The Cozio Carteggio

The Cozio Carteggio takes its name from Count Cozio’s notebooks, which form the first historical record of fine instruments and their makers. Each week, the Carteggio publishes features about the string world, from expert commentary on historic instruments and bows, to interviews with musicians and analysis of the string market. Contributors include Carlo Chiesa, John Dilworth, Philip J. Kass, Dmitry Gindin, Pierre Guillaume, Paul Childs, Alessandra Barabaschi and many other experts.

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Latest Feature

Salabue, la casa di Conte Cozio

A trip to Count Cozio’s historic castello in the village of Salabue, where descendants of the famous violin collector still gather to listen to music

By Jason Price

Last year a mutual acquaintance introduced me to the Davico di Quitengo family, whose ancestor in the late-18th century married Paola Cozio, sister of Alessandro Ignazio, and moved into the Cozio family castello in Salabue. Late last year the family invited me to visit them and to attend a house concert in the music room...

The British cello, part 1: why the instrument became so popular with 18th-century makers

A 1705 Brescian violin by G.B. Rogeri and a 1770 viola by the late Cremonese master Lorenzo Storioni

The history of Guilhermina Suggia’s prized 1717 Stradivari cello, by Alessandra Barabaschi

The violins of Henryk Szeryng – and why he gave most of them away, by Tully Potter

The ‘Sun-Law’ Vuillaume donated to the Tarisio Trust by its late owner, Eric Sun

Jason Price and Carlo Chiesa examine the ‘Lachmann Schwechter’ Guadagnini of 1776

Dmitry Gindin examines the place of Giulio Degani in the Veneto violin making school

The history of the only Stradivari with a Latin inscription, the ‘San Lorenzo’ from 1718

Two fine examples of Santo Serafin’s mature work – a c. 1743 violin and 1740 cello

Late-period Stradivari cellos part 1: the shorter model ‘Bein, Fruh’ of c. 1727

Jason Price takes an Amati to Italy to find out about a 3D scanning process

Jason Price discusses the Tecchler cello played by Guy Johnston

Camilla Wicks talks about her love for the Arthur Smith violin that Ruggerio Ricci gave her

Violinist Alexi Kenney on playing the ‘Joachim, Ma’ Strad; with commentary from Jason Price

Carlo Chiesa examines a rare violin by Giuseppe Caleffi of Modena

Jason Price examines the ex-Enescu Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ c. 1725

Tim Ingles examines a fine 1788 violin by Tommaso Balestrieri of Mantua

Stradivari’s ‘Archinto’ viola and its noble owner, Count Giuseppe Archinto

The young Stradivari part 2 – John Dilworth analyses the master's earliest instruments

The story of the 'Pawle, Benvenuto' Stradivari cello, a petite model from c. 1730

The life and work of Alfred Lanini, who brought Milanese style to California

Alessandra Barabaschi charts the history of Stradivari's 'Lady Inchiquin' violin of 1711

How did G.B. Guadagnini produce such successful cello models? John Dilworth investigates

Danish violin making part 3: lines of influence in the 20th century

Part 2 of Jens Stenz's Danish making survey: the golden era during the 19th century

Jens Stenz on the early Danish violin makers, who survived wars, wood shortages and bankruptcy

Highlights of Canada's Musical Instrument Bank and how it supports young musicians

A recent dendrochronology test that led to a highly exciting set of results

One of the finest 17th-century Stradivari cellos: the 1689 ‘Archinto’

Stradivari Medici quintet part 3: the two instruments that left Florence

Part 2 of our history of the Medici Strad quintet: the three instruments in Florence

A mysterious commission: part 1 of a series on the Stradivari Medici quintet, by Alessandra Barabaschi

How the pioneering Monteverdi opera L'Orfeo paved the way for the cellos of Goffriller

Ten stolen instruments and some dramatic recoveries, including the 'Ames, Totenberg'

Stradivari's sons part 2 – detecting their hands in Antonio's work

Highlights from the Paris Musée de la musique’s 7,000+ collection of instruments

Alberto Giordano investigates Paganini's intriguing ‘Il Cannone’ violin

Guarneri 'del Gesù' Part III: the late violins, by John Dilworth and Carlo Chiesa

In Part 2 of their 'del Gesù' survey, John Dilworth and Carlo Chiesa examine his middle period

The later prolific years of Leandro Bisiach, by Dmitry Gindin, Part 2

The life and work of Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ by John Dilworth and Carlo Chiesa, Part 1

Part 1 of Philip J. Kass's survey of the Turin school: the city's earliest violin makers

Jan Strick examines a fine violin by one of the many Matthijs Hofmans of Antwerp

Take a virtual tour of the Museo del Violino in Cremona, with Philip J. Kass

John Dilworth continues his survey of the Stradivari workshop's violas, Part 2

John Dilworth examines Stradivari's violas and asks why he made so few, Part 1

Florian Leonhard shares some recent discoveries about the Gragnani family

Serge Stam examines an elegant Cuijpers violin from 1767

Two instruments from the Guillami family of Barcelona

Who was who in the Tononi family? Roberto Regazzi shares the latest research

The late-Turin Guadagnini violin owned by US teacher Dorothy DeLay

A fine violin probably made by Alessandro d'Espine

Philip J. Kass examines a Pressenda violin from 1838, a momentous year for Turin's luthiers

A fine and characteristic 1701 cello from Giovanni Grancino

A violin by the exiled Girolamo Amati II, showing the maker at his strongest

Gregg Alf on the experience of copying Ruggiero Ricci's Guarneri

We examine the influence of Scarampella on the modern Mantuan school

An 1828 violin from Pressenda reveals a possible connection to Luigi Tarisio

A typically rugged 1905 violin by Scarampella, founder of the modern Mantuan school

A rare and charming pair of instruments from 19th-century Copenhagen

This c. 1690 Grancino cello was formerly a highlight of the Cooper Collection

Does this 1897 Voller Brothers' copy of the 'Vieuxtemps' Strad include deliberate mistakes?

A characteristic Aldric violin, blending Stradivari's influence with a French aesthetic

Message in a violin: the intriguing inscription inside a c. 1766 Deconet

An impressive copy of the 'Servais' Stradivari cello by Nicolas Vuillaume of Brussels

Two rare Genoese violins from the early 18th century

A rare and hastily made violin by Modena maker Angelo Soliani

A rare Forster cello made on a Stainer model for the Reverend Hole

A rare violin by the expert and restorer Simone Sacconi

A fine example from Mantuan maker Camillo Camilli, showing the influence of neighboring Cremona

This 1997 Frédéric Chaudière violin was played by Ruggiero Ricci to celebrate his 80th birthday

A fascinating example of a cello made by Cremonese neighbours Bergonzi and Storioni

How a £50 violin by Daniel Parker turned into a 'Stradivari'

A late-period Amati nicknamed the 'Spagnoletti' after an Italian-turned-Spanish virtuoso

Why the ‘Primrose’ Guarneri viola has inspired both players and makers for centuries

The astonishingly well-preserved ‘Lady Blunt’ Stradivarius of 1721

When the 'Lady Blunt' met the 'Messiah' in Oxford

This handsome Francesco Rugeri takes its name from the Italian child prodigy Maria Milanollo

Two fine Neapolitan viola d’amores in superb condition

Hollywood music mogul George E. Stoll's fine Amati violin

A petite c. 1760 violin that shows C. F. Landolfi's excellent capabilities

The composite 1717 Stradivarius cello played by Amaryllis Fleming

A rare violin by the 18th-century Venetian master Francesco Gobetti

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