VIOLIN JOURNAL

A Mason Clarke: The Violin and Old Violin Makers.

Music For Strings — Sun, 06 Nov 2005 12:00:00 +0000

Fragment from the The Violin and Old Violin Makers by A Mason Clarke.

RUPPERT, of Erfurt, a maker who worked on an extremely original model. He made all his instruments very flat in model, and dispensed with the side linings and corner blocks, and omitted the purfling. The front and back tables were, however, made with due regard to thicknesses, which redeemed them somewhat from the defects above mentioned. The instruments possess a good tone and fine examples are highly priced.

SCHEINLEIN, MATTHIAS FREDERICK, of Langenfeld (1730-1771). Made fine instruments which, in his time, were in great demand. He made them too weak, consequently many of them are now practically spoiled by subsequent repairing.

STAINER, JACOBUS, born at Hall, near Absam, a short distance from Innsbruck, July 14, 1621, died at Absam, 1683. This maker is the most renowned of the German school, concerning whose early career the following account has been handed down. A priest residing in the district of Absam took a fancy to young Jacob, and had him sent to Innsbruck to learn the art of organ building under one Daniel Herz. This calling not suiting the youth's inclinations, his master advised him to learn the art of violin making. Stainer then went to Cremona, and placed himself under Nicolas Amati, who soon recognised the talent of his young pupil, and took great pains in instructing him in the secrets of the art. He then quitted Cremona, and for a short time worked in Venice under Vermercati, who at that time was a maker of some merit. With an accumulation of experience gained in the best schools of the time, Stainer finally returned to Absam and settled there as a maker of violins on his own account. In the year 1645 he married a Margaretha Holzhammer, by whom he had several children. His renown as a violin maker rapidly increased, but for some reason or other he found it difficult to provide for the wants of himself and family, and he was compelled to travel about the country in order to dispose of his instruments. However, in 1658, he was appointed court violin maker to the Archduke Leopold, and in 1669 received the distinction of Maker to the Emperor; but all these advantages and honours contributed but little to raise him from his chronic state of poverty. He now began to experience some bitter reverses. A certain creditor of his, named Solomon Heubnar, with whom he at one time lived (Stainer left him without paying for his board) lodged an information against him charging him with the crime of heresy. He was seized and thrown into prison, and remained there six months, at the expiration of which he found himself utterly ruined and poverty stared him in the face. He was then persecuted by Count Albert Fugger for certain dues which it was customary to levy on court tradesmen. Stainer petitioned the Emperor to waive this claim, but to no purpose, his supplication being ignored, it is thought, in consequence of his previous conviction for the alleged heresy. Stainer then fell into a state of abject misery, neglected his work, and finally died out of mind. It will therefore be seen that this renowned maker worked under most distressing conditions, and it is a marvel that he was able to produce anything worthy of subsequent copying. Stainer's house is still pointed out, and, it is said, the bench to which he was bound when mad.

Another story which has gained currency in some quarters, but in others said to be mythical, recounts that at the latter period of his life he abandoned his calling and became an inmate of a Benedictine monastery. Here, with the assistance of a brother monk, he contrived to get together sufficient materials for the manufacture of sixteen violins of great beauty. These apparently fabulous fiddles are known as the Elector. Stainers from the circumstance that each Elector was supposed to be the recipient of one of these instruments, the remaining going to the Emperor of Germany. For information concerning the instruments made by this unfortunate fiddle maker, the best is that contained in the treatise of Jacob Augustus Otto, maker to the Court of the Archduke of Weimar, translated from the German by Thomas Fardely, of Leeds (1833), and since then by the late Mr. Bishop, of Cheltenham (William Reeves, London).

Otto says: The instruments made by Jacob Stainer differ from the Cremonese both in outward shape and in tone. They are higher modelled, and their proportions of strength are calculated quite: differently. The nearest comparison which can be drawn between a Cremonese and a Stainer is this: a Cremonese has a strong reedy, sonorous tone something similar to that of a clarionet, while a Stainer approaches to that of a flute. The belly is modelled higher than the back. The highest part of the model under the bridge extends exactly one half of the instrument towards the lower broad part and then diminishes towards the end edge. It decreases in a like manner at the upper broad part towards the neck. The breadth of this model is uniformly the same as that of the bridge, from which it diminishes towards the side edge. The edges are very strong and round. The purfling lies somewhat nearer to the edges than in the Cremonese, and is likewise narrower than in the latter (the Cremonese) in which it is very broad. The f holes in Stainer instruments are very beautifully cut, and the upper and under turns are perfectly circular. In length they are somewhat shorter than the Cremonese. The neck is particularly handsome, and the scroll is as round and smooth as if it had been turned. Some few have lions' heads, which are extremely well carved. The sides and the back are made of the finest figured maple and covered with a deep yellow amber varnish. In some the screw (peg) box is varnished dark brown and the belly deep yellow. The above are the most accurate marks by which the genuine Stainer instruments may be distinguished. They are rarely to be found with any labels inside, but in the few which are to be met with of the genuine instruments bearing any inscription, they are simply written, not printed. In the Tyrolese imitations of Stainers they are all printed. In the genuine Cremonese instruments they are likewise invariably printed..

