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Show VIOLINS AND THEIR MAKERS. There is an absolutely human fascination fas-cination about the violin, particularly particular-ly In an ancient instrument that has passed through troublous centuries of existence and whoso sensitive strings have responded to the touch of gen erations dead and gone. One need not play it well to love It fondly to love It personally. It is not so strange then, after, all that ho famous collectors col-lectors of violins have not been executants exe-cutants from a professional standpoint, stand-point, with the single exception ot Itemenyl, who had one of the finest ot private collections, and slept, so 'tis said, with a Stradlvarlus on ono sldo j of him and a Joseph Guarnerlus on the other. No. Tho man with the fad for fiddles may have como to. his -understanding of them through lovo of color, of form, of their peculiar and i romantic history, or of their potency w to stir the hearts of men beneath other fingers than his own. This accounts in some measure for tho fact that a violin always attracts attention. Artists and connoisseurs regard It with a feeling akin to affection. affec-tion. Still, these questions are never asked by those who understand the i Instrument. Tho multitude who ad- 1 mire the violin aro found among tho musicians, painters and llterateurs. It I demands unusual attention in this ago of progress, from the fact that it has hitherto proved incapable of improvement improve-ment in Its material form and features. fea-tures. The only changes made In it ' since .the sixteenth century aro con fined to the arrangement of the sound-post sound-post tho soul of tho violin and a slight lengthening of the neck. It Is the ono perfect Instrument in tho world, for the Cremonese makers left no chance for further improvement. The one thing about the violin that 'defies the science of the ago is the varnish. Tho making of this, which is now called Cremonese, is numbered num-bered among the lost arts. Tho varnish var-nish of an instrument, as all experts know, is as vital to its excellence as any other of its many wonderful yet simple parts, and pages of opinions tho result of years, yes, centuries of investigation and analysis have not 1 .disclosed the secret of tho early masters. Twelve of the finest violins In tho world formed the private collection of tho lato Itoyal Do Forest Hawloy. It was considered the most celebrated private collection tho world has over seen. Mr. Hawley was occupied for a period pe-riod of thirty years in making his collection. col-lection. His chief aim was to have tho very best, and ho spared neither 'timo nor money to obtain tho most perfect specimens extant. Ho assembled assem-bled a collection which It will be Im possible to again equal, for tho timo to obtain such a choico is past, and it becomes moro difficult each year to procure samples made by tho master makers. Tho collection was ilnally bought outright by a well-known firm in Chicago, which has since resold tho instruments separately. Each Is a mastorpieco of workmanship workman-ship In Its own school, and tho Jewel of tho twelve Is tho famous "King Joseph" Guarnerlus, 1737, tho crowning crown-ing achievement of that master's lifo-work, lifo-work, whoso history reaches back for moro than ono hundred and sixty years, and which in all that time has stood without a rival a very wizard's talisman of melody. Every ono of tho twelvo instruments has Its documentary document-ary history Jealously preserved. Many of tho most Interesting names in tho history of violin making were found In this small but rare collection. Thero wero two great Stradlvarlus models, tho work of Antonio Stradivari in his prime; and two of Joseph Guarnarlus del Gesu, tho greater of which ono is tho matchless "King Joseph" in as perfect condition as when it left tho maker's bench, besides specimens of tho great AmatI, Gergonzl, Guadagnini and Joseph Guarnerlus, son of Andrea. It was such a collection as would mako a musician hold his breath for Joy, and such as could bo appreciated to the full only by ono in touch with all tho mysteries of tho craft tho color values of tho rich old varnishes, tho curious turns of each magic scroll, tho swell of body4 and tho mysterious fashionings of rare, selected woods, into which, as somo of tho old Italian legends run, wero breather tho very life and soul of tho master workman. Tho name of Stradivari, In tho public pub-lic mind, is linked with that which is superlatively beautiful, and in tho vlo-lln vlo-lln world it is synonymous with achievement's excelling anything in tho history of tho instrument. It is fitting, therefore, that his "unrivaled namo" should be placed first in the list of violin makers. As a master' of his art ho stands on a level with Raphael Ra-phael and Michael Angelo in painting paint-ing and sculpture; Bach and Beethoven Beetho-ven in music, and Shakcspearo and Balzac in literature. Ho is tho King of Luthlers, whoso famo Is as wido as the civilized world, whose namo is known wherever the violin has a placo and who, in his art, has for two hundred hun-dred years stood peerless and alone. Ho was a law unto hlmsolf and ho ascended as-cended to heights whoro nono may follow. Ho worked to tho very end of his life. His hand never lost Its cunning; tho Inst violin mado by him bears tho (Into 1737, tho year of his death. It is this fact which gained for him tho admiration of all Interested In his art to tho extent that his namo hns become a household word, and his praises have been sung wherever and whenever tho violin has been tho subject. sub-ject. Henry W. Longfellow was entranced en-tranced with tho mnrvelous work ol Stradlvarlus and wrote concerning it: "Tho instrument on which ho played Was In Cremona's workshop mado, By a great master of tho past Ero yet was lost tho art divine; Fashioned of maplo and of pine That In Tyrolean forests vnst Had rocked and wrestled with tho I blast; Exquislto was It in design, A marvel of tho lutist's art, Perfect in each minutest part; And