On these pages are links to illustrated articles we’ve written, highlighting some of the noteworthy and/or unusual instruments that Darnton & Hersh Fine Violins has handled as well as important makers worthy of study. The links are divided into three groups:
- Articles published on this website (immediately below)
- Articles we’ve authored for the Cozio Archives of the Tarisio website (where you will be prompted to sign up for a free login to view articles) Jump to links
- Other externally-published articles (in The Strad magazine and on the Guarneri Hall website) Jump to links
Articles on This Website
Nicolo Amati After 1640
Nicolo Amati, the third generation of the illustrious Amati instrument makers, must have begun to assume a leadership role in the family workshop by the early 1620s. When his father, Girolamo I, died in 1630 amid the ravages of the plague, the 35-year-old Nicolo became the patriarch of the household and family business.
A Large Form Stradivari Cello: “Bonnet,” 1693
Prior to 1701 the Stradivari workshop built cellos of large dimensions, in keeping with the standards of the time. Most surviving examples have, like this one, been reduced in size due to changes in musical style.
A Brothers Amati Violin, Cremona, c. 1624
To fully appreciate the exquisite instrument shown here, it is instructive to go back to the dawn of the Amati violin-building tradition, believed to be sometime around 1525.
The Bows of François-Nicolas Voirin
François-Nicolas Voirin (1833-1885) was perhaps the most important French bow maker of the second half of the 19th century. After an apprenticeship in his hometown of Mirecourt with Jean Simon (a relative of the more famous Pierre Simon), Voirin moved to Paris in 1855 to join the workshop of his cousin, Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume. Voirin in…
A Violin by Antonio Stradivari: ex-Vieuxtemps, 1710
The reemergence of a long unseen Stradivari violin of the most desirable form and in superb condition, as is the Viextemps instrument featured in this article, is a rare occurrence.
Read more A Violin by Antonio Stradivari: ex-Vieuxtemps, 1710
A Cello d’Amore by Leandro Bisiach, 1915
Leandro Bisiach was internationally recognized as one of the most influential violin makers and dealers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Featured here is an unusual instrument he created in 1915, a “cello d’amore.”
Two Violas by Zanetto and Peregrino, Early 16th Century
An air of mystery surrounds Zanetto and Peregrino, father-and-son makers from the very dawn of violin-family history whose surviving instruments are extremely rare today.
Read more Two Violas by Zanetto and Peregrino, Early 16th Century
A J.B. Vuillaume Viola
The vast output from the Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume atelier is remarkable for its consistent quality. But Vuillaume violas as desirable as this one are rare.
Cozio Archives Articles
Other External Articles
Read “In Focus: A 1689 Cello by Andrea Guarneri“ from the July 2019 issue of The Strad magazine.
Read “In Focus: David Tecchler, the Most Renowned Maker of the Roman School“ from the June 2018 issue of The Strad magazine.
Read articles about historically influential instrument makers we’ve authored for the not-for-profit music incubator organization, Guarneri Hall NFP. The makers featured include Antonio Stradivari, Giovanni Battista Rogeri, the Gagliano Family, and others.
Soundpost Online is an online journal that was published by Stefan Hersh from 2000 through 2006. Over 90 articles by numerous guest authors were posted there, spanning a variety of stringed instrument-related top including the craft of violin making, how to buy a violin, connoisseurship, book reviews, teaching, performance, and more. Althugh new content is no longer posted there, the articles are still available to read.