Genuine Stainers with labels have this written inscription:

Jacobus Stainer in Absam prope .nipontum h-fis 165-..

Playing at Sight for Violinists...

Music For Strings — Thu, 03 Nov 2005 12:25:00 +0000

...and Others in an Orchestra.

This is a chapter from the book on Sightreading by Syndney Twinn.

NECESSARY ATTRIBUTES.

"Musical appreciation is fostered much more by good sight-reading* than by slogging a few set pieces.” - Sir Herbert Brewer.

THERE is a story of a player who, when asked if he could read at sight, replied : “Oh, yes! but not at first sight.” This amusing retort, however, is nearer the truth than at first appears. When learning to read, as children, we might know the alphabet from A to Z, but it is not until we can recognise words, know their meaning and relationship to each other that we can read intelligently.

Similarly with the notation of music. It is possible to know every note on paper and every key on the piano, and yet not be able to read music. In order to read, the text should convey a definite impression to the brain, so that in turn that impression may be translated into sound. It will be seen, therefore, that in the case of music, in addition to the mental grasp of the text, three other attributes are essential, viz., the ability to choose suitable fingering, the necessary muscular or motor ability, and a good ear.

If a student stumble over a passage he is playing for the first time, supposing that he is technically equal to the task, it is because he fails, either aurally or rhythmically, to get a clear impression of the text.

Ex. 1

At sight, a violinist of average ability would hesitate in coming suddenly upon a passage like that at Ex. 1 above.

The difficulty is aural - uncertainty of intervals and pitch. The F flats and C flats are unfamiliar, and at a glance the player is hazy as to what intervals each forms with its adjacent notes, and consequently he bungles the fingering.

Sometimes, as in the present case, if a passage can be grasped enharmonically, it offers no difficulty.
Ex. 2

Ex. 3 Ex. 4

Many students would come to grief over such apparently simple passages as those at Ex. 3 and 4, when taken at a tempo too quick to be subdivided into quaver beats. The difficulty here is rhythmical. The notes form unfamiliar groups of time-values.

It will be seen from the foregoing examples how quite harmless-looking passages may be traps for the unwary.

If, however, the student make a thorough study of intervals and all possible combinations of note values (rhythmic groups), he should have no fear of meeting with difficult music involving either unusual intonation or tricky (rhythmic) figures.

Here it must be pointed out that the connecting links should receive as much consideration as the difficult passages themselves. Music is continually moving or progressing and to stop the march of the rhythm is to bring the hearers to earth with a bang.

We will now deal with each matter in turn and put the student in the way of becoming a first-rate sight-reader.

The Violin: Its Famous Makers and their Imitators. (Contents)

Music For Strings — Thu, 03 Nov 2005 12:07:00 +0000

The Violin:
Its Famous Makers and their Imitators.
By George Hart
E-book.

The Early History of the Violin
The Construction of the Violin
Italian and other Strings
The Italian School
The Italian Varnish
Italian Makers
The French School
French Makers
The German School
German Makers
The English School
English Makers
The Violin and its Votaries
Sketch of the progress of the Violin
Anecdotes and Miscellanea Connected with the Violin.
The Construction of the Violin
Italian and other Strings
The Italian School
The Italian Varnish
Italian Makers
The French School
French Makers
The German School
German Makers
The English School
English Makers
The Violin and its Votaries
Sketch of the progress of the Violin
Anecdotes and Miscellanea Connected with the Violin.

The French Violin Making School.

Music For Strings — Thu, 03 Nov 2005 12:01:00 +0000

For TABLE OF CONTENTS click HERE!

SECTION VII.
The French School.

From The Violin: Its Famous Makers and Their Imitators.
by George Hart. (eBook)

