Scan 221
The violin, its famous makers and their imitators, 1887
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1of 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, and 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, old varnish judiciously used would dry rapidly, whereas in France or England the reverse is the case; hence its more sparing use.
3We 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
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