Master Craftsman: Antonio Stradivari

Antonio Stradivari (1644 - 1737) was an Italian maker of violins. He was one of the leading instrument makers in music history. He used Stradivarius, the Latin form of his name, on the labels of his instruments. A pupil of Amati, who taught him the art, which he himself perfected. His violins are recognized as the finest ever made. Some of his more famous instruments still in existence are the Viotti, Ernst and Alard violins, and Paganini viola, and the Piatti violoncello. His two sons, Francesco (1671 - 1743) and Omobono (1679 - 1742), succeeded him as violin-makers.

The famous creator of the legendary Stradivarius violins was born in Cremona, Italy, a renowned center of instrument craftsmanship. He spent his whole life in Cremona.

He inherited the traditions of the Cremonese instrument makers from his teacher, Nicolo Amati, a noted instrument maker, and brought their art to its zenith. Stradivari worked under Amati until his death in 1669, learning the basic skills of making stringed instruments.

His technique for making violins brought the instrument to perfection. Later violinmakers followed the methods and designs established by him but the secret of the superb tone of his instruments has never been discovered.

The earliest violins resembled those of his teacher, Amati, in shape and varnish. The violins of his second period were built in around 1690 to a different pattern; they were flatter and longer, had more definite scrolls and were coated with a brighter varnish. His most famous violins came from the third period, 1695 - 1725, and combined an elegant shape with a broad outline that made maximum use of the resonance of the wood; the varnish was vivid and usually reddish. It is estimated that Stradivari made more than 1100 instruments, those that were incomplete at the time of his death were finished by his sons and pupils. Very few of his violins still survive.

Although Stradivari made certain changes in the proportions of his instruments, particularly the violins, the secret of his mastery, which has never been equaled, appears to have been in the varnish he used. His finest instruments were made between 1700 and 1725. About thirty of his best violins and a dozen of his best cellos are still in use. His violins are more desired by players than those of any other instrument maker with the exception of his contemporary, Giuseppe Antonio Guarnieri.

Stradivari's instruments combine excellent wood, outstanding craftsmanship, beautiful shape and proportion, and superb vanish. His masterpieces provide an incomparable blend of strength and sweetness of sound. Stradivari's instruments, like others of his time, were later modified. They were fitted with longer, tilted necks and finger boards; stronger bass-bars; and higher bridges. These changes gave the instruments increased string tension and the structural strength to resist that tension. The modified instruments gained the volume needed to perform in the large concert halls and with the large symphony orchestras of the 1800's and 1900's.

Stradavari, who was still making instruments when he was over ninety, had eleven children, of whom two sons, Francesco Stradivari (1671 - 1743) and Omobono Stradivari (1679 - 1742), worked closely with him.