegie," will readily forget the

Nice on 8th October, 1865.

play his

exquisite

remarkably

beautiful character of tone which

succeeded in drawing from his fine " Stradavari."

addition to above " Elegie " he

high class works for the

being exceptionally

is

he
In

author of a number of

instrument

some

of

them

difficult.

HENRI VIEUXTEMPS.
This great Belgian player was born at Verviers in

He

1820.

displayed a very early likmg for the violin,

through the kindness of an amateur

had him placed with a local teacher, and his
progress was so rapid that when he was six years old

and

his father,

friend,

he played one of Rode's concertos in public.

touring began.

In Brussels,

De

Then

tke

Beriot heard him, and

took him in charge for a few months, ultimately exhibiting him in Paris successfully.

The boy

returned home,

but with no doubt as to his future career.

started with his father on his
his

own

whole

His

world became familiar with his splendid

first visit

He had

was in
a young man

to this country

seven years later he came again,

one.

In 1833, he

professional tour on

account, and for forty years after that date, the

civilised

ability.

first

a magnificent tone and

style,

1834,

and

of twenty-

and received

fl94

FIDDLE FANCIER S GUIDE.

''"HE

a very flattering reception.

or twice, where the

greeted him.
resumed

He

He

visited

same enthusiasm
Russia

871, to

greater

for six years,

but

his journeyings over the face of the earth,

and

settled in

continued them until he settled

America once

perhaps

fill

the place of

De

down

in

Brussels in

Beriot at the Conservatoire.

few years afterwards a stroke of paralysis disabled

the whole of his

The

and ended

left side,

his violin playing.

terrible nature of the deprivation

realised

by the

artiste himself.

He

could only be

bore

it,

however,

very nobly, and was able tq compose for his instrument

He

afterwards.
large

number

them being

died in Algiers in 1881, and has

of compositions of various kinds,

left

among

six concertos.

EDOUARD REMENYI.
This artiste is one of that distinguished band of
Hungarian violinists which has emanated from the
Vienna Conservatoire. He was born in 1830, and was
for three years under Boehm.
Soon after he left the
Conservatoire, he joined the insurrection and had to
change his domicile. He went to America, where he
resumed his art, and in 1853 returned to Europe. In
1854 he came to London, and in
to

Hungary.

in

London

in

America,

i860 went

home

1865 he was in Paris, and in 1877

again, and, since then, he has been
In

all

over Europe

parts of the world.

and, indeed,

most

in

In 1891 he visited once more the

British metropolis, but he

was not heard

in public.

In

my

opinion,

who

should be more frequently en evidence than he has

he

is

an

artiste

of the highest

grade,

VIOLINISTS.

been during the

splendid

cannot

who has with

player

twenty years.

last

technique,

295

Apart from

his

name

any

recall the

greater delicacy, grace,

and

of

feeling,

interpreted

the national airs of whatever country he

might

for

fix

on

purposes of musical exposition.

When

he came here in 1854, ^^ was

the

made "solo violinist to

Queen," and when he returned to Hungary in i860,

he received an appointment of equal importance at the

Austrian Court.

JOSEPH JOACHIM.

This
the

artiste is

first

almost universally acknowledged to be

when Time once more

that

and

it

appears to be certain

lets his

curtain descend on a

of living violinists,

great violin epoch, the doctor's

line

will

28th,

He was

born at Kitse, in Hungary, on June

83 1, and began to play the violin at five years of

His

was
when he was

instructor

first

Orchestra, and

the leader of the Pesth

was

ten, he

Conservatoire at Vienna, where Joseph

charge of the violin classes.

Leipsic, to Ferdinand David,

was head
him.

be found in

with those of Corelli, Tartini, Viotti, Paganini, and

Ole Bull.

age.

name

He

Two

sent to the

Boehm had

still

years later he went to

where Mendelssohn, who

of the Conservatoire, took special interest in

had, before this, played in public, though not,

perhaps, under such distinguished auspices

occasion of his

first

appearance

himself accompanied

in Leipsic,

him on the piano.

for,

on the

Mendelssohn

From

that

period his career has been one of uninterrupted success

and ever increasing

which he played

distinction.

in this

The

first

occasion on

country was when Mendelssohn

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

296

came

to conduct the Philharmonic season in 1844,

when

he appeared at a concert at Drury Lane, and again on

May

27th, at the Philharmonic.

