4/4 English Violin Labelled Jon Arden Wilmslow c1900

Description

Product reference : 2126001001308

4/4 English Violin by and labelled Job Ardern, Wilmslow, Cheshire C1900

Wilmslow marked an important industrial centre for the Arts and Crafts movement during the 19th and 20thcenturies and this is evident in Ardern’s unique and original approach to violin making. Trained as a carpenter, Ardern made instruments as a hobby and kept much of his work hidden from public view, only selling very little of what he produced. He resisted the dogmatic repetition of Stradivari models and used unusual tone woods for his instruments - lime wood fronts, chestnut backs, any kind of wood that was easy to come by from the arts and crafts industries that surrounded him. Upon his death in 1912, Ardern’s estate was acquired by the W. E. Hill & Sons firm, who were mindful of their success with the instruments inherited from the reclusive maker, George Craske.  Instruments with a Hill label were reworked in Hanwell before being sold within their range of reasonably priced instruments as an English alternative to the better class of French violins made in Mirecourt.

This violin has a two-piece back and bears no intervention from the Hill firm, so can be described as an authentic Ardern. A typically gorgeous English violin, the condition is very good and the sound is sweet and sonorous. It would suit the advanced student player perfectly.