in its hollow chamber, thus The maker from whoso hands It camo Had written his unrlvnled namo, Antonlus Stradlvarlus." Ono of tho illustrations shown is an Antonlus Stradlvarlus, mado in Cremona In 1711. This grand violin Is known as "Tho Earl," having been for many years In tho possession of tho Earl of Westmqreland, who so-cured so-cured it when ambassador to Vienna and brought it back with him to England. Eng-land. It was ono of tho gems of tho Hawloy collection, Is in tho highest state of preservation, and occupies thq unlquo distinction of being ono of tho very few Stradlvarlus violins which comes down to us in a perfect state. It belongs to tho best period of Stradlvarlus' Strad-lvarlus' work. Tho wood is of tho. utmost beauty, and tho varnish a rich poach-red color. Tho tone Is of tho llnest Stradlvarlus quality tho es sonco of purity and sweetness, and has great breadth of volume. Mr. Archibald Ar-chibald Mitchell, of Hartford, Conn.,' bought tho Instrument for ten thousand thou-sand dollars. Tho magnificent speciment of Stradlvarlus' Strad-lvarlus' work labeled 1722 Is ono of tho largest that ho made, anil in form, I wood and varnish resembles tho Span- il Ish Stradlvarlus, 1720, and tho "Nlco- il Hnl" Stradlvarlus, 1728. All of these I violins aro strikingly different from I his earliest Instruments; nlso those Lm mado In tho years Just prior to his I death. I They liavo an air of massiveness I and strength which predominates ovor I all icthor qualities. Tho wood Is very I handsome and tho varnish a rich ruby ' . color. Mr. Archibald Mitchell also jl owns this wonderfully lino instrument, l for which he paid nino thousand dol- I lars. H Josoph Guarnerlus del Gesu rnn.es I next to Stradlvarlus, and Is thorei'oro I the second greatest maker of violins H tho world has ever known. Tho term H "del Gesu" has always been applied to H this maker on account of tho charac- I tors "I. H. S." (Iosus Homlnurn Sal- valor), and a llomau cross, which al- H most Invariably appear on his labels, It also serves to distinguish' him from H his cousin, Joseph, son of Andrea. H Vlullaumo, an eminent authority on H matters rotating to tho ilddlo world, H has divided tho work of Guarnerlus, H very properly, into four periods, wb'lch H differ frcm each other and aro marked H by tho finish of his instruments and H the modeling and wood employed in H their construction. Tho Instruments H of his earlier years havo much of tho H character of thoso of tho great njas- H tcrs immediately preceding him. Tho H violins of tho second period aro of small pattern, very elegant in design slightly higher in tho. arching, and beautifully developed from tho edges upward. In tho third division nro In- eluded his instruments of largo form H grand and noblo specimens of tho luthler's art aro thoy superior in var-nish, var-nish, wood and general artistic quail-ties quail-ties to his Instruments of every other period, and equaling tho greatest works of Stradlvarlus. Tho las epoch from 1735 to 1745 finds a departure fl in ono or two rcspocts from tho lines followed In tho preceding period, but In these last years lot It bo rcmpm-bored rcmpm-bored ho fashioned somo of his most famous instruments, notably tho Paga-nlnl Paga-nlnl "Canon," now preserved nnd ox- (Continued on page 12) I ' Violins and their Maker. I ij (Continued from pege 5) I ' , I l hlblt$d In iho city of Genoa, and tho If 1 equally Tvcll known "King Joseph.'' " ! Guarnerlua sought and obtained a I tono differing from thai of any of his I 'prwlecessors, partaking of tho quail-I quail-I 'tics of both Stradlvarius and Magglnl, I ' having tho rich, brilliant, telling prop-I prop-I crtlca of tho ono and tho plaintive, I melancholy tones of tho other. Tho I violins of Joseph Guarnerius have al-I al-I ways been In high favor among con- cert players; Faganlni, VIeuxtemps, B Leonard and many others of tho past, H as well as WJlhelmj, Ysaye, Kubelik, I Sltt and Herman of tho present day. I The violin with tho magic legend or Hi label, reading: "Joseph Guarnerius, H fecit Cromonao anno 1737," is proba-I proba-I bly tho most widely known of all tho H Violins made in Cremona. It Is known H hs tho "King Joseph." Its fame rests H pn Its remarkable tone, beauty of H, wood; varnish and workmanship, and jr on its perfect state of preservation. U H Is without' doubt the best specimen of H tho work of Joseph Guarnerius in ex-R ex-R Istencc. It has maintained its proud Hi position as "Ilng" from tho time It J was brought from Italy Into England' Bt by tho ominont collector, Mr. James H Godjng, of London, over half a century ago. It was made when Guarnerius H was at his best, and without question H ho regarded it as his chef-d'oeuvre. BJt When ono compares it with other vlo-BJ vlo-BJ llns of his mako, and goes into the BJ (details of tone, workmanship and var-BJ' var-BJ' !nlsh, only then can ho realize how lm-BJ lm-BJ measurably superior it Is in every BJ way. The tono Is of tho most com-BJ com-BJ mandtng character, the Guarnerius BJ tono timbre being doubly pronounced, BJ and for richness, solidity and power li BJ' is undoubtedly, as for years It has BJ; 'been regarded, tho king of all Guarno-BJ' Guarno-BJ' Hub violins. Its form and coloring are BJ 1 perfect, tho graining of the wood tho BJ' choice of a wholo forest, and its var-BJj var-BJj nlsh the crowning triumph of Its male-BJ male-BJ er's art. This king of Instruments is BJj now ownod-by Mr. H. o. Havemoyer, BJ- of Now York, and tho price paid was twelve thousand dollars. BJ1 A fine- violin Is an expensive luxury. BJ1 So much respect does a truo artist pay Bjl (o a master maker that he feels ho BJ must bo able to "play up" to tho do- BJ 'mands of thd instrument before he BJ' would presume to think of having it Bl . for his very own. Thero Is a "soul" BJ hidden In every violin made by tho old BJ Cremoneso master hands, and every BJ artist knows he must bo able to draw BJ that soul out of It, or tho violin cannot BJ by any artistic right bejong to him. BJ! Marlon Y. Bunner In tho Craftsman. BBBl I . - |