Guillaume Maline: Rare violin, France, circa 1820

This rare violin stamped with the Maline name was probably created by Guillaume Maline ― an interesting luthier who made an extremely interesting instrument. In the footsteps of his son Nicolas Maline, an outstanding bow maker who ranked as one of J. B. Vuillaume's best employees, for a long time Guillaume Maline was considered to be a bow maker who only occasionally made stringed instruments. This assumption, however, appears to be incorrect, as the quality of this violin demonstrates. It is an excellent example of the classic French school, and the bewitchingly darkened varnish of the top indicates that it dates back to another era. The exquisite flaming of the one-piece back and accentuated edges illustrate the high standards at which Guillaume Maline worked. A visible yet acoustically irrelevant repair to the right upper rib and two smaller restored worm tracks are nothing unusual for a frequently-played instrument that is nearly 200 years old, and the experts at our workshop reviewed these spots several times to verify that these minor flaws were in fact only signs of the violin's advanced age and have no impact on its quality. This exceptional Maline violin is musically compelling with its mature and timbre-rich sound that features a silvery and slightly Baroque character yet has solid strength and brilliance and a somewhat tart sweetness in its upper registers. We recommend this violin to musicians who want an instrument with an extraordinary character and inimitable individuality and will appreciate having a somewhat shorter top mensur of 19.0 cm and neck mensur of 12.9 cm.