This is a 1963 violin by Otello Bignami, one of the key figures in 20th-century Bolognese lutherie, who was born 100 years ago this year.

Instruments of the Bologna school demonstrates the following features, as defined by Bignami in 1984: 'The purfling is peculiar, in that it is made up of three stripes of equal thickness. The C-bouts of our violins resemble those of Amatis: the curve has a particularly elegant shape. The Bolognese model is altogether very elegant.'

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The Bologna Music Museum's exhibition of Otello Bignami instruments runs from 23 October to 9 November 2014

 

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