Generally speaking, instrument backs are made of maple. And most of the time, they are either in one piece,...

Prior to the 18th century, there was no real industry of violin restorers and repairers. If an instrument was...

Instruments by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume were all the rage in the mid-19th century. His production was vast and his clientele...

New York has always attracted the best and the brightest. But it also attracts its fair share of troublemakers...

Born in 1935, in the countryside outside São Paulo, Brazil, Luiz Bellini originally trained as a wood carver. As...

To honor his legacy, Francis’s family, with the Violin Society of America, have established a memorial fund, dedicated to...

This may be the only article you’ll ever read about a counterfeit Guarneri and a celebrity circus elephant. How...

As none other, Francois Tourte was born to make bows. We must imagine him as a young man at...

It is perhaps surprising that so much remains unknown about the origins and training of the most famous violin...

We begin with Florentine Chanot, the first woman documented to have made violins under her own name. Her husband’s...

The period in which Guarneri made the ‘Baltic’ was significant for the young maker: He moved into a new...

Celebrated French bowmaker Stéphane Thomachot consigned a particularly meaningful bow to our March Berlin sale: the gold mounted viola...

The ‘Baltic’ takes its name from “an old Baltic family by the name of von Giese which no longer...

In 1733 Cremona was home to three master violin makers: Antonio Stradivari, Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ and Carlo Bergonzi. The...

In anticipation of Thursday’s sale of the ‘ex-Perlman, Klausner’ Peter Guarneri of Venice, we prepared a small round-up of...

Over the course of the 20th century, three important female violinists made their careers with the 1709 ‘Scotta’ Stradivari:...

Data shows that instruments follow musicians and the economic trends of our times.

In the 19th century there were two important Stradivari cellos in Russia. The first was the 1712 ‘Davidoff’, the...

There are fewer than a dozen surviving cellos by Pietro Giacomo Rogeri and this example, dating from circa 1715,...

This week's Carteggio features an excerpt from Dmitry Gindin's new book The Modern Italian Violinmakers. Many of the chapters...

For decades, the history of the ‘Bennett, Reifenberg, Brooks’ eluded scholars even as its stories were hidden in plain...

This week's carteggio presents an excerpt from the forthcoming publication TOURTE by Paul Childs and Duane Rosengard with additional...

Last week, I shared an overview of our July sale in New York. Today, I'm going to look more...

Our July auction in New York includes an exciting range of instruments, and this week, I’m pleased to share...

Born on October 13, 1911 into a family of musicians in Biarritz, André Navarra was, from an early age,...

There are roughly half a dozen surviving Guarneri violas, and the ‘Primrose’, dated 1697, the year before Andrea’s death,...

This fine violin dates from Carlo Bergonzi’s last period when he was working in close collaboration with his son...

Any responsible discussion of violin labels begins with a caveat: most labels you will see are false. Refuse to...

Philip J. Kass and Andrea Zanrè are the authors of the forthcoming book Liuteria Mantovana. Based on new research...

'First class. Ranks among the 10 finest specimens in existence.[1] With this sentence Emil Herrmann, like many other experts...

Last week I introduced the Balestrieri, Vuillaume and Testore from our March auction and this week I want to...

I am pleased to offer an advance preview of some highlights from our March auction. It's a diverse and...

In this week’s Carteggio, Tarisio’s founder, expert and director, Jason Price, examines Wihan’s cello, a rare and important instrument...

Paul Martin Siefried passed away on November 28, 2019. While Paul was an excellent bowmaker, it was his work...

This exceptionally fine 1929 Fagnola violin dates to the maker’s most desirable period. We present it as a highlight...

This spirited violin by Giovanni Pistucci dating from c. 1930 is made as a copy of Raffaele and Antonio...

Marino Capicchioni was born in the Republic of San Marino, at the southern end of the Italian region of...

Marco Dobretsovich was a fine and disciplined maker who kept very much within the confines of his Bolognese training...

