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Jacob Stainer

Jacob Stainer was the leading violin maker of the Austro-German school. For many years Stainer was thought to have been a pupil of Nicolò Amati, due to the strong similarity in their work. This theory was subsequently questioned, on the basis that Stainer was never listed as an apprentice in the Amati household, but recent research has shown that the parish lists were not introduced until 1641, by which time Stainer would have left the shop.

Stainer’s earliest work dates from the late 1630s, and he seems to have travelled a great deal over the next two decades before finally settling in the town of his birth in 1656. His early work is relatively highly arched (see the violin circa 1660) but from about 1665 he built a flatter, more successful model that seems to have been inspired by Amati’s Grand Pattern. The two violins dated 1668 and circa 1670 are representative of this model, and show Stainer at his best.

Stainer was undoubtedly one of the great craftsmen of the 17th century, and for well over a century his instruments ranked alongside, if not above, the best Cremona had to offer. His great legacy is the influence he had over subsequent makers, notably in Venice and Florence, but also in England, Germany and of course Austria. Stainer’s model was considered ideal and was industriously copied until the latter years of the 18th century, when the vogue for Stradivari finally took over. Sadly many of these copyists exaggerated the Stainer-esque features, such that the copies are not a fair reflection of the delicacy and elegance of the original.

Jacob Stainer

(Absam, b c1617; d 1683)

Jacob Stainer was the leading violin maker of the Austro-German school. For many years Stainer was thought to have been a pupil of Nicolò Amati, due to the strong similarity in their work. This theory was subsequently questioned, on the basis that Stainer was never listed as an apprentice in the Amati household, but recent research has shown that the parish lists were not introduced until 1641, by which time Stainer would have left the shop.

Stainer’s earliest work dates from the late 1630s, and he seems to have travelled a great deal over the next two decades before finally... Read more

Instruments we have sold by this maker

Articles

Jacob Stainer’s “The King”; an Interview with Matthew Truscott

24 November 2023 - Todes, Ariane

Matthew Truscott is interviewed by Ariane Todes Matthew Truscott leads the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, as well as guest leading period and modern orchestras around the world and playing chamber music. He teaches... Read more

Part IV: Violin Making Outside Cremona

19 April 2021 - Dilworth, John

The Evolution of Violin Making from 16th-20th Century Part IV

Part III: Cremona’s Second Genius

19 April 2021 - Dilworth, John

The Evolution of Violin Making from 16th-20th Century Part III

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