User:VicenteAssensio/sandbox
The Le Brun Sradivarius of 1712 is an antique violin made by Italian luthier Antonio Stradivari of Cremona (1644–1737). It is a product of Stradivari’s golden period, and it is the only golden period Stradivari violin known to have been owned and played by the violinist Niccolò Paganini. Because it was not part of Paganini's estate at the time of his death, it may be the only Stradivarius he sold during his lifetime. As such, it is possibly the source of the legend of a very fine violin Paganini purportedly lost to gambling.
Provenance
Vicente Assensio (1730-c1798), luthier to Charles IV of Spain, is the first person known to have been in possession of the violin, and to have worked on it, during his tenure at the Spanish Royal Court in Madrid, circa 1776-1791. This is evidenced by Assensio's inscription, in his own writing, at the bottom of Stradivari's original label, "Presviter Assensio cumpos...(illegible)." It is still unknown how the violin made its way from Stradivari's workshop in Cremona in 1712 to the Spanish Royal Court.
Felice Pasquale Baciocchi (1762-1841), an amateur violinist and subsequent informal violin student of Paganini[1], is believed to have acquired the violin in Madrid in 1800 while serving as the French Secretary to the Ambassador to the Spanish Royal Court. In 1805 Baciocchi moved to Lucca, Italy, where his wife, Elisa Bonaparte, had been appointed Princess by her brother Napolean. Elisa had recently hired the 22 year old Niccolò Paganini to be the concertmaster of her court orchestra in Lucca, and had begun what was to become a longstanding romantic affair with him[2]. Nonetheless, Elisa reportedly paid the young Paganini very poorly, and during this period Paganini is known to have been in great financial distress, owing in some measure to his notorious penchant for gambling.
Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840) took possession of the violin at some point in his tenure in Lucca, presumably after Baciocchi arrived in mid-1805. It is not known under what terms Paganini came to possess the violin, whether it was a gift from his employer and lover Elisa, or whether it was offered as compensation for violin lessons from her husband Felice. It is known that Paganini had already been given the Il Cannone Guarnerius by a wealthy businessman three years earlier at about the age of 19. It is also known that Paganini retained that Guarneri violin for the rest of his life, but sold this Stradivari to the much more famous Charles-François Lebrun, who had served as the Third Consul of the French Republic, the Arch-Treasurer of the French Empire, and was the newly appointed Governor-general of Liguria in Genoa. This transaction would have most easily occurred while Lebrun was stationed in Paganini's home town of Genoa, which dates from late 1805 through 1806, but could have occurred on subsequent visits by Lebrun to Genoa as late as 1810, but certainly before Lebrun was dispatched by Napolean to govern the Netherlands in 1811.
Charles-François Lebrun (1739-1824), the owner for whom this violin is named, is also known to have owned other highly prized violins. According to the Caressa & Francais notebook entry for the Le Brun Strad (held at the Smithsonian Institution), Lebrun's address was noted as 9 rue de l'Echelle, Paris, which is adjacent to the French Royal Palace. It is not known whether Lebrun sold this Strad before his death, or whether it was sold by his heirs. For certain, Lebrun was by far the most famous owner of this instrument by 1824, since Paganini's fame did not come to fruition until his first European tour in 1828. It is therefore quite understandable how the violin would have become known in Paris from 1810 to 1824 as the "Le Brun."
Boutillier Family
See also
References
- https://doi.org/10.1093/mq/XX.4.408
- Caressa & Francais Notebook (c1900 - 1936), part of the Jacques Francais Collection at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC
External links
- VicenteAssensio/sandbox in the Cozio Archive at tarisio.com
- https://tarisio.com/cozio-archive/property/?ID=40228
- ^ Bargellini, Sante (1934-10-01). "PAGANINI AND THE PRINCESS". The Musical Quarterly. XX (4): 408–418. doi:10.1093/mq/XX.4.408. ISSN 0027-4631.
- ^ Bargellini, Sante (1934-10-01). "PAGANINI AND THE PRINCESS". The Musical Quarterly. XX (4): 408–418. doi:10.1093/mq/XX.4.408. ISSN 0027-4631.