violin Storioni 1790 - Opus 709

The violin bears the facsimile label “Laurentius Storioni fecit Cremonae 1790” and on the opposite side

the label “Douglas C. Cox, Brattleboro, Vermont, 2010 #709”. It is branded and initialed on the inside. It

is patterned after a violin by Lorenzo Storioni dated 1790. It is built of well aged North American grown

wood. The back is cut on the quarter from two pieces of New England maple with faint narrow flames

descending from the center joint. The ribs are of maple similar to that of the back. The neck is of plain

maple. The table is of two pieces of Englemann spruce from British Columbia of mostly medium

growth. The varnish is of a medium brown color over a golden ground and is shaded and imitated. The

fittings are of boxwood.

The principal dimensions are:

Length 356 mm

Upper Bout 165 mm

Middle Bout 114 mm

Lower Bout 203 mm

Rib Height 29-31 mm

String Length 327 mm

"Douglas is a gentleman of deep integrity, full  of love for his art and craft, and meticulous in husbanding his  'children' — the instruments he makes so well. I’m especially grateful for the long-pattern model which has served me and several of my taller students very successfully. I cannot recommend Doug Cox highly enough." ~ Marylou Speaker Churchill (1945-2009) 

Douglas Cox received his early training at the State Violin Making School in Mittenwald, Germany in the late 1960's. He spent ten years as head of the repair department and chief restorer for the firm of J.  Bradley Taylor, Inc. in Boston, servicing the finest instruments in the  New England area. Since 1981, he has devoted himself to making fine new instruments. His home and studio are in the hills outside Brattleboro, Vermont, not far from Marlboro Music and the Yellow Barn Music Ferstival.

To his making of new instruments, Doug brings the discipline and workmanship of his early training tempered with years of study of fine old instruments and extensive experience in tonal adjustment for the most demanding professional players. He continues to stretch his  making abilities and understanding of what makes violins work by building close copies of unusual and noteworthy master instruments.

Since 1981, Doug has built over 1000 instruments. His instruments have received awards from the Violin Society of America and are played by artists around the world in a wide variety of musical  settings.

“I absolutely love my Cox violin. It is a joy and a pleasure to play on. It feels and sounds like I am playing on a great old Italian violin.” ~Jaime Laredo