Scan 170
The violin: its famous makers and their imitators, 1909
6 lines. Read by computer on 27 September 2026. Printed page 122. See the scan on archive.org.
1That this should be so, to a certain extent, can scarcely excite surprise, nor is it singular in the Italian branch of the art. The great makers of the Guadagnini family were Lorenzo and Giovanni Battista. The former has been considered the chief maker; but if the merits of each be duly weighed, they will be found to be nearly equal. It is probable that Lorenzo has been looked upon as the principal maker from the association of his name with that of Antonio Stradivari, a fact which, it must be granted, lends to it a certain degree of importance.
3The instruments of Lorenzo are exceedingly bold in design, and differ in this respect from those of Giovanni Battista, which retain much of the delicate form of Stradivari. Lorenzo frequently changed the form of his sound-hole, giving it the pointed character of Giuseppe Guarneri in some instances, and in others retaining the type of sound-hole perfected by his master. The model is inclined to flatness, the declivity being of the gentlest kind: the breadth of the design commands admiration. The scroll is certainly not an imitation of that of Stradivari; it has considerable originality, and is more attractive on that account than for its beauty. The varnish is not so brilliant as that of Giovanni Battista, but possesses a mellowness foreign to the other members of the family. The tone is powerful, tempered with a rich quality.
5Lorenzo Guadagnini was born at Piacenza, and
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