THE French have long occupied a foremost place in the production of articles needing delicate workmanship, and it is therefore not surprising that they should at an early period have turned their attention to the art of Violin making, which requires in a high degree both skilful workmanship and artistic treatment. The French manufacture of Violins appears to have commenced about the same period as the English, viz., in the early part of the 17th century, François Médard and Tywersus being among the early French makers, and Rayman and Wise their fellows in England. The primitive French makers, like their English brethren, copied the instruments made at Brescia and Cremona, to which they adhered down to the days of Barak Norman, when the two nations parted company, as regards having a common type, the French continuing the path they had hitherto taken, and which they have followed, with scarcely any deviation, to the present time. The English left the Italian form for the German one of Jacob Stainer, which they adopted, with but few exceptions, for nearly a century recovering the Italian about the middle of the 18th century. It is remarkable that French makers should have restrained themselves from following the pattern of the famous German maker when his name was at its height, and his instruments were in such demand. That in not adopting the then popular form they were rightly guided, experience has clearly demonstrated. When we scan the works the French have left us, and consider the advantage they had in keeping to the Italian form, we cannot but feel disappointed in finding so few meritorious instruments among them. There appear to have been many makers who were quite unconcerned whether their instruments possessed merit becoming the productions of a true artist; their chief aim would seem to have been to make in dozens, in other words quantity in place of quality. If the early French makers are carefully studied, it will be seen that Boquay, Pierray, and one or two of their pupils are the only makers deserving of praise. It must be admitted that the shortcomings of the makers of the first period were adequately supplied by those of the second period, which includes the king of French artists, Nicolas Lupot. The old French school, originating with Tywersus and Médard, includes the following makers : - Nicolas Renault, of Nancy, Médard, also of Nancy, Dumesnil, Bertrand, Pierray, Boquay, Gaviniés, Chappuy, Ouvrard, Paul Grosset, Despont, Saint-Paul, Saloman, Véron, with others of less importance. Many of these makers had a fair amount of ideas, which, had they been well directed, might have led to fame. Others contented themselves with copying, without giving any play to their fancy. It will be found that many of the instruments by Boquay, Pierray, and a few others have varnish upon them closely resembling that of the Venetian school; it is full-bodied, very transparent, and rich in colour. Many of their works are covered with a very inferior quality of varnish, which has caused some confusion respecting the merit due to them as varnishers, they being frequently judged by their inferior instruments, without reference to their good ones. It is evident that they made two qualities of varnish, in accordance with the price they were to obtain, as was commonly done in England by the Forsters, Banks, and Wamsley, where similar confusion exists. The Italians happily avoided this objectionable practice. Their works are of one uniform quality in point of varnish. This divergence may possibly be accounted for by the difference of climate. In Italy, oil varnish judiciously used would dry rapidly, whereas in France or England the reverse is the case; hence its more sparing use.

We will now glance at the second French School of makers, commencing with De Comble. Learning his art in Italy, and, it is said under Stradivari, he brought to bear a superior knowledge to that possessed by the makers mentioned above. The form he introduced was seen to be in advance of that hitherto met with among the French and Belgian makers, and led to its being chiefly followed. The next maker was Pique, who made Violins and Violas that were excellent in point of workmanship, and, had he been equally successful in varnishing he would probably have been held in the same estimation as Nicolas Lupot. From these makers sprung quite a little school of its own, comprising François Gand, in Paris, who succeeded to the business of Lupot, and Bernadel, with several others less known. Mention must not be omitted of another excellent copyist, Silvestre, of Lyons. He has left some charming specimens of his art. They are lighter in character than the works of Nicolas Lupot, and resemble the work of Stradivari from 1680 to 1710. Every portion of the work evidences the skill and judgment of the maker. The wood, with scarcely an exception, has not been prepared in order to darken it, rendering them instruments of increasing merit as age acts upon them.

The practice of preparing the wood for Violin making, either by baking it or by the application of acids, may be traced in the first instance to a desire to obtain artificially those results which are brought about by the hand of time. In obtaining lightness and dryness in new wood, it was imagined that the object in view would be reached without the aid of Dame Nature. Experience, however, has shown that Fiddles, like all things intended to pass into green old age, mature gradually, and are not to be benefited by any kind of forcing process. The earliest account I have met with of Fiddle-baking occurred in England about 150 years since. One Jeacocke, a baker by trade, and a lover of music by nature, used to bake his Fiddles in sawdust for a week whenever their tones showed symptoms of not being up to his standard of quality. In France the practice may be said to have been introduced about fifty years ago, with a view of facilitating the creation of such mysteries as Duiffoprugcar and Morella Violins, baked and browned until they had something of a fifteenth-century hue. The same means were adopted in the production of instruments intended as copies of the works of Stradivari and Guarneri. The brown hue of the originals, and the worn and broken condition of the varnish which comes of age alone, were imitated with more or less ingenuity. Happily the error is recognised as far as the best workmanship is concerned in France. The imitators’ art no longer includes that of depicting wear and brownness, rendering abortive so much excellent work.

It only remains now to mention Salle, Vuillaume, Chanot, Gand, Germain, Mennégand, and Miremont, all copyists of more or less note, who may be said to complete the modern French school. With these makers ends, as far as it is possible to learn, the manufacturers of Violins in France of a better class. Those made by thousands yearly at Mirecourt are not Violins in the eyes of the connoisseur. They are made as common cabinet work is produced in England, by several workmen, each taking a portion, one making the backs, another the sides, another the bellies, and so on with the other parts of the instrument, the whole being arranged by a finisher. Such work must necessarily be void of any artistic nature; they are like instruments made in a mould, not on a mould, so painfully are they alike. This Manchester of Fiddle-making has doubtless been called into being by the great demand for cheap instruments, and has answered thus far its purpose, but it has certainly helped to destroy the gallant little bands of makers who were once common in France, Germany, and England, among whom were men who were guided by reverential feelings for the art, irrespective of the gains they reaped by their labours. The number of instruments yearly made in Mirecourt amounts to many thousands, and is yearly increasing. They send forth repeated copies of Amati, Maggini, Guarneri, and Stradivari, all duly labelled and dated, to all parts of the world, frequently disappointing their simple-minded purchasers, who fondly fancy they have thus become possessed of the real article at the trilling cost of a few pounds. They have recently sent forth a new kind of modern antique in Violins, which is causing a revolution in the Mirecourt manufacture, and is more deceptive than the stereotyped article which has been so long in the market. It has the appearance of having been boiled in some mixture of acids, giving it the aged look of the genuine thing to the inexperienced eye. It is blackened and charred in the most merciless manner, and sends forth a smell of a most disagreeable nature. The whole thing is over-done, and the results, in point of tone, are far more disastrous than in the common French copies. The following list of French, Belgian, and Dutch makers contains many names not included in the first edition of this book. The works wherein several of these names occur are M. J. Gallay’s, “Les Luthiers Italiens aux 17ieme et 18ieme Siècles, 1869;” M. Fétis, “Biographie Universelle des Musiciens;” M. Vidal, “Les Instruments à Archet, 1876;” The “Catalogue Raisonné,” of the instruments at the Conservatoire, by Gustave Chouquet, Paris. 1875; “Recherches sur les facteurs de Clavecins,” by M. le Chevalier de Burbure, Antwerp, 1863; Pougin’s “Supplement to the Dictionary of Fétis;” and Mendel’s “Musikalisches Conversations-Lexikon, 1880.”

