Amati Violins

Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati Violin Making Families

Introduction

All hailing from the small town of Cremona, Italy, the Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati families are considered to have made the best violins throughout history. These makers made marvels that have been appraised for millions of dollars. For example, in 2005 Stradivari’s 1699 Lady Tennant violin was sold for 2 million dollars. Even though modern technology allows violin makers to make exceptional violins, many violin players feel that the Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati violins are superior.

Going up to millions of dollars, violins that are made by the Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati families are considered to be some of the best violins in the world. It all started

Nowadays, Cremona is a fairly large city that has a population of around 70,000 people, and now serves as a tourist attraction. Cremona is most famous for its violins and contains a violin school that Andrea Amati founded. These violin makers are thought to have invented the modern violin. Even though the Stradivari, Guarneri, Amati violins are considered to be modern there are many differences between violins now and these violins.

Secrets Behind Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati Violins Throughout history, the ways that the Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati families made their violins were lost to time. Recently, several of these secrets have been uncovered. There are many differences between Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati violins and modern violins. Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati violins are known to have a more prominent scroll, a modified f-hole, a reduced arch, a large corner block, and a more curved middle

They are the first violin makers of Cremona and essentially started the violin making in Cremona. The first of the Amati’s is Andrea Amati, who lived from 1520 to 1578. He founded the Cremona Violin School (which is still active today). Along with that, Andrea Amati made violins and is considered to have set the stage for the later violin makers. The next Amatis are Andrea Amati’s sons Antonio and Girolamo Amati. Antonio lived from 1550 to 1638 and Girolamo lived from 1551 to 1635 and was killed by the Black Death. They were the sons of Andrea Amati and helped their father make violins. Antonio and Girolamo are often considered as “The Brothers Amati” and inherit their father 's business. During this time they experiment with the form, visual appeal, and sound of the violin. They also made the contralto viola which was a larger tenor viola. Their instruments were widespread, and they are considered to have a great influence. Finally, the last Amati that I will cover is Nicolo Amati who lived from 1596 to 1635. Nicolo Amati is considered to be the most famous Amati. Once his father Girolamo Amati died Nicolo took over the business. Nicolo was the only Amati to survive the Black Plague and famine that accompanied it. During this stage of this life, he did not make many violins. After this, he got a high demand for violins. Nicolo Amati is the son of Girolamo Amati and is known for his craftsmanship of the violin. His