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Reference Library Biographies

Reichel

A German family of violin and bow makers.

Reidel, Hermann Albin

Pupil of Hermann Pfretzschner.

Reindahl, Knute

Violin and bow maker.

Richaume, Andre

Studied under his uncle Victor Fetique. Based in Paris from 1932.

Riechers, August

Worked with C.F. Ficker and L. Bausch

Rivolta, Giacomo

A fairly prolific and well-disciplined maker. Large, open soundholes, a full arching and rather cramped scroll are characteristic. Made many violas, which are very successful and of good, usable size.

Rocca, Enrico

Pupil of his father, he took to violin making late in life and his work is relatively rare, generally with a weaker arch and general execution than his father.

Rocca, Giuseppe

One of the very best makers of the nineteenth century, he was the pupil of Giovanni Frencesco Pressenda in Turin.

Rogeri, Giovanni Battista

Giovanni Battista Rogeri was born in Bologna, but was apprenticed to Nicolo Amati in Cremona from 1661-1662. He then moved to Brescia, and was married there in 1664.

Rogeri, Pietro Giacomo

Worked for his father until his death around 1705, and thereafter alone. A younger brother, Giovanni Paolo (b.1667) seems to have died before 1705, but may have assisted in the shop.

Rota, Giovanni

Apprenticed to Lorenzo Storioni, Rota established his own in Cremona workshop by 1791. Some labels give his home as Mantua between 1793 and 1808, but his last recorded instruments are from Cremona in 1808 and 1809.

Rugeri, Francesco

Often cited as a pupil of Amati, there is no documentary evidence to support this, and it is now thought that Francesco and his family worked independently in a separate parish, but making instruments almost identical to those of Amati, and sometimes mis-

Rugeri, Vincenzo

An often overlooked maker, whose relatively rare work combines his father's Amatese style with a strong Stradivari influence, and often uses a very rich, dark varnish.

Salo, Gaspar da (Bertolotti)

Most of his career in Brescia was devoted to viols and citterns. A violone player himself, he produced some highly influential bass instruments also.

Sartory, Eugene

Trained under his father, before working first under Charles Peccatte, later Alfred Lamy. In 1893, Eugene Sartory set up his own shop and can be regarded as the 'last member of the late 19th century school of French bow makers who devoted their time and s

Scarampella, Giuseppe

Trained by Nicolo Bianchi (1796-1881) in Genoa, he subsequently worked in Paris, and then in Florence from 1866 as curator of the Cherubini Conservatoire collection.

Scarampella, Stefano

Taught by his elder brother Giuseppe, spent much of his working life in Mantua, where his output was prolific

Schuster

Large German family of violin and bow makers, predominantly based in Markneukirchen and Fleissen.

Serafino, Santo

Distinguished and prolific maker, dominant in Venice from ca 1730 until his retirement in 1744.

Sgarbi, Giuseppe

A very original maker, lacking in finesse and very mannered in style, generally with a slender, elongated model with clear red or orange varnish.

Siegfried, Finkel

Apprenticed to Paul Weidhaas in Markneukirchen and subsequently worked for the Weidhaas workshop.

Sorsana, Spirito

A follower of Cappa, his model is flat and broad, the scroll having a distinctively wide first turn. The varnish is most often a dark orange-brown.

Stainer, Jacobus

The best and most influential maker of the Germanic school, and for much of the eighteenth century revered by violinists as at least equal to his Cremonese contemporaries

Storioni, Lorenzo

Following a hiatus after the deaths of Stradivari, Guarneri del Gesu and Carlo Bergonzi in a ten year period, Storioni did much to revive the craft in its capital city.