Modern Violin Technique (Table of Contents)

Music For Strings — Thu, 03 Nov 2005 10:36:00 +0000

Modern Violin Technique - How to Acquire it, How to Teach it by F. Thistleton describes over 70 aspects of Violin Playing.
CHAPTER I

I. THE BASIS OF TECHNIQUE
2. THE MENTAL ASPECT
3. BOW TECHNIQUE THE FIRST ESSENTIAL

CHAPTER II

TECHNIQUE

4. THE METHOD OF HOLDING THE VIOLIN
5. THE METHOD OF HOLDING THE BOW

CHAPTER III

THE TECHNIQUE OF THE BOW: BOWING

6. THE STROKE
7. THE UPPER HALF OF THE BOW
8. THE LOWER HALF OF THE BOW
9. THE HEIGHT OF THE ARM WHEN PLAYING ON DIFFERENT STRINGS

CHAPTER IV

10. THE COMPLETION OF THE STROKE
11. THE COMBINED MOVEMENT
12. WHICH PART OF THE ARM SHOULD BE USED FOR EACH DIVISION OF THE BOW
13. WHOLE-BOWS
14. JOINING THE BOWS TOGETHER
15. MAINTAINING TENSITY BETWEEN TWO STROKES
16. THE WRIST MOVEMENT AND FINGER FLEXION

CHAPTER V

17. FLEXION OF THE THUMB AND FINGERS
18. COMBINED FINGER FLEXION AND WRIST MOVEMENT
19. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE FINGERS
20. THE FOURTH FINGER
21. CROSSING OVER THE STRINGS BY MEANS OF THE WRIST MOVEMENT

CHAPTER VI

22. POSITIONS OF THE ARM WHEN CROSSING OVER THE STRINGS
23. STUDIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE WRIST MOVEMENT
24. THE WRIST MOVEMENT AT THE MIDDLE AND POINT OF THE BOW
25. STUDIES FOR THE WRIST MOVEMENT AT THE MIDDLE AND POINT OF THE BOW
26. HOW TO PRACTISE THE WRIST MOVEMENT AND FINGER FLEXION
27. WHERE THE WRIST-AND-FINGER FLEXION IS EMPLOYED

CHAPTER VII

28. COMBINING DURATION OF NOTE WITH LENGTH OF BOW
29. TENSE CONTROL OF THE BOW
30. PLAYING A NUMBER OF NOTES ACROSS THE STRINGS IN ONE BOW
31. HOW TO OBTAIN GRADATIONS OF TONE
32. POSITION WHICH THE HAND MAINTAINS TOWARDS THE BOW
33. WHICH PORTION OF THE HAIR TOUCHES THE STRINGS
34. ANGLE OF THE BOW TOWARDS THE STRINGS

CHAPTER VIII

VARIOUS BOWINGS

35. SAUTILLÉ MODÉRÉ (Moderate Sautillé.)
36. LE GRAND DÉTACHÉ
37. MARTÉLÉ

CHAPTER IX

38. SAUTILLÉ

CHAPTER X

39. SPRING OR ELASTIC STACCATO
40. STACCATO
41. FLYING STACCATO

CHAPTER XI

42. SAUTILLÉ ARPEGGIO BOWINGS

CHAPTER XII

43. THE BOWING OF CHORDS

PART II - CHAPTER XIII

THE TECHNIQUE OF THE LEFT HAND

44. POSITION OF THE HAND (IN THE FIRST POSITION)
45. POSITION OF THE THUMB (FIRST POSITION)
46. POSITION OF THE KNUCKLES (FIRST POSITION)
47. POSITION OF THE LEFT WRIST AND FOREARM
48. POSITION OF THE LEFT ELBOW AND UPPER ARM

CHAPTER XIV

49. ACTION OF THE FINGERS
50. FLEXION OR RELAXATION OF THE FINGERS AFTER TENSITY
51. POSITION OF HAND IN THE THIRD POSITION
52. POSITION OF HAND IN THE SECOND POSITION