He was

thirteen years of age, but already a master,

than

for

more

years, season after season, he has maintained

fifty

his high position.

It

lover of art that Dr.

He

then only

and

must be the wish

of every true

Joachim may long remain with

us.

has received a large number of decorations from the

various fountains of earthly honour, and he would be a

very pretty sight indeed

appreciative

had,

may

mark

all.
The most
and esteem which he ever

he wore them

if

of affection

not be the beautiful Stradivari violin pre-

sented to him on his Jubilee, by friends and admirers in

this country, but

it

will not

come very

far

behind

it.

LUDWIG STRAUSS.
This fine performer

was born

at

music.

He

is

another pupil of Boehm's.

He

Pressburg in 1835, and early distinguished

himself, becoming a colleague of Mayseder's in concerted
has occupied several high posts on the

and has gone

Continent,

through the usual touring

curriculum with Signor Piatti, and

He

players.

manently

first

in 1864,

came here

and is a

in

other important

i860,

and then

per-

solo player of great distinction.

JOHN TIPLADY CARRODUS.

was born at Keighley in

and was a public
performer before he was twelve years old. At that age
he came to London to study under Molique, who was
here at the time, and he accompanied that artiste to
This great English

1836.

He

started

violinist

very

early,

JOHN TIPLADY CARRODUS

(President of the College of Violinists).

VIOLINISTS.

Stuttgart,

He

where he remained

then returned, and

Soon

after this,

filled

until

297
he was about eighteen.

an appointment in Glasgow.

he attracted the attention of Sir Michael

whose judgment recognised in the young

violinist those qualities which ultimately brought him to
the very front. Costa invited him to join the Royal Italian
Opera, and soon after he passed to " Her Majesty's "
as leader, and finally, back to the R.I.O. in the same
distinguished capacity.
His master, Molique, was a
magnificent leader, and his mantle has fallen on Mr.
Carrodus, who, at present, leads the most important
orchestras in this country.
He has published a number
of original compositions for the violin and piano, as well
as educational works for his instrument, and as a solo
player, he is immensely popular.
Costa,

Lady Halle
This lady
of the age.
first

is

[nee

Neruda).

one of the most distinguished players

She was a very

little girl

magnificently incisive tone which

stroke of her bow,

performer
five

indeed

when she

appeared here at a Philharmonic Concert, but the

who

is

now responds

to the

not surpassed by that of any

visits these shores.

For nearly twenty-

years there has been no more popular

artiste in this

She was a pupil of Jansa, before he came to

London, but the art of violin playing runs in her blood.
For nearly two hundred years the members of her

country.

family have been violinists, and,

if

there

is

anything in

the influence of heredity, one need hardly be surprised

that her splendid style

and technique should make many

THE FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE.

298

a fine male performer quail.

few years ago, she was

married to Sir Charles Halle, the distinguished conductor

and

pianist.

MARTIN MELITON SARASATE.

*
.

This favourite

was born

violinist

^^

Navarre, on loth March, 1844.

Pablo de Sarasate, and

Saragossa,

in

said to

is

Why

1846.

Pampeluna,

in

have been born

writer

may be

is,

such

modern

artiste

In 1879 a

explained as follows.

named Hans HoflFman published

a farce in which

the hero, a certain famous violinist called Nicotini,

silly women who
who get themselves and

in

be

there should

diversity of information regarding a great

such as he

in

sometimes called

^^

is

tormented .by two

are his passionate

admirers, and

others into trouble

by their stupid conduct. Nicotini is desirous of travelling

incognito, but these curious dames find him out to be
Sarasate, and the name of the farce is " Pablo de
Sarasate."

suppose the distinguished

way, come to be baptised

in this

man

name.

has, in this
also fancy

that Saragossa has been given as his birthplace through

some phonetic confusion between

sounds of " Sarasate."
certainly, but

it is

It is

name, and the

its

Aragon, and a

in the province of

cannot be born, in an earthly sense,

discrepancy in the dates

first

not very far from Pampeluna,

in

two

do not attempt

places.

man
The

to explain.

