VERMONT VIOLINS IS PROUD TO PARTNER WITH

TO BRING FINE ITALIAN BOWS TO THE UNITED STATES

The lucchi story

“This is the story of our workshop and of Maestro Giovanni Lucchi, our father, who created it.

As a musician playing the double bass in various orchestras in Italy and abroad, Giovanni Lucchi found himself at about the age of 30, having to replace the horsehairs on his bow by himself, as there was a lack of bow makers. It was a task that had to be done, one those things that one often finds oneself having to do. We … (read more)

vermont violins and lucchi cremona

We first heard the name Massimo Lucchi in our first year of business -his eponymous machine, the lucchimeter, was referenced as the source of a key measurement of a bow we were purchasing.  At the time, 1994, it was a curious statistic for a bow but soon we realized the ubiquity with which this meter travelled in the lexicon of bowmaking and bow evaluation.

Massimo Lucchi is the son of the great Italian bowmaker, teacher and inventor, Giovanni Lucchi.  The maestro began his carer as a base player who, in the 1970's, found himself with a bow sadly in need of a rehair and no luthier in sight to do it.  So, in the Italian spirit of DIY, he figured out how to rehair his bow...and the races began.  He quickly became the go-to place for bow rehairs which led to a passion for bowmaking.  After studying with Siegfried Finkel and Arturo Fracasi, Giovanni Lucchi initiated what would become a golden career of bowmaking...his bows, bass bows in particular, became sought after globally and ultimately entered many of the world's great orchestras and solo players's hands.  In 1976, he was invvited to head up the first public bowmaking school in Cremona and, with his sons, injected scientific engineering into the artistic craft to create the eponomously named Lucchimeter which continues to this day as the primary tool used to measure wood density and tonal response.   After his passing in 2012, Massimo and his siblings took over their father's business and teaching and continue to make some of the world's finest bows and Massimo with the Foundation Lucchi continued his legacy with the creation of the first private bow and violin making school in Cremona which continues to this day.

We had the good fortune of meeting Massimo lthis past February.  My wife and I were going to Italy and a client asked us to purchase a Giovanni Lucchi bow from Massimo while were there.  As his studio is just across the street from the Stradivari Museum in Cremona, we thought we would just "pop in" and pick out the bow before taking in the museum in the afternoon. Our "pop in" lasted many hours, including lunch and wine ... Massimo was as open and sharing of his knowledge with us as I'm sure his father was with his students...we learned a great deal, got to play with the Lucchimeter, and enjoyed his company..so much so we invited him to come and share his knowledge with our client community.

Interested in learning more about Lucchi bows or want to schedule a time to try them out? Fill out the form below and we’ll be in touch!