CHAPTER XI

53. SLIDING
54. POSITION OF THE HAND DURING SLIDING
55. DIFFERENT METHODS OF SLIDING
56. HOW THE SLIDE IS EXECUTED

CHAPTER XVI

57. ORDER OF TAKING THE POSITIONS
58. SCALES AND ARPEGGI
59. FINGERING OF SCALES IN TWO OCTAVES
60. FINGERING OF SCALES IN THREE OCTAVES

CHAPTER XVII

61. THE PRACTICE OF DOUBLE STOPPING
62. SLIDING IN DOUBLE STOPPING
63. RIGHT-HAND PIZZICATO
64. LEFT-HAND PIZZICATO
65. HARMONICS
66. STUDIES IN DOUBLE STOPPING, CHORDS, LEFT-HAND PIZZICATO, AND HARMONICS

CHAPTER XVIII

67. THE SHAKE
68. TREMOLO OR VIBRATO OF THE LEFT HAND

PART III - CHAPTER XIX

69. SIGHT-READING
70. CONTROLLED MOVEMENT

CHAPTER XX

71. STUDIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF VIOLIN TECHNIQUE

CHAPTER XXI

72. THE MUSICAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE PUPIL

CHAPTER XXII

73. THE CHOICE OF MUSIC
74. THE EXTENT OF MUSICAL KNOWLEDGE
75. THE IMPORTANCE OF PHRASING

CHAPTER XXIII

76. JUST INTONATION

CHAPTER XXIV

77. IMPORTANCE OF A NATURAL ATTITUDE WHILST PLAYING

CHAPTER XXV

78. GENERAL REMARKS

CONCLUSION

APPENDIX

LIST OF MUSIC RECOMMENDED FOR STUDY VIOLIN SCHOOLS
STUDIES
SHORT LIST OF MUSIC FOR STUDY
IST POSITION
IST TO 3RD POSITIONS
ALL POSITIONS

Robert Burns, a Bed and a Violin Maker.....

Music For Strings — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 21:25:00 +0000

So what do all three have in common? Well, probably nothing - until you add the words 'Bonhams Auction' to the list....
Apparently in 1874 a violin maker was inspired enough to find Robert Burns' old childhood bed, chop it up and make a violin out of it..... or so the unusual inscription on the back of an old violin would have us believe:

'SEPT.-1874 BY D.MURRAY MADE OF WOOD FROM THE COTTAGE AND BED IN WHICH ROBERT BURNS WAS BORN'

Also labelled internally: 'DANIEL MURRAY EDINBURGH 1874'

The violin itself has a 'squarish', hopf-like form, with a flat, ebony-tipped button. Underneath the inscription is a rather pretty engraving of a horse-drawn plough and a man.

Fact or Legend?

The problem is there is probably no way to prove that the wood used was once slept in by old Rabbie himself. And with no provenance alluded to in the catalogue, it will be interesting to see how much interest the violin will whip up on the day.

Who was Daniel Murray?
There are several Murrays mentioned by Meredith Morris in British Violin Makers and William Henley in his Universal Dictionary of Violin and Bow Makers including:

David Murray of Gorebridge (born 1850), 'an amateur of considerable ability, who has made several beautiful violins' (Morris) and who made 'fifty violins of Stradivarian and Guarnarian modelling.' (Henley)
James Murray of Dumfries (also born 1850), who was also a railway engine driver. (Henley)
and John Brown Murray (born 1849) of Clarebrand, 'An amateur who has made several good violins.' (Morris)

But there is no mention of a Daniel Murray. This, then, would seem to be at the heart of the mystery. For if we knew exactly who the maker was, it may be possible to investigate and authenticate the violin, the inscription and the legend....

The Violin will be up for auction on 7th December at Bonhams', George Street, Edinburgh, in their sale of 'Furniture, Works of Art, Clocks, Rugs and Carpets.'
Lot No. 769. Estimate £500-700 GBP.

You can view the violin online here

by Fiona Vilnite musicforstrings.com

London Violin Auction sales results - The Big Violin Makers.

Music For Strings — Sun, 12 Nov 2006 11:50:00 +0000

With a combined sales total of over 3 million pounds (GBP), it would seem that London was the place to sell a violin this November.
Bonhams and Sothebys held their central London autumn musical instrument sales on the 6th and 7th.

Whilst it seems that Sothebys is often the place to find a 'star lot' when it comes to musical gems, Bonhams seemed to generate more revenue from its sales this time. But there were some great violins on offer at both houses and perhaps the rather unusual circumstance of there being two violins by the great cremonese violin maker, Nicolo Amati* - one in each auction house.

Sothebys' c.1675 example with a 354mm back and handsomely-carved scroll, also came with a handsome estimate of 50-80,000 GBP. Bonahms' specimen dated from 1651 with slightly smaller proportions (350mm back length) and had a slightly smaller estimate of 30-40,000 GBP. Both of the instruments had one piece backs, Bonhams' example having really attractive slab cut wood. According to Phillip Scott, Bonhams' Musical Instrument Department expert, their 1651 instrument may never have been offered at auction before, having been in the same European family since 1871**. The 350 year old instrument, which perhaps unsurprisingly looked well-played, seemed to have some minor scroll and table restorations and was sold with a recent colour-illustrated certificate of authenticity from the London dealer and repairer, Florian Leonhard. Sothebys' example looked to be in fine condition and ended up reaching over three times the lower end of its estimate at 153,000 GBP, the highest priced lot in Sothebys' sale. Bonhams' Amati sold for almost three times less than the example across the road at Sothebys, attaining just 55,200 GBP.

