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Scan 230
Old Violins And Their Makers, 1883
4 lines. Read by computer on 1 October 2026. Printed page 216. See the scan on archive.org.
1George III. An imperfect list of the number of instruments by this maker, and the names of those for whom they were made, will be found in Forster's work, one of whose authors gravely includes the following testimony to "old" Forster's ability: "He must have possessed a rare talent, for his instruments are second in merit to none, but the best Europe has ever known." It may be that this witness was as unskilled in punctuation as he appears to have been in violins, and that he meant precisely the reverse of what his words convey.
3This maker's instruments were of the Nicolas model, as well as of that of the brothers Amati, and are acknowledged to be of excellent quality. They are now gaining ground again, not so much, perhaps, because of any improvement which the lapse of time has caused, as from the increasing scarcity of good instruments. His commoner kinds were not purfled. A violoncello of 1772 by this maker was exhibited at South Kensington in 1872, and thus celebrated its centenary in very excellent company, or, to use the words of the above enthusiastic admirer, in that of "the best Europe has ever known." This William Forster died in 1808, leaving his son William to carry on the business. The latter was born in 1764, in Prescott-street, Goodman's Fields. He appears to have shown early ability, as the first violin put to his account, among those called his best, is entered in 1779, i.e., when he was 15 years of age. He became fond of theatricals, and a curious agreement is mentioned as having been made between father and son, from which it would seem that the former became a servant of the latter for a period of three years. The work of this
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