During my years in Cremona as a student, I had many interesting experiences, especially in connection with the purchase of wood. Wood dealers tend to say that the wood they sell has been stored for a few years, but when you get it in your hands it feels moist and fresh. So the only right thing to do is to put “day zero” on it the day you buy it. That way, I am sure how many years it needs to dry before I can use the wood.

Italian alpine spruce is used for the lid, and flame maple for the base. A minimum drying period is 4-6 years. All my wood is dried in an unheated barn, that way it follows the natural changes in temperature and humidity throughout the year.

For this violin, which I completed in autumn 2011, I bought maple from a violin maker in Cremona in 1997. After school one day, I took my old blue bike for a look. Although I was a poor student, one of the first things I learned from my teacher was to always buy the best wood, it is very important for the finished instrument. I really had to dig deep in my pockets to afford this beautiful piece of heavily flamed maple. And only now after 14 years was the right time to make a violin out of it.