Senor Sarasate was quite young when he was taken

to Paris,

and entered the Conservatoire

in

1856, but

previous to that he had appeared at public concerts in

Spain,

it is

said as

early as

1851,

and had received

substantial tokens of approval from very exalted quarters.

MARTIN MELITON SARASATE,

Known

as

PABLO SARASATE.

VIOLINISTS.

one of these tokens being

There

1,000.

in the

form of a

sum,

violin

at least

violins valued

none which could be alienated

from their surroundings.

tion of the esteem in

But

which

it is

this

a clear

enough indica-

wonderful

violinist

held at even that early age, and there can be

violin

classes

little

was

doubt

worth that sum now, and

that the instrument will be

probably more.

worth

probably some exaggeration in this

Forty years ago there were no

statement.
at such a

is

299

Delphin Alard, the then head of the

in

the

Conservatoire, and

himself a

virtuoso of the very highest rank, recognised the genius

and young Sarasate gained the first prize

two subjects, violin and solfeggio, in 1857. Two

of his pupil,
in

years later he had another success in the harmony class,

but did not then follow

it

up.

He was

preparing for

those great triumphs which he had not long to wait for.

In Paris,

all

over France,

Spain, Portugal,

Scandinavia, Russia, Italy,

India, America,

Germany,
and last,

though, probably, not least in his estimation, in this

country, the rapturous enthusiasm which his graceful,
accurate, sympathetic, and altogether superb style of

playing has aroused has rarely,

His

if

ever,

been surpassed.

London was in 1874, ^^^ ^^^ second in

He came again in the following year. Recently

first visit to

1877.

he has not missed a season, to the great delight of musicloving people, and devotees ofhis instrument.

The amount

of work which he will go through on one platform, and

without a note before him,

might well

fill

is

something astounding, and

one with a sense of deep humiliation at the

cruel exactions which his greedy audiences sometimes

make upon him.

But with unfailing courtesy, he always

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

300

GUIDE.

" comes up smiling," and destroys their

chances of

some

lovely thing

learning to be considerate by playing

which simply enlarges their appetites.

EMILE SAURET.
This
at the

artiste,

who

at present directs the violin classes

Royal Academy of Music, won

his spurs in this

country nearly a quarter of a century ago.

born in 1852

in

Dun

le

musical tuition at home.

sent to the

He was

Roi, and received his earliest

Shortly afterwards he was

Paris Conservatoire, and later to that of

and became a conspicuous representative of

His first visit to
country was in 1866. In the three years following

Brussels,
of the
this

French and Belgian Schools.

he toured through France and

1874 ^^ was in

Europe and

is

America.

now

In

Italy.

From

1877 he

1870 to

returned to

the distinguished successor to the

late Professor Sainton.

CHAPTER

IX.

Masses anb lOass

THEmust be sought
origin of the

the violin,

but there

|31ai)crs.

and the double bass

violoncello
in the

is

no

same

direction as that of

specific date at

which

it

can

be said that either of them sprang into existence any

more than

a similar statement can be

made

in regard to

the smallest of the tribe.

There

less ingenious speculation

on the point, and some par-

ticularly

is

plenty of more or

dogmatic conclusions, which, however, owe

their apparent finality entirely to the peculiarly positive

individualism of the writers.

is

called in Italy

the

The double bass

contrabasso, is

or,

as

it

supposed to represent

the Violone, which probably existed there as early as the

fifteenth century,

and the

'cello is

merely a smaller bass.

Their names will be better understood

that viola

was

the tribe.
(for

the generic term for

names

of the

is

and

violon'cello

viol "

and the

no trace of either of

but that

employed.

