Son of Giovanni (1). Born 1790. Died 1857. Worked with brother Antonio, at Naples. Apparently made no instruments signed or labelled with his name alone. Violins labelled with both names follow the traditional style of the Gaglianos. Best productions dated from 1807-1839. Good, flat modelling, strongly wooded; well proportioned scrolls, general workmanship quite excellent. Old yellow, light orange-brown, and reddish-brown shades of varnish fairly plentifully applied. Often very fine medium grain spruce, and handsomely figured, maple. Tonal quality often nicely full and responsive. Rather good-class orchestral instruments. The name “Gagliano” has presented fine opportunities for dealers to catalogue inflated prices quite beyond the actual merit of the violins. Later in life the brothers made the inevitable descent into producing commercial instruments to gratify their pilgrimage to Mammon, the most deceitful deity of all the Gods, and neglected their genius for original work, produced indiscriminately all grades, and all models. Some with broad and ugly sound-holes, and most indifferently varnished, others with double purfling, and some with none, very seldom anything that was not “cheap”. Even in this decadence they were ousted from the trade by the better finished German merchandise. Ultimately (failing to gain the vulgar-eye recognition they confidently expected) they ceased productivity, and turned their almost undivided attention to the manufacture and exportation of gut strings, and as such, they worked up one of the largest businesses in Italy. Occasionally one meets with their violins, dated up to 1857. £175 (1959).
Son of Giovanni (1). Born 1790. Died 1857. Worked with brother Antonio, at Naples. Apparently made no instruments signed or labelled with his name alone. Violins labelled with both names follow the traditional style of the Gaglianos. Best productions dated from 1807-1839. Good, flat modelling, strongly wooded; well proportioned scrolls, general workmanship quite excellent. Old yellow, light orange-brown, and reddish-brown shades of varnish fairly plentifully ...
Gagliano,Raffaele & Antonio
