Gorgeous Old Markneukirchen Guadagnini Label Violin circa 1870-1890

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Handwritten Label:

Markneukirchen is the instrument making town known for centuries and to this day as the hub for making musical instruments. The area had the raw product and hardworking dedicated immigrants from nearby Bohemia. Since the 17th century, Protestants fleeing religious persecution in Bohemia crossed the border; many of them practiced the instrument trade and settled in this new district called Saxony in the town of Markneukirchen, which is close to the Czech border. Yup, it is a gorgeous area full of trees and scenic mountains. The industry somehow survived two World Wars and by the late 1800’s and up to World War II, 80 percent of the world’s musical instruments and bows were made in this small town.

Our violin has a handwritten label with the name of a fine Italian maker. This was a German practice for close to 150 years. The workmanship displayed by the violin is very nice. I do not have an exact maker’s name on this Markneukirchen violin, but Wow does it scream nice violin. A good maker would have spent 150-175 hours on a violin like this. Much handwork went into this instrument, and the arching is slightly different than a standard Strad arch. The arching is a bit more pronounced right from the purfling, especially at the center of the top plate. The neck has been grafted, and the scroll is beautifully egg shaped, not rounded or circular as typically found in a commercial or machined instrument. The violin is very German in its lines, and the one-piece back sets this violin apart even more. The back plate has a medium-width flame, and the tongue has an ebony crown. The f holes are slightly overdone in a Baroque sense, and the diapasons are exaggerated too. The violin is lovely in its layout: bouts, top and bottom widths, and the center which rises quickly even through the carved sound holes. I meticulously went over the entire violin, giving the instrument a complete new set up: pegs, nut, fingerboard cambered, and two new corners- one on the top plate and one on the maple back. One new edge on the top plate, and a reset of the neck to get a slightly higher projection, a new bridge and soundpost cut, addition of a new tailpiece, end button, and chinrest. The violin deserved all the special treatment, especially after hearing the instrument’s sound just on the initial set up. The violin has a fantastic tonal response. It made me sit up and take notice of the violin in a different light. The craftsmanship is excellent, and the sound brought a smile to my face.

Corpus 357.0 mm. Major Width 204.5 mm. Minor Width 162.0 mm. Rib Height 28.0 mm – 27.5 mm. Vibrating String Length 327.0 mm.

Tonally the violin speaks well. The sound literally jumps off the strings. The tone is deep and rich while the strength of the instrument was noticeable as soon as I played a few notes. The bottom end has that gutsy slight edginess to the sound which gives the instrument great life. I would also describe the sound like a mature older ensemble of singers or an operatic tenor who is about to blow you away singing “God Bless America” after the 7th inning at the past All Star Baseball Game this July. Wow, it was awesome! The treble side of the strings are vibrant, clean, and noticeably clear, like a singer with fantastic diction. Right there, you can understand and hear everything. The violin rings and has a great overall sound, it’s inviting and comes to life. It is not really a surprise coming from a fantastic old Markneukirchen well-made violin. This instrument deserves a trial even if you have been looking at instruments in the 6K price range.