The life of Bernardo Calcagno, who rose from valet to fine violin maker in 18th-century Genoa

Our latest maker challenge, featuring the highlights from our March 2020 London auction

Carlo Chiesa discusses the Rugeri family workshop and its connections with other Cremona makers of the era

Gioffredo Cappa part 2: Julian Hersh discusses his style, which blends the Amati aesthetic with Piedmontese influences

Gioffredo Cappa part 1: what do we know about the life of this elusive Piedmont maker? By Julian Hersh

Hans Benning pays tribute to his friend, the much-loved bow maker Bill Watson, who died earlier this year

The formation of Gand & Bernardel: part 4 of Lupot and his successors by Gael Francais

Jason Price pays tribute to his first violin making teacher, Renato Scrollavezza, who has died aged 92

Why is there such a price discrepancy between Vuillaume and his talented contemporaries, asks Marie Turini-Viard

Nicolas Lupot and his successors part 3: Charles Adolphe Gand and the struggle to keep his father’s prestigious titles

Carlo Chiesa explains how a stabbing brought about the end of the Grancino workshop in Milan

Nicolas Lupot and his successors part 2: the career of Lupot’s finest pupil, Charles François Gand

From infamous fakes to respected fine violins – how views of the Voller Brothers’ work have changed over time

A new series on Nicolas Lupot and his long line of successors, by Gael Francais

Veteran violin maker Giancarlo Guicciardi talks about being a pupil of Ansaldo Poggi

Letters between Vuillaume and Richelme give a glimpse of violin making in 19th-century France

Andrea Amati part 2: John Dilworth examines his surviving instruments

One thing we know about Andrea Amati is his name. Or do we? John Dilworth investigates

Two talented bow makers whose careers were sadly cut short, part 2: Lionel Tasquier

Two talented bow makers whose careers were sadly cut short, part 1: Pascal Lauxerrois

Marc Rosenstiel hunts down the earliest French makers and their rare surviving instruments

A portrait of Markneukirchen in 1907, by the illustrator James Montgomery Flagg

The maker who established the Ferrara school, Alessandro Mezzadri, and his enduring influence

Paul Sadka interviews the Hungarian luthier Stefano Conia in his Cremona workshop

Eugenio Praga, the gentleman–luthier who became the first curator of the Paganini ’Cannon’ violin

The British cello, part 2: the role of the village band in the rise of the instrument

Zheng Quan pays tribute to his former teacher, Gio Batta Morassi

Jan Špidlen shares the story of his great-grandfather František Špidlen’s career

The Mantegazza family of Milan, whose clients included Nicolò Paganini, Alessandro Rolla and Count Cozio

The Roman violin maker Rodolfo Marchini speaks candidly about his teacher, Giuseppe Lucci

New research into life of Giulio Degani after his emigration to the US in 1915

The story of Thomas Wenberg’s epic journey across America to interview violin makers

A rare letter written by J.B. Vuillaume just after the Paris Commune of 1871

John Dilworth goes in search of the Bologna priest nicknamed ‘Dom Nicolo Amati’

Late-period Stradivari cellos part 2: the B piccola model ‘Vaslin Composite’

François-Louis Pique part 2: his adoption of the Stradivari style

The career of François-Louis Pique, who lived through the French Revolution

Violinist Ittai Shapira looks back on 20 years with his 1745 Guadagnini

Philip J. Kass shares new findings about Giuseppe Ceruti’s move to Mantua in 1838

An interview with veteran Cremona maker Francesco Bissolotti

Dimitri Musafia explains why a violin case found in Milan was probably made in the Stradivari workshop

Nikolai Kittel part 2: the later work of the Russian bow maker

Some new and unexpected details about N.L. Tourte and his two wives

Part 2 of John Dilworth’s analysis of Carlo Bergonzi’s life and work

The life of the enigmatic Cremonese maker Carlo Bergonzi, by John Dilworth

Examining the place of Nikolai Kittel in 19th-century Russia, by Klaus Grünke and Josef Gabriel

Stefan Hersh examines a fine 1740 cello by the Venetian Santo Serafin

In a candid interview Renato Scrollavezza looks back over his long career

The life of Jago Peternella, a prolific yet restless maker who worked in seven different cities

