Frederick Chanot violin, London 1904

Frederick Chanot’s life and work exemplifies the cross-fertilisation between French and English violin making in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, in which the Chanot family played a prominent role.  Born in London in1857 to a French luthier father, Georges Chanot II, Frederick trained in Paris with his grandfather, Georges Chanot I, before returning to London to work with his father before setting up his own workshop.  The handsome, flamed maple back on this violin is similar to wood selected by good contemporary French makers, but the edge work is more rounded.  The Guarneri model gives the lower registers of this violin power as well as warmth.  Volume and character continue through the higher registers on each string, and the overall clarity and project are very good.