About the maker
Pietro Paolo Desideri was originally from Ripatransone, one of the oldest and most charming towns in the province of Ascoli Piceno in the Marche region. Together with those of Odoardi, the instruments of this artisan are among the most refined results for this area of Italy made between the 18th and 19th centuries.
The history
The Makers of Central Italy has previously had unpublished information on many of the luthiers from the Marche and Umbria regions, who have now been identified. Among the many luthiers about whom it has been possible to find unpublished information are members of the Desideri family. Pietro Paolo Desideri was born in Ripatransone in 1770 and died in the same town in 1849. Pietro Paolo was mainly a cabinetmaker, as were his sons, all of the members of the carpentry community in Ripatransone, where this profession was very prolific and ancient. In likelihood, Pietro Paolo approached violin making as an autodidact, and his primary customers were members of his community. It should be noted that in the 1811 census of the population of Ripatransone, Pietro Paolo is described as violinaro (maker of violins). This is important because it confirms that his main activity at the time was the production of stringed instruments.
References
Leonhard Florian, The Makers of Central Italy. Cremona: Edizioni Novecento, 2011.
Consistent quirks
The 1792 viola presented here as an example of Pietro Paolo Desideri’s production represents some of the finest instruments made in the Marche region. Other excellent instruments by this author can be admired in our book dedicated to the luthiers of Central Italy. The varnish, model and arching are all well executed, and the maker has a consistent style. The soundholes feature a typically open form that curls like a snake at its ends, aided by a tendency in the lines to stay parallel far into the circles and unite the flow of their overall shape. Here the soundholes depart from the norm only slightly with somewhat wider nicks. The purfling is not inlaid with the greatest precision but seems to have been crafted with a definite idea in mind: the purfling lines do not merely meet coincidentally in the corner, but rather in a mitred point oriented towards the inner third of the corner. The arching is neither too high nor square but executed with the vision of a professional. This instrument is highly representative of Desideri’s style and is in a good state of preservation.
