Cremona Italy – The Birthplace of the Violin

Even if you are not familiar with the names of many violin makers, you have heard of Stradivari. The name is sacred in musical circles, and an authentic Stradivari violin can fetch millions at auction. For modern appraisers, a violin’s price directly correlates to how close it is to Antonio Stradivari and his contemporaries.

Stradivari lived and worked in Cremona, Italy. This city, just southeast of Milan, had a previous claim to fame as the place where the poet Virgil was educated, but the luthier ateliers of the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries cemented its place in history.

Luthiers of Cremona’s Golden Age

Cremona is considered the birthplace of the violin, with its beginnings in the early sixteenth century. Some historians posit Europe’s “mini” Ice Age (c.1400-1700) produced exceptionally dense tonewood that drove Cremona’s success. However, it was the luthiers’ craftsmanship and ingenuity that created the instruments we know and love today.

Andrea Amati (1505-1577)

Andrea Amati is credited with inventing the modern violin. Later Cremonese luthiers, including Stradivari, modeled their instruments after his designs. Despite his important place in music history, not much is known about Amati’s life, and very few of his violins survive. It is believed that he made his first violin in 1546, although his earliest known instruments are dated 1564. However, Amati achieved enough fame in his lifetime to receive a commission for a set of violins, violas, and cellos from Charles IX of France. These extraordinary instruments are decorated with painted and gilded scenes that depict religious figures, nature, and French royal insignia. Amati’s sons, Antonio and Girolamo, took over the atelier after his death, ensuring his legacy.

Niccolò Amati (1596-1684)

Andrea Amati’s grandson, Niccolò, took Cremonese violin-making to new heights. Amati made adjustments to his grandfather’s model that resulted in a large, pleasing tone and a more aesthetically beautiful instrument. By the seventeenth century, luthiers in Cremona were competing with their Brescian colleagues for dominance. Amati’s innovations solidified Cremona’s place as the world’s center for violin-making. He went on to train the city’s next generation of luthiers, and his influence is apparent on almost all subsequent Cremonese violin-makers, even if they did not directly apprentice with him.

Andrea Guarneri (1623-1698)

Guarneri was both Niccolò Amati’s most reverent pupil and the founder of his own violin-making dynasty. Guarneri studied with Amati for seven years, learning to replicate his master’s instruments so precisely that even experts struggle with identification. When he struck out on his own, Guarneri developed a more personal style that favored character over perfectionism; this independence would become a hallmark of the Guarneri family legacy. Guarneri’s contralto violas in particular are considered a pinnacle of craftsmanship. His sons, Giuseppe filius Andrea and Pietro of Mantua, eventually joined his workshop and became respected luthiers in their own right.

Francesco Rugeri (1628-1698)

Francesco Rugeri’s life is intertwined with that of his contemporary, Niccolò Amati. They seemed to have developed a friendship, with Amati standing as godfather for one of Rugeri’s sons. Tradition holds that Rugeri studied under Amati, but modern musicologists struggle to find any evidence of apprenticeship. Some elements of Amati’s style are present in Rugeri’s instruments, but Amati’s impact on seventeenth-century Cremona was so strong that these similarities cannot be taken as proof of direct study. Music historians speculate about a rivalry between the two luthiers, as Amati’s fame kept Rugeri from reaching widespread success during his lifetime. However, Rugeri’s instruments are still highly valued today. His most influential design was his cello, which used smaller proportions than his contemporaries’ designs. This innovation resulted in a warm, nuanced tone quality and extraordinary responsiveness, securing Rugeri’s place in music history. Rugeri’s four sons continued his atelier, although only Vincenzo reached a level of craftsmanship that equalled his father’s.

Antonio Stradivari (1644-1737)

On the labels of his early instruments, Antonio Stradivari pays homage to Niccolò Amati as his teacher. However, whether Stradivari actually studied under Amati or was simply inspired by the master is a subject of musicological debate. Nevertheless, Stradivari used Amati templates in his workshop, and his early career was shaped by Amati’s designs.

In 1684, Stradivari began making a series of adjustments to Amati’s model that would win him world renown. The reason for these changes is unknown. Maybe Stradivari was reacting to the expansion of the orchestra, or maybe they simply reflected his own tastes. Between 1698 and 1709, Stradivari designed smaller violins with gently curved arches, but by 1710, his style shifted again. Stradivari lowered the table and built larger, more angular instruments, which resulted in a much more powerful sound. With the rise of Baroque concertos, star soloists used these impressive instruments to set themselves apart. Stradivari’s striking varnish has been studied for centuries, with luthiers trying to sleuth out the secret ingredient; however, it still remains one of the violin world’s great mysteries. Over his long career, the master produced over 1,100 instruments, at least 650 of which still survive.

Carlo Bergonzi I (1683-1747)

Carlo Bergonzi’s luthier pedigree remains unknown; some music historians posit that he studied under Giuseppe Guarneri filius Andrea, while others believe that he apprenticed with Vincenzo Rugeri. However he received his training, Bergonzi was an established luthier in his own right by the 1720s. His work reveals minute attention to detail in all parts of the violin-making process, from tonewood selection to woodworking to varnish. In 1746, Bergonzi gave the music world a uniquely powerful gift: moving into Casa Stradivari and finishing the late master’s incomplete instruments.

Guarneri del Gesù (1698-1744)

The grandson of Amati’s apprentice, Andrea Guarneri, Giuseppe Guarneri del Gesù continued the Cremonese tradition of violin craftsmanship and innovation. Guarneri studied violin-making under his father, Giuseppe Guarneri filius Andrea, but his work reflects the distinctly Brescian stretched C-bouts and large f-holes of luthiers like Maggini and da Salò. In 1731, Guarneri adopted the label that would give rise to his nickname “del Gesù”: Jesus Hominem Salvator (Jesus Saviour of Man).

Guarneri’s instruments showcase the ingenuity, individualism, and detailed craftsmanship. As a result of his creativity, Guarneri violins produce a rich, nuanced tone that marries sweetness and depth. In the 19th century, Guarneri received posthumous fame as the preferred maker of virtuoso violinist and musical superstar Niccolò Paganini. Paganini referred to one of his Guarneri violins as “il cannone” (the canon) for its uniquely powerful sound. Legendary French luthier Jean Baptiste Vuillaume copied Guarneri’s designs frequently, and Hilary Hahn, the modern era’s Paganini, plays a Vuillaume replica of Guarneri.

The Cremonese Renaissance

Economic hardship in the eighteenth century began a period of decline for Cremona’s luthiers. After a nearly two century-long intermission, however, violin-making returned to Cremona in 1937. The city’s celebrations to commemorate the two hundredth anniversary of Stardivari’s death attracted interest, and by the next year, Cremona’s International School of Violin-Making was established. Briefly interrupted by World War II, the school steadily gained students throughout the 1950s and 1960s.

Today, the school preserves Cremona’s five centuries of tradition, teaching its students to make instruments by hand without any industrial tools, and has a long waiting list. Cremona’s Violin Museum brings the works of the old masters into the modern age with concerts on antique instruments and multimedia exhibits. In 2012, UNESCO recognized Cremona by adding it to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Cremona is still the center of international violin-making, boasting over 100 workshops. These modern masters include famous names such as Daniele Scolari, Marco Nolli, Dante Fulvio Lazzari, Maurizio Tadioli, and Alessandro Voltini. Luthiers from all over the world now call Cremona home, and many more make the pilgrimage there every three years to compete in the Triennial Instrument Making Competition. The violin was born in Cremona, and this Italian city is ensuring that this instrument and its storied history stay alive and well.