Stefano Scarampella

He was born on March 17, 1843, in Sant'Alessandro, Brescia, the son of Paolo, a hobbyist violin maker.

His older brother, Giuseppe Scarampella (1838-1902), was a violin maker and famous as a pupil of Nicolo Bianchi (1796-1948), working mainly in Florence.

Stefano worked as a joiner, but during his time in Brescia he began making violins as a hobby, following in the footsteps of his father and brother.

Around 1886 (at the age of 43), he had already lost his wife and become a widower with two young children.

He moved to Mantua in search of work to support his two children, and moved from place to place. He continued to work as a joiner, but he was exposed to the world of music (his son became a cellist) and began making instruments again in his spare time.

Stefano officially began working as a violin maker in 1890 (at the age of 47).

In the early days, he made instruments under the guidance of his brother Giuseppe, and after Giuseppe's death in 1902, he inherited the tools, moulds and varnish recipes.

From then on, he continued his dramatic and original creative productions until 1915.

Despite his late start as a violin maker, Stefano was prolific, using whatever materials he could find to make his instruments, which, although somewhat rough in appearance, had an appealing charm and tone that made them popular at the time.

As a result, it was imitated by countless violin makers, which later caused confusion over the name "Scalampella."

He particularly favored models made by the old Mantuan makers Giuseppe Dall'Aglio (1795-1840) and Tommaso Balestrieri (w.1725-1749), as well as the Guarneri models used by his brother.

In 1919, Stefano took on Gaetano Gadda (1900-1956) as his only pupil.

In 1924, Stefano, who had been in poor health due to illness, began living off Gaetano's support, and in return he made a contract to hand over all materials, tools, formwork, etc. to him after his death.

He died on January 23, 1925, at the age of 82.

Today, Scalampela instruments are highly sought after by both performers and collectors.

Quote《Liuteria Italiana II》