If we were to organize a parade of all the arts, as in the finale of Wagner's Master Singers, probably - wrote Gustavo Marchesi in a 1985 essay on Renato Scrollavezza - we should put the luthiers, those who give body to the fluids, who shape the envelopes, who to the seekers of elusive beauty offer the forms, the models of real beauty, long feminine lines that follow the impulses of creation.
Italian lutherie perhaps represents the high magisterium of builders of which the arts of the trades of our history are depositories. And the master Scrollavezza - adds Marchesi - is unquestionably considered the guide of sovereign manufacturers. Among the only six Italian members, up to the Eighties, of the Entente Internationale des Maîtres Luthiers et Archetiers d'Art, he is the author of 240 violins, 61 violas, 42 cellos, 5 double basses, 2 love violas, one viola da gamba , a lute, a vielle, a pochette and a hundred classical guitars. After having represented Italy at the Seventh International Exhibition of Contemporary Lutherie in Tokyo and Osaka in 1980, in the same year the master decided, albeit pressured by requests from all over the world, not to sell any more instruments. And, since then, until his very recent death, he dedicates all his energy exclusively to the pure research, for his personal satisfaction, of that balance between form and sound that represents the only true "secret" of stringed instruments. Hence, the creation of an entire orchestra representing Scrollavezza's masterpiece, a very rare example in the history of violin making: a custom that dates back to Amati and Stradivari, never repeated, unique in modern times.
In the light of the new projects under construction by italiani.it, including the ambitious one of protecting and conserving, by disseminating their schools and traditions, the prestigious arts of Italian crafts, in recent days, we met in his XNUMXth century villa , in the province of Parma, Elisa Scrollavezza, luthier and daughter of Renato. Elisa has collected, together with Andrea Zanrè, the heavy legacy of a profession that represents in all respects one of the apexes of the highest Italian craftsmanship.
"The Italian school is undoubtedly the most prestigious in the world", tell us. “Lutherie is a profession that does not risk extinction but that it needs students and to keep alive the concept of the shop, of craftsmanship. Today the Eastern market has organized itself for industrial mass production and has the power to monopolize the purchase of the finest wood needed to make violins, violas, cellos and double basses. For this reason, on the market in the East, one can surprisingly find instruments made with the finest quality wood, for a few hundred euros. However, between the latter and the handcrafted instruments there is an abysmal difference in sound, in performance tout court. And the one produced by the industry, even if manufactured with the best materials, can never, even remotely, be compared with a traditional instrument of lutherie. A luthier can produce six or seven very high quality instruments per year, nothing compared to industrial production. It goes without saying, therefore, that violin making is a highly prestigious profession that must be preserved and kept alive by a top-level school. The Italian one was relaunched in the XNUMXs by Farinacci. As a propaganda operation - we could also call it commercial for that time - it had an important implication in relaunching a specific school that drew on Stradivari and all the other famous names of the previous centuries. In the meantime, the areas between Parma, Mantua and Turin, but also around Venice, remained, regardless, the heart of Italian violin making ".
But if all the precious woods of the Eastern European woods end up in China, - we ask Elisa - is Italian craftsmanship in danger?
"In Italy, in Val di Fiemme, we have the best spruce in the world while, for the maple, it is possible to get supplies, as per tradition, in the Bosnian woods. And the profession is not at risk of extinction, except for the growing lack of new Italian luthier apprentices. However, it is important that the degree of quality required by the users does not dilute with the passing of the decades, causing a qualitative flattening not only of our profession, but also of the ears of the musicians themselves. Our sense of responsibility requires us to leverage the modern means of communication for create a virtuoso network between luthiers and musicians, as well as helping colleagues around the world to keep the level of their art as high as possible. For musicians, we are planning a course of study, probably the first in the world, which will enable them to carry out the perfect maintenance of their instruments independently; the acquisition of precise technical skills will give students, first of all, the practical possibility of escaping the continuous and costly external assistance which, given the lack of specific skills typical of certain countries, can often be ineffective if not useless. And secondly, it will generate a greater awareness of the instrument itself. For colleagues around the world, on the other hand, we are structuring masterclass on advanced techniques concerning, for example, the acoustic tuning, the varnishing (it is a false myth that it determines the quality of the sound of a violin. I often still hear, even from experts, that the secret of a Stradivarius lies in the magic potion of its paint, a bit like the mysterious Nutella recipe, but the original paints have disappeared completely and have nothing to do with the performance and quality of the tool) which can play a very important role in the conservation, or the details of some complex processing procedures; all this is aimed at luthiers who are already quite expert but who have never had the opportunity to come into contact with the so-called workshop secrets. Here, in this case we can speak of esoteric techniques and procedures, not so much because they are mysterious, but rather because they can hardly be known even by those who have studied in official schools. It is about secrets obtained through dedication to the trade, experimentation, sensitivity and a long relationship of interaction with wood, the ability to select it and, finally, to listen to it, as well as with the ear and touch, also with a specifically educated use of the so-called sixth sense " .
Like to remember - writes Francesco Baroncelli - how these tools, born from the humblest tree trunk and, together, from human skill, represent one of the most eloquent examples of the understanding between men and nature: and how this understanding is always expressed, pushing men to search for harmony ".