Another maker who was represented by an instrument in each house was Ferdinand Gagliano. The Gagliano family were making instruments in Naples from about the beginning of the 18th century to the middle of the 19th. Ferdinando worked up until about the end of the 18th century. The violin at Bonhams dated from 1772 with a certificate from J & A Beare (the London experts and violin dealers) and had been the property of a professional musician since the 1960s. The tiny viola at Sothebys by the same maker, measured just 369mm in back length (14 1/2 inches) and it also had a certificate from the Beare establishment. William Henley remarks, in his Universal Dictionary of Violin and Bow Makers, that these small violas were sometimes cut down and converted into large violins, but it was nice to see that this example was still very much a viola. The violin at Bonhams, with an estimate of 65,000-75,000 GBP, failed to sell, whilst Sothebys' viola fetched 30,000 GBP.

The highest priced violin sold over the two days was at Bonhams - an instrument by Josef Filius Andreae Guarneri, Cremona. This impressive c.1710 instrument came with a Tree Ring Analysis Report (by John C.Topham) linking the wood on this instrument to several other Cremonese and Venetian instruments including some made by Guarneri del Gesu, Antonio Stradivari, J.B. Guadagnini, D. Montagnana and Santo Serafin. This scientific analysis no doubt helped the instrument reach its 229,600 GBP sale price.

There were several mid-priced violins sold at Sothebys, including a violin by Jean Baptiste-Vuillaume of 1843 for 45,600 GBP, a Jacob Stainer at 48,000 GBP, two violins by Giuseppe Pedrazzini of 1920 and 1921 (which fetched 24,000 GBP and 36,000 GBP respectively) and an Antonio Zanotti violin, c.1725, which reached a surprising 42,000 GBP - despite its pre-auction estimate of 7-10,000 GBP. Not bad for a maker whose work, according to William Henley, was worth £400 in 1960. But it seems that the odd surprise happened at Bonhams too, when a violin simply catalogued as 'A Violin of the Italian School' reached 42,000 GBP. Perhaps its J.B. Guadagnini label was original...?

It is nice to see that are still some great Cremonese instruments new to the auction scene that emerge from time to time. Perhaps there are still some undiscovered masterpieces waiting to be found in the distant corners of the world by modern-day Tarisios.....

* Further information on the Amati family and violin making style, attributes, etc, can be found in George Hart's The Violin: Its Famous Makers and their Imitators

** Info. from Phillip Scott's article on Bonhams' Musical Instrument Department podcast.

All auction prices quoted include tax and buyer's premium.

Fiona Vilnite, musicforstrings.com

The Invisible Violinist. Martin Pierre Joseph ...

Music For Strings — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 21:21:00 +0000

The Invisible Violinist.

Martin Pierre Joseph Marsick may not be on the tip of your tongue when you try to name an important violinist of past times, but this little-remembered Belgian violinist and composer forms an important link the history of violin playing.
A contemporary of the composers Jules Massanet and Camille Saint-Saens, Marsick was to teach a new generation of violinists including Jacques Thibaud, George Enescu (a teacher of Yehudi Menuhin) and Carl Flesch – whose influence on the modern school of violin playing is immense. Marsick himself was taught by the famous collaborator of Brahms – Joseph Joachim. So why has history forgotten Marsick? Was it because of the other great Belgian violinist, Eugène Ysaÿe?
With just a decade between them. Ysaÿe and Marsick were almost exact contemporaries. Both studied at the Liège Conservatory and they both began their studies with Rodolphe Massart, a disciple of Kreutzer. Each became a violinist-composer, important exponents of the 'Franco-Belgian' School of violin playing and led successful string quartets (The Quatour Marsick and the Ysaye Quartet).

Marsick's Legacy as a Teacher.

Marsick's success as a teacher is illustrated by some of the fantastic violinists he coached as a teacher at the Paris Conservatoire. One of them, Jacques Thibaut, described his systematic teaching method, using the studies of Gavinies, Rode, Fiorillo, Dont – a new study was to be prepared for every lesson, and with three lessons a week, it would seem that the teacher was keen to challenge the pupil's stamina and development. Thibaud explains:

“With him [Marsick] I believe that three essentials - absolute purity of pitch, equality of tone and sonority of tone, in connection with the bow - are the base on which everything else rests.”
(From: Violin Mastery – Talks with Master Violinists and Teachers by Frederick H Martens, New York, 1919.)

Playing Style.

Marsick's own playing was praised particularly by Vieuxtemps who witnessed Marsick's debut performance at the Concerts Populaires in Paris of Vieuxtemps' own 4th Violin Concerto. European tours were to follow and in 1885 he toured Russia. Then, in 1895-6, he toured the United States. His delivery was apparently large in style, with a sophisticated bowing technique.

