Violin by Giuseppe Gaffino

Paris, 1743

Catalog 10. Violin – Giuseppe Gaffino, Paris, 1743

Giuseppe Gaffino († 1789) was an Italian violin maker who, like many of his countrymen, excercised his trade in Paris. He studied with Castagneri, establishing himself from 1742 on as an independent maker. He was elected President of the Violin-maker’s Guild in 1766. Although his workmanship does not equal the refined creations of his contemporaries, Guersan and Pierray, our violin nevertheless posesses a very robust sound. This violin retains its original neck, fingerboard and pegs. Notice that the neck is already angled towards the back, as on the modern violin. This, together with the wedge-shaped fingerboard, yield a rather substantial bridge height.

Début of the violin, in the hands of Christian Kausel, from Chile,
at the concerts of the Castello di Duino, Italy, October, 2010

Here Christian Kausel with the Gaffino violin in a sonata by Heinrich Biber,
San Giovanni in Tuba, Duino, October, 2010

Body length	mm
Upper width	mm
Middle width	mm
Lower width	mm
Rib height	mm
String length	mm