It

of

most celebrated makers of them from

having been used

violin,

explained

members

lesser large

Gasparo da Salo (Bertolottis) onward

be found in the two lists already given.
There

the

a " large viol,"

means
means a "

Violone

violonecello)

if it is

all

to

these

Panormo

will

instruments

for solo purposes until long after the

is

no proof that they were not so

merely suggests that the interest which

the basses evoked was of a character too evanescent to

THE FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

302

justify recording the

One of

achievements of their exponents.

the earHest performers on the 'cello

was

JACOPO BASSEVI.

This play6r was born

first

in

Italy

He was

1682.

in

heard of in England in 1728, when he became a

member

of the

was known by
"

Drury Lane band

the

name

signifies

manager

of the Theatre

about ;^20,ooo

He

player, but

to

who

that year.

He.

nickname which

He afterwards became
and made a handsome fortune

stag."

little

for those days.

in

of Cervetto, a

money

died in 1783, leaving his

his son

who was

James,

also a 'cello

retired after his father's death.

ANTONIO VANDINI.
This player was held

in high esteem by the famous

and the two travelled about a little
Hardly anything is known of Vandini apart

Tartini,

violinist

together.

from his connection with Tartini.

They were

of Padua.

Vandini was alive

in 1770,

Prague
Anthony

in

together and both were in the orchestra of St.

and was then an

old man.

GIORGIO ANTONIOTTI.

This 'cellist was born in the vicinity of Milan in 1692,

and lived for a time in Holland, where he published
some music. He was also in London for many years
and died in Milan in 1776.
FRANCISCELLO.

A
No

great player of

music of

his

whom

nothing

is

certainly

known.

has been discovered, and no trace of

BASSES AND BASS PLAYERS.

his birth or

death

him are three

The

accessible.

is

303

only references to

or four in number, but these are by such

eminent musicians, and are generally couched

enthusiastic terms

was

that

in

such

must conclude that he

one

a violoncello player /'a/ excellence.

Quantz, the great

heard him in Naples in 1725.

German violinist, heard him in Vienna in

flute player,

Benda, a

1730, and
two other references
complete the sources of information, and they yield little

One

speaks of him as a marvel.

or

but praise.

JOHN CROSDILL

Was
in

a very distinguished 'cello player, and

London

Westminster
'cellist,

in the

appearing

musically educated at

choir, but

became a professional
for some years as
He was also appointed

at

Gloucester

principal bass at the festivals.

to the leading desk at the

when

that institution

was born

He was

in 1751.

was

Concert of Ancient Music,

In

started in 1776.

addition

he held an appointment in the Chapel Royal, and was

a

member

of the

King's Band,

musician to Queen Charlotte, and

IV.

He

chamber
George
and retired

as well as
'cello

tutor to

married a wealthy lady in 1788,

from ordinary professional work, but continued to hold

his official

appointments until his death which occurred

in Yorkshire, in 1825.

He was

Society of Musicians, and

left

member

of the Royal

them ^1,000.

LUIGI BOCCHERINI.

This Italian master was born at Lucca in 1740. He

a magnificent performer on the 'cello, although he

was

THE FIDDLE FANCIER

304
is,

probably, better

known

GUIDE.

as a composer.

He

went

to

Paris in 1768, but there were two or three very distinguished players in the French metropolis at that time,

and

on that account, were not so

his performances,

He

highly appreciated.

where he died
J.

ultimately settled in Madrid,

in 1805.

BAPTISTE-AIME JOSEPH JANSON.

This artiste was born at Valenciennes in 1742. His

appearance in Paris was made when he was about

first

fourteen.

He

then travelled a good deal, and

Paris Conservatoire was established, he

professor of the
is

'cello.

He

was

in Paris,

John

the

was appointed

died in Paris in 1803.

said to have given lessons to

latter

when

Crosdill,

when

He
the

which appears to be a mistake.

JEAN PIERRE DUPORT.

great

who was born

'cellist,

His

died in Berlin in 181 8.

at the Concert Spirituel

He came

at Paris in

first

1741,

and

appearance was made

when he was twenty years

old.

and in 1771, went to

Spain. In 1773 he went to Berlin, where he remained
the recipient of various court favours and appointments.
to this country in 1769,

JEAN LOUIS DUPORT.

brother of the preceding, was born in Paris in 1749.