Original arrangements and compositions.

According to E. Van der Straeten in 'The History of the Violin', Marsick composed 'three violin concertos and a number of effective pieces.' However, the violin concertos are not listed in the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians online, and they have certainly not become part of a violinists' mainstream repertoire. He is perhaps most well known today for his transcription of Massenet's Meditation from Thais for violin and piano, and it seems that he was probably the most qualified man to do this - as a contemporary of Massenet and ex-opera orchestra player.

His Violin

Marsick apparently owned several fine violins and his 1705 Antonio Stradivarius was played later by David Oistrakh.

Marsick seems to be one of violin history's forgotten characters, whose almost invisible legacy pervades our modern times.

Dates:
Martin Pierre (Joseph) Marsick 1847-1924
Eugène (Auguste) Ysaÿe 1858-1931
Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet 1842-1912
[Charles] Camille Saint-Saens 1835-1921
Henry Vieuxtemps 1820-1881
Jaques Thibaud 1880-1953
Georges Enescu 1881-1955
Carl Flesch 1873-1944
Yehudi Menuhin 1916-1999

Some interesting remarks from around the web:

Past owners of Marsick's 1705 Stradivarius include: Baumgartner, Delgay, E. Français, Perilhou, Vatelot, Vormbaum and Wilmotte. (From: jose-sanchez-penzo.net/strad.html)

From the German Wikipedia site: 'On the grounds of a personal scandal, he went to the USA in 1900 and ended his teaching at the Paris Conservatoire.' (“Auf Grund eines privaten Skandals ging er 1900 in die USA und beendete seine Lehrtätigkeit am Conservatoire.” )

Fiona Vilnite musicforstrings.com

VIOLIN AUCTION RESULTS

Music For Strings — Fri, 04 Nov 2005 11:15:00 +0000

LONDON VIOLIN AUCTION REPORT

It's a question of attribution and provenance, or so it seemed this week at the London Violin Sales.....

A violin by Carlo Bergonzi, which was apperently once in the collection of the virtuoso Nicolo Paganini (1782-1840), fetched £568,00 (GBP) (about $1 million USD) - a record price for that maker. It is allegedly one of only fifty known violins made Bergonzi, a pupil of Stradivari. Bought from Sotheby's by the Russian lawyer Maxim Viktorov for the Moscow-based Violin Art Foundation, it will be loaned to winners of the Paganini competition, who will have the chance to play it for a year.

Other violins without provenance/authentication did not reach expectations this week, such as the violin at Christie's attrributed to Antonius and Hieronymous Amati, which failed to sell, despite the pre-sale estimate of 30,000 to 50,000 GBP, their Sanctus Seraphin attribution with a estimate of 40,000 to 60,000 and a pretty violin at Bonhams, described as being from the 'cirlce of Jacobus Stainer' c.1670 also did not attract buyers.

Bonhams however did manage to sell their Grancino family attribution at 30,000 GBP, almost reaching its 35,000 to 45,000 GBP estimate, a cello C.1740 of the Barak Norman School at 9,000 GBP, and a violin 'probably by Tomasso Balestrieri' for 12,000 GBP - although if this had been authenticated, it may well have reached almost 6 times this amount. A violin by Balastrieri (which had been 'mentioned and illustrated in Meisterwerke Italienischer Geigenbaukunst by Fridolin Hamma) at Christies fetched 60,000 GBP.

The 'star' violin at Bonhams was the instrument by J. B. Guadagnini, which reached 190,000 (including the buyer's premium) and at Christies it was the Carlo Giuseppe Testore of Milan 1697 cello reaching 288,000 GBP. Sotheby's however probably fared the best overall, (helped with the sales of violins including the Bergonzi at 568,000 GBP, a Vuillaume at 48,000 GBP, a Cuypers at 31,000 GBP, and a Montagnana at 108,000 GBP,etc) whose sales totalled over 2 million GBP.

by Fiona Vilnite, Editor, musicforstrings.com

EARLY MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS - AUCTION RESULTS

Music For Strings — Sat, 19 Nov 2005 20:58:00 +0000

Auction Sale Results of Early Musical Instruments.

A diamond necklace that once belonged to Catherine the Great that reached over 2,000,000 CHF Swiss Francs (about $1.5 million US dollars) at a Sotheby's auction of 'Magnificent Jewels' in Switzerland on 17th November made headline news.

Slightly less 'dazzling', however, was the Sothebys November auction of Early Musical Instruments.... Perhaps the sale was overshadowed by their sparkling event the week before, where a record price was attained for a Bergonzi violin which had once belonged Paganini....

