Città:
Turin
Year:
1841
Liutaio:
Giuseppe Rocca
From “
Il Museo della Musica” by Artemio Versari
A student of Pressenda, this extraordinay maker was mainly influenced by the great Cremonese makers. His models were inspired by Guarneri's Alard and Stradivari's Messiah. In his late period, he moved to Genoa, where he died on 27 January, 1865. Together with Pressenda, he is considered one of the great makers of the 1800s.
The fine viola exhibited here is in its original condition and did not undergo modifications to its neck or bass bar.
From “
La grande Liuteria Italiana” by Artemio Versari
The previously mentioned Giuseppe Rocca was the most talented of Pressenda's students. He was born 1807 in Barbaresco (Asti) although the family moved to Alba soon after and it was there that he spent his youth. Towards the end of 1834, he moved to Turin to work for Pressenda, although it seems that he had already tried his hand at violin making in a previous period. He remained with Pressenda for a little over three years, and by 1838 he had already set up his own shop. His life was full of problems, both personal and marital: his health was weak, his economic means were scarce and he married numerous times.
From 1851 onwards, Rocca switched houses on several occasions, and eventually moved from Turin to Genoa. In 1863 he established in Genoa definitively and died there in 1865. Only one of his sons followed in his footsteps.
Rocca's early work was strongly influenced by Pressenda, even though his strong tendency towards originality can already be perceived. But it is a phase that does not last long and his style seems to steer towards the classical Cremonese.
From the copies he made, it can be deduced that he was able to study two celebrated Cremonese violins first hand, Stradivari's Messiah and Guarneri del Gesù's Alard. The experience profoundly changed his style, and many of his instruments were made with these models. In fact, he was one of the few Italian luthiers in the first half of 1800s that copied classical Cremonese instruments.
Rocca participated in several national and international exhibitions (Turin 1844, Genoa 1846, Turin 1850, London 1851, Genoa 1854, Paris 1855, Turin 1858 and Florence 1861) and was awarded medals and prizes at these events.