His brother had the chief duty of training him, and soon

made him

a splendid player.

ance in 1768.

He

went

He made

his first appear-

to Berlin, to his brother, after

the revolution, and there he was treated with similar

appreciation.

Returning to Paris in 1806, he astonished

BASSES AND BASS PLAYERS.

305

by the purity and vigour of his style, and

maintained his supremacy until within a year or so of
his death, which occurred in 1 819.
his audience

BERNHARD ROMBERG.
This great

was born

artiste

He was

in 1767.

musicians, nearly

whom

of

all

Bernhard's

ments.

Germany,

at Dinklage, in

one of a family of most talented

first

played different instru-

important appearance was at the

Concert Spirituel in Paris, when he was eighteen, and

from that date gradually acquired the distinction of being

the head of the

German School

of 'cellists,

leading player in the world of his day.

He

if

not the

travelled all

over the European Continent, making short engage-

ments here and

there,

and

this

country seems to have

He was

been the only one in which he did not play.

one of the professors in the Conservatoire at Paris

short time,

and died

at

Hamburg

for a

in 1841,

JUSTUS JOHANN FRIEDRICH DOTZAUER.

famous

This

'cellist

was the son

of a

Protestant

clergyman at Hcesselrieth, near Hildburghausen, and

was born in 1783. He began the study of the instru-

ment

early,

1799.

and was put under Kriegek at Meiningen in

with him for a year, and was then

He was

musician at the Court of the

appointed a

Coburg, a place he held

went to Leipsic, and

for

in 181

four years.
to

In

He

'cello,

is

until his

author of a splendid " School " for the

and a number

of

1805, he

Dresden, to the Chapel

Royal there, a connection which he retained

death.

Duke

of other works,

THU FIDDLE FANCIER's GUIDE.

306

ROBERT LINDLEY.

distinguished native player,

was born

at

Rotherham

His father taught him the violin and the

1776.
'cello, and when he was about sixteen, he became a

in

pupil of

James " Cervetto," son

When

Jacopo Bassevi.

of the previously

named

Lindley was eighteen he was

principal 'cellist at the opera, and, until 1851,

when he

no one succeeded in unseating him from the

retired,

He
He

various distinguished positions which he occupied.

was

a beautiful player in every sense of the word.

died in 1855.

ALFREDO
This great Italian artiste
half

nearly
'cellists.

century,

He was

is

the

PIATTI.

now, and has been,

for

King of
1822, and was

acknowledged

born in Bergamo, in

trained by his grand uncle Zanetti, and, on his death,

at the

Milan Conservatoire under Merighi.

his first public

appearance when he was

He made

seven years afterwards, came to this country.

one of those artistes

whom

and,

fifteen,

He

Mendelssohn loved, and

is

is

truly golden link connecting us with that great musical

epoch.

Year

after year, since 1844, the

London musical

charmed by the functioning of those

splendid qualities which have placed him in almost
solitary greatness among his confreres, and during that
time of active work with the fingerboard he has contrived

public have been

to form, besides, a well-nigh perfect

school of playing

through the media of published pieces, both original

.and tranacribed.

BASSES AND BASS PLAYERS.

307

EDWARD HOWELL,

son of the famous double bass player,

fine native artistes.

at the

He was

The

music.

once heard

is

is

familiar

one of our

selected as principal 'cello

Royal Italian Opera, and

concert platform

is

his

popularity on the

chamber

to all lovers of

exquisite sweetness

and purity

of his tone

not easily forgotten.

DOMINICO DRAGONETTI.

Almost everyone has heard of this great contra-bassist,

called the first to acquire a European

who may be
reputation

for

his

performance

on the large bass.

He was

born in Venice in 1755, and was, like almost all

the great artistes on any instrument, early distinguished
for the

musical ability which he displayed.

played the guitar and violin, and

double

He

first

when he took

of all
to the

His teacher, Berini, had speedily to

him anything, and also

bass.

relinquish the attempt to teach

relinquished the place which he occupied in the orchestra

of St.

