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Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: A history of the ‘Il Cremonese’ Stradivari violin’s case
For more than half a century, one of the finest violin cases ever made has lain undisturbed in Cremona. Dimitri Musafia examines the history of the case built to house the 1715 ‘Il Cremonese’ Stradivari
Premium ❘ FeatureResurrection symphony: an 18th-century composite cello
The careful restoration of a composite cello identified merely as ‘possibly Italian’ proved a journey of discovery for Sally Gosling and the family team at Chapel Violins, UK
Premium ❘ FeatureSgarabotto and Ornati: lives in fragments
When Giuseppe Ornati and Pietro Sgarabotto donated the contents of their workshops to the Cremona School of Violin Making, they ensured an enduring legacy. Luca Baratto and Matteo Giovanetti tell the story and examine some of the treasures
Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Camouflaging a patch using a veneer
An innovative and intricate method for a taxing problem in restoration
Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Koichi Furukawa’s Osaka workshop
The maker presents his shop located in Japan’s second largest city
Premium ❘ FeatureIn Focus: A 1925 violin by Carlo Carletti
Leonardo Cella examines the early 20th-century instrument
Premium ❘ FeatureRudolf Neudörfer: guardian of a lineage
The German bow maker Rudolf Neudörfer celebrates his 90th birthday next month. Gennady Filimonov looks back at his life and career, exploring the Neudörfer dynasty of makers and examining his bows
Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Andreas Hampel and Susanne Riebesehl’s Hamburg workshop
The two luthiers present their German workshop
Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: How to make a lighter viola
For some violists, playing on a lighter instrument is their holy grail. Laurent Zakowsky describes his methods to accomplish this, from thinning the back to changing the chinrest
Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Final scroll refinement
Some notes on finishing off one of the trickiest parts of the making process
Premium ❘ FeatureIn Focus: A 1695 viola by Christian Reichelt
Klaus Martius and Enrico Weller examine the Bohemian maker’s instrument
Premium ❘ FeatureInveterate innovator: Louis Noebe
Despite success in his own time, and a penchant for experimentation, German maker Louis Noebe is an almost forgotten figure in lutherie history. Clifford Hall examines his life and achievements
Premium ❘ FeatureUS school repair shops: close to home
In US public school music programmes, broken instruments can harm students’ learning and create stress for teachers. Rita Fernandes discovers the schools that are tackling the problem head on by offering free repairs via in-house repair shops
Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Nurgül Çomak’s Istanbul workshop
The Turkish maker presents her workshop in the cosmopolitan city
Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: Smoke treatment in Stradivari's instruments
Did Stradivari apply a smoke treatment to his tonewood before starting an instrument? Joseph Nagyvary argues that he did, and examines how the process could benefit luthiers today
Premium ❘ FeatureIn a spirit of collaboration: Brandenburg experiments
Makers at the annual Brandenburg violin making workshop joined forces on a two-year project to build and test two identical violins, one of which was made with treated wood. The results were intriguing. Adam Winskill reports on the methodology and findings
Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Even split, even grain
A simple method for joining plates with even grain orientation
Premium ❘ FeatureIn Focus: A c.1880–90 viola by Enrico Marchetti
Sean Bishop examines the late-nineteenth-century instrument
Premium ❘ FeatureMaking history: Pressenda double bass
Until now, it was believed that the Turin-based luthier Giovanni Francesco Pressenda had never made a double bass. Tsutomu Miyasaka reveals how an instrument was recently identified that rewrote the story
Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: an expert team varnishes a copy of the ‘Farina’ Montagnana cello
Mark Schnurr looks back at the process of varnishing a copy of the 1730 ‘Farina’ Montagnana cello at the 2024 Oberlin Violin Making Workshop
Premium ❘ FeatureIn Focus: An 1822 violin by Georges Chanot I
Jonathan Marolle examines the French maker’s early instrument
Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Francisco Núñez Gómez’s Santa Ana workshop
The maker presents his shop, located in Costa Rica
Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Making a paper template for a scroll
A procedure that allows for accurate reproduction as well as being a stimulant to creativity
Premium ❘ FeatureIn the layers of light: the ground coat
What is the ground coat – and more importantly, what is it for? Pierre Flavetta examines the properties and visual effects of this mysterious pre-varnish instrument coating
Premium ❘ ArticleAnalysis February 2026: A decision on the fate of pernambuco
With the recent decision to keep pernambuco wood on CITES Appendix II, but with added restrictions, what are the implications for bow makers, dealers, auction houses and musicians?
Premium ❘ FeatureSeven, they are seven: Nicolò Amati cello 1642
One of only seven known cellos by Nicolò Amati, this 1642 example is in an excellent state of preservation. Alberto Giordano examines its history and provenance, while Barthélemy Garnier discovers what its condition can tell us about the old Cremonese working methods, and Francesco Piasentini discusses CT-scanning the cello
Premium ❘ FeatureBending the rules: arching constructions
How can luthiers create an instrument’s arching from scratch? Sebastian Gonzalez presents a possible solution to an age-old dilemma, using simple formulas and the latest technology
Premium ❘ FeatureDiscovering a Stradivari and Guarneri - From the archive: January 1896
John Tiplady Carrodus died in 1895. Violin dealer David Laurie recalls how he discovered a Stradivari and Guarneri that he sold to the renowned violinist
Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Jordan Lambert’s Tahiti workshop
The luthier presents his shop in ’Ātihā, Mo’orea
Premium ❘ FocusAuction Report January 2026: Lights in the darkness
A brace of Gaglianos and a cavalcade of Sartory bows were among the highlights of London’s October sales, as Kevin MacDonald reports
Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Extending the reach of metal F-clamps
Making wooden jaws for a lighter, safer long-reach clamping alternative
Premium ❘ FeatureIn Focus: 1821 violin by Carl Nicolaus Sawicki
Wolfhart Schuster examines an instrument by the Polish maker
Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: How to make a big-sounding viola for smaller players
Maj-Lisa Herzberg presents her innovative solution to the question of how to build a big-sounding viola for a small person
Premium ❘ FeatureMaking Matters: how to care for your bow hair
Musicians might not realise how important the quality and condition of their bow hair can be. Canisa Sie gives a guide to caring for this vital part of a string player’s arsenal
Premium ❘ FeatureA master of his craft: Simone Fernando Sacconi
Born 130 years ago, Simone Fernando Sacconi was a brilliant violin maker and restorer, a respected teacher and, latterly, a celebrated author. Friends, colleagues and former students share their memories with Peter Somerford
Premium ❘ FeatureMy Space: Glyn Jones’s Bala workshop
The luthier presents his shop, located in North Wales
Premium ❘ FeatureTrade Secrets: Cutting the f-holes
The traditional method adopted by the luthiers of the old Mirecourt school
Premium ❘ FeatureIn Focus: A c.1690 violin by Giovanni Maria del Bussetto
Aidan Mullerkin examines the elusive maker’s instrument
Premium ❘ FeatureForms follow function: early Stradivari violin patterns
Unlike his contemporaries, Antonio Stradivari was trying out different violin patterns from the start of his career as a luthier. Philip Ihle examines a number of his early violins to discover how his art evolved
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