We have here a Collin - Mezin Violin made in Paris in 1911. Charles Jean Baptiste Collin-Mezin is a French violin maker who started at a young age under the tutelage of his father, Claud-Nicolas Collin. His own workshop started in 1867 at the 14 and 18 rue du Faubourg Poissonnièr in France.
Charles Jean Baptiste Collin-Mezin was born in Mirecourt, France in 1841. He came from a line of luthiers where his father became his first apprenticeship. According to some sources, he worked in the workshop of Nicolas-François Vuillaume in Brussels for a certain period. He moved to Paris and started his own shop in 1868 in which he was established as one of the premier French luthiers in his time. That is because many considered his instruments superior to other new instruments. He created various instruments such as violins, violas, cellos, and basses. He is also a good bow maker. Collin – Mezin died in Paris in 1923.
Lambert-Humbert Frères firm (fl. 1876 – 1969) was a major violin manufacturer in Mirecourt, offering a wide range of models and quality levels, established in 1876 by violin-making brothers Maurice-Emile and Pierre Alexis Auguste Laberte.
This violin (copy) bears the label 'Andrea Postacchini,' a skilled Italian luthier renowned for crafting high-quality instruments with exceptional tonal quality.
This Ryszard Osowski Gold model violin was built in the finest craftsmanship by Ryzard Osowski in Forchheim, Germany, dated 2024.
Ryszard Osowski, born in 1966, is a Polish luthier who moved to Muggendorf, Germany in 1993. Living with his uncle, he learned the local tradition of building stringed instruments and eventually perfected the sound and quality of his instruments after 25 years of experimentation. He now focuses on crafting advanced violins while occasionally creating cellos and violas.
We have here the Orfeo Carletti Violin made in 1932. Orfeo Carletti is an Italian violin maker who opened a workshop together with his father and brother in Bologna.
A violin made and labelled in 1917 by Leandro Bisiach (1864 – 1945) of Milan, an Italian violin maker born in Casale Monferratos, known as the father of violin makers in the Bisiach family.
Victor Audinot (1870-1943), also known as Audinot-Mourot, came from a family of luthiers in Mirecourt. Mentored by Francois Chardin and Telesphore Barbé, Audinot was mainly influenced by Barbé, who had honed his skills working for Jean Baptiste Vuillaume in Paris. This experience helped shape Audinot’s successful career in instrument making.
Victor worked in Mirecourt, known for luthier tradition, before moving to Paris to set up his workshop on Rue Truffaut in 1913. He dedicated himself to his craft until retiring in 1936. He passed his expertise to five of his six sons and aspiring luthiers. Renowned for creating exact replicas of classical instruments, he crafted an exceptional copy of the ornately decorated Stradivari violin known as the ‘Sunrise’, showcasing his artistry.