Mark,

He was
it

in order that

then eighteen, and played on his big fiddle as

were a

'cello,

a tenor, or even a

difficulties of that
is

Dragonetti might be in

day were

it.

if

small violin, and no

difficulties to

him.

story

current that in his very early days he used to accom-

pany the famous singer, Brigitta Banti, when she sang

It seems to lack
in the streets and cafes of Venice.
confirmation. He came to London in 1794, and made his
His success
first appearance at the King's Theatre.
was instantaneous, and it does not appear that he went
In the same year
back to Italy, except when on tour.
Robert Lindley had been appointed principle

W2

'cellist^

THli FIDDLE FANCIKR's GUIDE.

308

and Dragonetti and he remained

the orchestra for

in

When

over half a century, playing at the same desk.

he was ninety years old

he

led the

basses

at

the

festival at Bonn.
This was in 1845, and
months afterwards, he died at his home in Leicester

Beethoven
eight

Square (1846).

He

is

buried in St. Mary, Moorfields.

GUIESEPPI ANDREOLI.

A famous double bass player who was born in 1 757 in

Milan and became professor at the Conservatoire there.
There

is

not

much known

regarding him.

the orchestra of the great Milan opera house,

and died

He was
La

in

Scala,

in 1832.

JAMES HOWELL.
This

fine

He was

double bass player was born at Plymouth.

a precocious musician, singing in public

he was ten years

old.

He was

when

also a versatile genius,

as he played the clarionet and the piano besides the

double bass, but the

which

last

he excelled.

named was

He became

the instrument on
professor at the

its

Royal Academy of Music, where he had been a pupil

since the

time he came to

London

(1824),

and

after

Dragonetti died in 1846, Howell became the most important of the double bass players in this country.
After Dragonetti perhaps quite on a level
the world has honoured

with him

GIOVANNI BOTTESINI.

He was
first

born at Crema in Lombardy in 1823.

instrument was

thirteen years old he

the

went

violin,

to

but

His

when he was

Milan, and studied the

BASSES AND BASS PLAYERS.

309

double bass in the Conservatoire there.

His master

was Louis Rossi, another great player of whom little is

known. Bottesini was seventeen when he began his
musical tours throughout
six years,

when he went

Italy.

to

These lasted about

Havanna

as leader of the

became musical director.'

Havanna, and during that time

theatre there, and shortly after

He was five years in

composed his opera " Cristoval Colon
He

Columbus).

also visited the

occasion offered, and

made

"

(Christopher

United States when

a great name.

He came

back to Europe in 1851, and returned to the States with

A year later he went to Mexico, and
Jullien in 1853.
then returned to Europe.

He made

a great sensation

and was called the " Paganini " of

double bass players. During a stay in Paris of two
years he produced his " Siege of Florence," and started
once more on his travels through France, Belgium,
in this country,

England, Holland, and Germany, and finished up with

Italy in 1859.

there

saw the

Another opera, "

light,

II

Diavolo della Notte,"

and from that date

until his recent

lamented decease (1890) he was constantly before the

public, composing operas, playing solos, or founding
societies.

No

who

one

the amazing beauty

has heard him will readily forget

of his tone,

the wonderful violin

like rapidity of his execution, or the exquisite

of his music.

He

was,

all

sweetness

over the world, enthusiasti-

whether as head of the opera at Cairo, or

producing his " Ali Baba " in London, but I think I

cally admired,

shall

never forget one bright afternoon, when the great

artiste

came

what should have been an overflowown countrymen. The veteran was

before

ing house of his

THK FIDDLE FANCIKR

3IO

GUIDH.

and ten, and he played as

him play. He and the
artistes who rallied round him made the few who were
present immensely happy, and those who were absent,
and might have been there, have one delightful memory
nearing his

three-score

divinely as ever

the

less.

heard


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FIDDLE FANCIER'S GUIDE."

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que has. Paris, 1752.

Riflessioni d'un professore di violino sopf-a
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