An exclusive interview with Cremona’s G.B. Morassi, by Paul Sadka

Brescia part 2 – Maggini, Rogeri and the later Brescian makers

How the early Brescia school developed in parallel with Cremona, by John Dilworth

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

The life of Bologna maker Otello Bignami, by Roberto Regazzi

The life of Guarneri 'filius Andreae', born 350 years ago, by Claudio Amighetti

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

Who taught Antonio Stradivari? John Dilworth looks at the evidence

The Englishman who became Australia’s foremost 20th-century violin maker: A.E. Smith

Rudolph Hopfner investigates the history of Vienna's violin making tradition

Füssen part 2: why its instrument making declined in the 18th century

Rudolf Hopfner explores the early history of Füssen's instrument makers

The contribution of the Gemünder family to early American violin making

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

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

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

The influence of Ira and Asa Warren White on the early New England making tradition

The life and tragic death of prolific Brooklyn maker William Wilkanowski

This self-rehairing bow by Persoit provides the missing link with Vuillaume

A webchat with violin maker Sam Zygmuntowicz on the subject of sound production

Part 2 of our history of the Stradivari ‘Medici’ Quintet: the three instruments in Florence

The rare Spanish court maker Vincente Assensio, by Jorge Pozas

Part 4 of Philip J. Kass's Turin school survey: the 20th century, Fagnola and Oddone

Dmitry Gindin's survey of Cremonese influence part 2: the explosion of copying in the 19th century

Stradivari's earliest followers: part 1 of Dmitry Gindin's survey of Cremonese influence

Philip J. Kass continues his Turin survey with part 3: the 19th-century from Pressenda to Rinaldi

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

John Dilworth goes in search of Stradivari's sons, part 1

The mysterious maker Nikolai Kittel and his lavish bows

Daniel Brückner examines the fine bows of Franz Albert Nürnberger Junior

Part 2 of our Turin series by Philip J. Kass: the Guadagnini family

Guarneri 'del Gesù' Part IV: Carlo Chiesa and John Dilworth search for the man behind the myths

Charles Beare shares memories of his friend Jacqueline du Pré and her cellos

Memories of the American expert and former Wurlitzer manager Dario D'Attili

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

A rare 1920s film featuring James Reynold Carlisle and the young Rembert Wurlitzer

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

Pierre Guillaume explains how a bow stamped 'Bonnard' led to the discovery of a forgotten maker

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

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

They mystery of how many Stradivari moulds actually survive from Count Cozio's collection

New research by Andrew Fairfax into the life and travels of Vincenzo Panormo

Florian Leonhard shares some recent discoveries about the Gragnani family

Nicolò Amati’s life and legacy, part 2, by Carlo Chiesa

Carlo Chiesa examines the life and legacy of Nicolò Amati, Part 1

The life of talented bow maker Charles Leggatt, whose career was cut short by World War I

Serge Stam examines an elegant Cuijpers violin from 1767

How the work of Pajeot and Simon inspired bow maker Peter Oxley’s own design

Two instruments from the Guillami family of Barcelona

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

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 of Milan

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

Gregg Alf recalls the experience of copying Ruggiero Ricci’s Guarneri, the ‘Huberman’

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

We examine the influence of Scarampella on the modern Mantuan school, part 2

A typically rugged violin by Stefano Scarampella, who was founder of the modern Mantuan school, part 1

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?

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

An 1803 Forster cello made on a Stainer model for the Reverend A. 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

How a £50 violin by Daniel Parker turned into a ‘Stradivari’

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

Pierre Guillaume talks about Charles Peccatte’s successful bow model

Expert Pierre Guillaume on a Sartory in pristine condition

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

A spectacular example from the supreme exponent of French making, Nicolas Lupot

A rare Vuillaume workshop picture bow with a lens in the eye of the frog

Four fine early 20th-century English bows by James Tubbs

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

A petite c. 1760 violin that shows C.F. Landolfi’s excellent capabilities as a maker

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