Giuseppe Guarneri “filius Andreae”
Cremona 1666 - 1740
Giuseppe Guarneri I, known as 'filius Andreae' to distinguish him from his son Giuseppe "del Gesù", inherited his father Andrea's shop in 1698. He had already been working for his father for quite some time, and in fact many of Andrea's later instruments were primarily made by Giuseppe. Not content to blindly imitate his father's models, Giuseppe's use of rounded upper bouts and tilted f-holes adds originality to his expert craftsmanship. However, Guarneri never quite reached the stature he might have attained had his talents not been eclipsed by those of his contemporary Stradivari.
Following in the family tradition of filial apprenticeship, Giuseppe's sons Pietro and Giuseppe 'del Gesù' began to assist him around 1710. Pietro moved to Venice in 1717 to continue making violins, while 'del Gesù' remained in Cremona and eventually inherited the Guarneri family workshop.
