Carlo Giuseppi Testore
Testore “copy” Violin restoration.
In the summer of 2014 a customer came in with a restoration job on an old violin of their mothers-in-laws. The violin had a Testore label. The label looked quite authentic however the violin had some Peculiar features.
Image of violin label: “Carlo Giuseppe Testore do Contrada Larga in Milano Segno Dell Agnla 17..
The body ribs were originally about 24 mm in height. A normal Stradivarius style violin will have 29 1/2 to 30 1/2 mm for the rib height. A rib height of only 24 mm is very unusual. So unusual in fact, that a repair was made to add another 4 mm to the rib highs bringing the ribs to 28 mm. This repair had a small 4 mm Strip of rib added to the entire body. Inside the instrument the linings were almost 10 mm deep into the instrument rather than the standard 6 1/2 to 7 mm.
When the instrument came in the bottom plate was entirely disconnected from the body. The top plate was only attached at the neck root. And the rib corners were separated in several places. Additionally one center bout rib was split in half and the lining containing this extra 4 mm a rib material was loose or missing in several locations.
All this decay required basic assembly work. The worst damage was in the lower bouts on the base side of the instrument, the outer edge of the top plate was literally rotted away through the purfling to the plate edge. The decay had not passed the purfling line but most of the purfling was gone. Additionally the four outer most edges of the top plate were missing back to the purfling line. I will say that the purfling did its job, it stopped the destruction on the edges.
As I was working on the instrument and replacing the purfling, I noted that the purfling channel was very deep. At some places it actually cut through to the bottom of hte plate. This likely contributed to the excessive damage on the edges.
The neck button had an Ebony trim around the button. This trim was in the violin case but not attached to the button.
My first concern when seeing the instrument was to determine if it was in fact a Testore violin. If it was, or was likely a Testore, I would have recommended that the owner take the instrument to a restorer specialized in old Italian instruments. I located several photos of Testore violins and the body arching looked similar. However the neck scroll and f-holes did not look similar. I suspected that it was not a Testore. To confirm my suspicion I sent photos to two other violin makers and asked their opinion.The consensus was that it was probably a Saxony imitation rather than an actual Testore instrument. On their consensus, I agreed to take the job and repair the instruments.
If there had been suspicion that the instrument was actually a Testore then I would have refuse the job. I'm a violin maker, and in the process of making violins, especially my earlier ones, I've acquired the skills to repair most types of violin damage. But, restoring an instrument of value requires a much finer degree of skill in wood grain matching, varnish and color texture etc. I've seen before and after photos of major damage where you could not detect the evidence of repair. Actually there are very few 16th century instruments that have not had a significant amount of work done on them, but the work is usually undetectable to the untrained eye. This type of work takes more experience than I currently possess and a lot of time to execute. I will acquire more of these skills, that being said, unless you work in a shop that specializes in restoring rare violins; leave that work to the restoration masters.
Additionally, the owner had no provenance, there was no historical paperwork or documentation as to where their mother or her parents had purchased the instrument. They only knew that the instrument was purchased in the 1920 to 1940 era in the midwest likely in Illinois. The owner felt that the parents of her mother-in-law mother had means and would have spent a considerable sum of money for a quality instrument. This and the Testore label were their basis for thinking that the instrument could in fact have been a Testore.
So believing that the interest instrument was one of the many German copies, I started the repairs. Once the instrument was put back together I was quite surprised at the superb tone quality. The instrument sounded very clean and clear in tone.
In February while participating in a violin varnishing workshop, I showed pictures of the instrument to a veteran violin maker. He noted the serial number inside the instrument. One of the violin makers who had earlier reviewed the pictures commented that the serial number may have been a rental serial number for a school instrument.
However, this veteran violin maker suggested that the numbers looked like an auction identification tag. If this was the case this instrument may have been sold in an auction indicating that it could possibly be a violin of interest, not a German knock off. This made me quiet nervous. I'd love the instrument to be a Testore, but I would shudder to think that I had worked on an actual Testore.
Inside view of the violin back showing the label and suspect set of identification numbers
One other item also made me more nervous. I had originally seen photos of later Testore instruments, while at the varnish workshop I gained access to more Testore photos. One from a 1730 Carlo Testore, had a scroll that bore resemblance to the one I was restoring. It did not look exactly the same, but much closer than other photos I had seen.
The overarching mantra when working on any violin is "Do no harm". Whether an inexpensive instrument, or an instrument "Of Interest". Do no harm. Enhance the instrument, leave as much of the original makers work as humanly possible. To be honest, I'm even a bit uncomfortable publishing this blog, we violin makers and luthiers put a lot of professionalism and take pride in our work.
The Testore’s sound
The week before the owner came to pick up the instrument, I invited Shelby Trevor, my violin teacher to come and play the Testore copy. Shelby is a professional violinist and has experience in playing good violins. I had mentioned the violin to Shelby during lessons and he said He would like to play the instrument if possible. Once the instrument was all set up and ready to go I called Shelby. Once he had played the violin he had several responses to the instrument. His most significant response was the instruments responsiveness. He said the instrument gave him feedback on playing very quickly, so he could make adjustments immediately rather than waiting for the instruments sound to stabilize.
Also the tone was very clear without spurious or extra frequencies around the note. Shelby stated that it was very easy to change the instruments colors because he did not have to work against other contradictory sounds.
He liked the playability of the instrument. I had the strings set a bit lower than I normally do due to the thinness of the instrument’s neck. He seemed to like the playing capability on the strings. String height is really more a function of set up than the instrument but I was glad to hear that he liked the set up. Setup dictates the interface between the musicians and the instrument. If the setup is off, the instrument will be more difficult to play. Additionally, bridge and sound post settings can have a significant impact on tone, both good and bad. I was quite delighted to have restored this instrument, and completed the setup and with such good tonal and playability results!
Shelby commented that the violin was a very unique instrument to play, more of a soloist instrument than an orchestral instrument.
Shelby played his instrument, made by Carly(SP) Hutchinson, and then compared the suspected Testore. I could hear the tonal quality as he played Mozart's G major Concerto. He really appreciated the sound and clarity coming from the Testore model.
Video excerpt with Shelby Playing the instrument
The owner came to pick up the instrument later that week. She was moved when I played and when I played a video of Shelby she was very touched. Her mother-in-law’s instrument had come alive after laying dormant since the 1970’s
My joy in bringing this fine instrument back to its musical viability can not be expressed in words. When I hear an instrument that I’ve coaxed back to life, deep feelings of satisfaction and pure joy well up from the depths of my soul.