Gaetano Pollastri (1886–1960) was a professional violinist but after the first world war he devoted himself to violin making. He worked with the same company as his brother in via Castiglione, that was devoted to the construction, repair and commerce of string instruments. In 1927 he received the Certificate of Honour at the contemporary violin making exhibition-competition in Cremona. When Augusto died in 1927, he took over his brother's company. In the following twenty years Gaetano constructed numerous instruments of which, in 1930, a violin with papal coat of arms that he personally donated to Pope Pious XI. He also restored precious violins; among them, a

Stradivari Antonio Stradivari (, also , ; – 18 December 1737) was an Italian luthier and a craftsman of string instruments such as violins, cellos, guitars, violas and harps. The Latinized form of his surname, '' Stradivarius'', as well as the collo ...

and a

Guarneri The Guarneri (, , ), often referred to in the Latinized form Guarnerius, is the family name of a group of distinguished luthiers from Cremona in Italy in the 17th and 18th centuries, whose standing is considered comparable to those of the Amati an ...

of Guglielmo Marconi brother's property, Alfonso. He won the Certificate of Honour in Cremona in 1949. In 1954 he showed two violins at the 2nd National Competition of Contemporary violin making in

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, obtaining a Certificate of Honour, and was present with his instruments at the Ascoli Piceno ('54) and Pegli ('56) competitions. He worked very hard to promote his profession and was a founding associate of the ANLAI. His students include Cesare Pollastri, Franco Albanelli and Otello Bignami.

References

*''Il Suono di Bologna, Da Raffaele Fiorini ai grandi maestri del Novecento". Catalogo della Mostra nella chiesa di San Giorgio in Poggiale'', Bologna 2002. *Eric Blot, ''Un secolo di Liuteria Italiana 1860-1960 - A century of Italian Violin Making - Emilia e Romagna I'', Cremona 1994. *Dictionary of 20th Century Italian Violin Makers -

Marlin Brinser Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes about 10 species. A marlin has an elongated body, a spear-like snout or bill, and a long, rigid dorsal fin which extends forward to form a crest. Its common name is thought to deri ...

1978 *The Strad January 1984 Bologna - A living tradition of Violin Making * * *

Walter Hamma Walter Hamma (22 September 1916 – 11 August 1988) was a German violin maker. His father, Fridolin Hamma, was an influential violin maker. Walter Hamma was pupil of the violin making school in Mittenwald 1933-1935. He worked with Ferdinand Ja ...

, ''Meister Italienischer Geigenbaukunst'', Wilhelmshaven 1993, Panoramica Liuteria Bolognese Moderna

Living Museum

Discover the history of the Bolognese School 'Up to the first half of the nineteenth century, Violin Making in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

was in a standstill cycle; yet, during the second half of the century, Raffaele Fiorini :it:Fiorini Raffaele gave new impulse to it. Thanks to him, born in Musiano di Pianoro, the luthier's ancient Art was brought back to a new life.'
History
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www.ilsuonodibologna.org
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View a fine example of Gaetano Pollastri violin Bologna circa 1936 :

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pollastri, Gaetano Businesspeople from Bologna Italian luthiers 1886 births 1960 deaths