All Lutherie articles
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FocusThe Strad Calendar 2021: Francesco Rugeri cello c.1680
This poplar-backed cello is clearly very similar in form and modelling to Amati patterns
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Video
Cremonese makers launch video showcase
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic and its effect on Italian lutherie, a group of violin makers in Cremona have put together a video showcasing their working methods. The aim is to demonstrate the vibrancy and industriousness of today’s luthiers, as Antonio Stradivari wanders the streets of modern-day Cremona, viewing ...
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3 ways we can damage our instruments without even knowing it
As part of her ‘Students Stuck at Home’ series of videos, American luthier Anna Huthmaker reveals three ways in which we can damage our instruments without even knowing about it. For more in the series, click here. Watch: The oddities of a luthier’s workshop
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The Strad Calendar 2021: ‘Arditi’ Antonio Stradivari violin
This year’s calendar contains twelve masterpieces by Stradivari, Guarneri ‘del Gesù’, Rogeri, Vuillaume and many more
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Video: Violin Makers – The Renaissance of Italian Lutherie
A 60-minute documentary featuring interviews with some of the greatest 20th-century Italian luthiers
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Premium ❘ Feature
Trade Secrets: Organic scroll carving
A method for shaping the scroll and pegbox that can give more flowing results, in line with what is seen on old instruments
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Premium ❘ Feature
Making Matters: Why varnish matters
Ulrike Dederer reviews and summarises new research on how multilayered varnishes influence the moisture protection and vibrational properties of tonewood
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Premium ❘ Feature
Empty Chairs at Empty Tables: Lutherie and Covid-19
Violin makers worldwide were hit hard by the Covid-19 outbreak as the customers dried up – nowhere more so than in Italy. Peter Somerford speaks to makers in Cremona, Florence and Modena to find out how the industry is gradually getting back on its feet
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Video
The Strad Calendar 2021: G.B. Guadagnini cello 1783
Formerly owned by Rostropovich, the fully arched model provides great depth of tone
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Video
The oddities of a luthier’s workshop
As part of a ‘Students stuck at home’ series of videos, luthier Anna Huthmaker introduces us to some of the oddities in her workshop, including a 32nd size violin, the ‘clown’ violin and the ‘super-cool’ violin. For more in the series, click here. Read: 10 unusual violins ...
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Three cellists test out a newly-made cello
In this video, Ian McWilliams, an instrument maker working just outside Berlin, asks three cellists (Rolando Fernandez, Martina Biondi, Mon-Puo Lee) to play a cello that he finished making in early 2020 to get a sense of its potential. They play three different pieces of music with three different bows. ...
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The Strad Calendar 2021: Tommaso Balestrieri violin 1759
The Balestrieri has a fine and well-preserved covering of rich red-brown varnish, which has worn softly in the manner of Cremonese recipes
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Focus
The secrets of Giuseppe Ceruti’s making style
The Cremonese luthier Giuseppe Ceruti is often overlooked in favour of his more famous son, Enrico. Duane Rosengard examines two matching double basses by Giuseppe to discover the secrets of his making style
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Premium ❘ News
Analysis September 2020: Weathering the storm
What is the future for violin making schools in the era of Covid-19? Tutors from around the world explain the form their courses are likely to take during the autumn term. By Harry White.
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Premium ❘ Feature
Giuseppe Ceruti: In the name of the father
The Cremonese luthier Giuseppe Ceruti is often overlooked in favour of his more famous son, Enrico. Duane Rosengard examines two matching double basses by Giuseppe to discover the secrets of his making style
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Focus
How Western music came to Mexico
The history of Western music in Mexico is inextricably tied up with religion. Pablo Alfaro and Jaime G. González reveal how European musical traditions permeated the culture of the indigenous people
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Premium ❘ Feature
In Focus: An 1899 cello by Paul Blanchard
Written by Philip Brown and Kathrin Hügel
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Premium ❘ Feature
Trade Secrets: Making and using a simple collar for self-centring
A useful tool for bow makers, enabling octagonal sections to be accurately centred in a three-jaw lathe chuck