With apparently just over fifty per cent of their lots sold, it would seem that Sothebys held a relatively low-key Sale of Early Musical Instruments on November 8th. The prices attained for sold lots appeared to meet estimates comfortably, however. Included were keyboard instruments, woodwind, brass and stringed instruments.
The latter performed particularly well during the sale, leaving only three out of the eleven stringed lots unsold. The three unsold lots were: a Harp Lute c.1820, with an estimate of 800 - 1,200 GBP, an early nineteenth century Milanese Mandolin (estimate 1,200 to 1,800 GBP) and a lot of three Dancing-Master Kits, with a pre-sale estimate of 2,000 to 3,000 GBP.
The star of the string lots was a beautiful Bass Viola Da Gamba by Hendrik Jacobs. Made in Amsterdam, c.1675 (with a string length of 680mm & length of back: 645mm) it sold for 38,400 GBP (including the buyer's premium), reaching the lower end of its estimate. A guitar c.1830 by Louis Panormo exceded its estimate, attaining 3,000 GBP. An interesting small 'German' 15 1/2 inch viola, which had been converted from a viola d'amore, made 6,000 GBP - three times the higher end of the pre-sale estimate. It was labelled 'Jacob Raymann, at ye Bell Yard in Southwark, London 1653'. Some bidders must have seen more in the instrument than the worth of the auction house's estimate.
A quinton (a French five-stringed 'cross' between a violin and a treble viol used c.1730-1789) made by Louis Guersan in Paris 1752 attained 3,600 GBP, also beating its 1,800 to 2,500 GBP estimate and an English tenor Viola da Gamba by Frederick Hintz with a back length of 536mm made 6,600 GBP.

The most expensive lot of the day, however, was a two-manual harpsichord by Burkat Shudi and John Broadwood of London 1773. That fetched 102,000 GBP - an instrument worthy of Catherine the Great herself.

Fiona Vilnite, Editor musicforstrings.com

Sarasate. The Legendary Violinist.

Music For Strings — Wed, 16 Nov 2005 01:45:00 +0000

Pablo de Sarasate is perhaps best known nowadays for his sparkling violin compositions, such as Zigeunerweisen Op.20, the Carmen Fantasy Op.25, and the Spanish dances - made popular by Itzahk Perlman and others.

Sarasate was also an outstanding virtuoso violinist of his day. He toured in Europe, North and South America, Russia and even India. Born in 1844 in Pamplona, Spain, he was the son of a military bandmaster. He studied the violin at the Paris Conservatoire with Delphin Alard (the son-in-law of Jean Baptiste Vuillaume * and former pupil of Francois Antoine Habeneck) and harmony with Henri Reber (a former pupil of Le Sueur). His compositional output of 54 opus numbers illustrate his skill both as performer and composer. He was widely admired and 'main-stream' composers dedicated works to him. These included Max Bruch (the Scottish Fantasy and the famous Violin Concerto No.2), Eduard Lalo (the Symphonie Espagnol for violin and Orchestra and two of his Violin Concertos), Dvorak (Mazurek op.49) and the contemporary violinist-composers: Joachim and Wieniawski. He died at Biarritz in 1908.

Sarasate is known to have owned some beautiful old Italian violins, including three instruments by Antonio Stradivari and a Guarneri del Gesu which had belonged to Ferdinand David (1810-1873). Queen Isabella of Spain, who had been Sarasate's patron whilst at the Conservatoire in Paris, gave Sarasate the Boissier Stradivari of 1713. He apparently left his favourite Stadivari (the ex Sarasate of 1724) to the Paris Conservatoire. This violin had once alledgedy belonged to Nicolo Paganini.

Zigeunerweisen, published in 1878, has become one of the best-known show pieces in the violin repertoire. Its contrasting sections of fire and romance have appealed to audiences and violinists for over 125 years.

Miramar Zortzico for Violin and Piano Op. 42 was published in 1899. It has a time signiture of 5/8 and elegant folk-like idiom.

Romanza Andaluza for violin and Piano Op. 22 No.3 was also published in 1899. A real spanish-sounding Romance, includes the typical 'Sarasate sound', without many technical complexities.

Adios Montanas Mias, for Violin and Piano, Op.37, published in 1896.

Jota Navarra, for Violin and Piano, Op.22, published Berlin 1879.

Spanish Dance, for Violin and Piano, Op.26 no.2, published Berlin 1882.

Zapateado, for Violin and Piano, Op.23 No.2, published Berlin 1880.

by Fiona Vilnite, Editor, musicforstrings.com

*See Old Violins by H R Haweis - page 90, edition Music for Strings 2005.

STRADIVARI by François-Joseph Fétis

Music For Strings — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 18:11:00 +0000

François-Joseph Fétis' treatise, Antoine Stradivari, luthier célèbre, was first published in Paris in 1856. This fascinating document traces the history and develpment of bowed-instruments and discusses the old Italian master luthiers. It also includes an analysis of the bows of
François Tourte and a chapter on the Guarneri family.

Highly regarded by contemporary scholars and researchers because of Fetis' original research, the work has now gathered a 'second life' for modern researchers who are able to witness the author's first-hand accounts of his historically important colleages and associates - such as the violin maker and dealer Jean Baptiste Vuillaume and the scientist and acoustics experimenter Félix Savart. His other writings, including the Notice biographique sur Nicolo Paganini (published 1851, and translated into English in 1852), bear testament to the fact that he was contemporary to some of the most revered figures in musical history.

Notice of Anthony Stradivari, the Celebrated Violin Maker (translated in 1864 by John Bishop) is now available at musicforstrings.com.