Scan 56
The violin & its story : or the history & construction of the violin, 1905
10 lines. Read by computer on 29 September 2026. Printed page 40. See the scan on archive.org.
1produce an instrument capable of yielding a weak, mild, but pleasing sound. And this virtue must be ascribed in the highest degree to the head of the Amati family; his violins and basses leave in this respect nothing to be desired.
3Whatever might have been the number of instruments made by Andreas Amati, only a few of them have come down to us. Those which he made to the order of Charles IX. of France, were amongst the accessories of the Royal Chapel at the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789; but after the famous 5th and 6th of October, 1790, at Versailles, all these instruments disappeared. Some years later a few of them were found by Cartier, and in his opinion the tone, though not powerful, was "full of charm," and the workmanship of a remarkably high quality.
5The precise date of the death of Andreas is unknown, but it seems probable that he died about 1580, and from that year the instruments bearing the Amati name were made by his sons,
7Hieronymus and Antonius, and until the marriage of Hieronymus the brothers carried on business together under the name of "Hieronymus et Antonius Amati, Andreas filii."
9Antonio (Antonius), who was born at Cremona in 1550, worked on his father's lines, though he, for the most part, selected for his violins the smaller pattern, and the larger but seldom. The violins made during the period in which the brothers were associated are highly valued and earnestly sought for, so long as they are in good condition. The violinist Libon possessed a violin bearing the label "Hieronymus et Antonius Amati, 1591," which on account of its charming tone was a wonderful instrument. The small violins of Antonio Amati have a soft, round, good tone, but it is unfortunate that a tone so pure and fine should be lacking in intensity. The first and second strings are the best of these instruments, the D string being somewhat dull, and the G too weak. The best and most widely celebrated instruments made by the
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