Claude Thomassin, Paris, c.1890

Description

A fine silver-mounted violin bow by Claude Auguste Thomassin, Paris, period 1885-1892.
Stamped: GAND & BERNARDEL.

This vioin bow was made whilst Claude Auguste Thomassin (1865-1942) was working for the firm of Gand & Bernardel, between the years 1885 and 1901 where he worked as the head of the bow workshop, and specifically before 1892 when the partnership of Gand & Bernardel dissolved. It is stamped GAND & BERNARDEL (on the audience side of the stick). It is a good silver-mounted example, and is presented in immaculate original condition.

The Thomassin family emerged out of the saddle-making trade in Mirecourt, and there has been a good deal of misunderstanding about the relationship of the three family members who made bows. The earliest was Louis Thomassin, who trained as an apprentice to the Bazin workshop and in 1871 came to Paris to work directly with François Nicolas Voirin who had left the Vuillaume workshop at the end of Vuillaume’s life. Claude is often cited as his son and pupil, but he was a cousin who also apprenticed in the Bazin workshop and came to Paris in 1885 to be the head of the bowmaking for Gand & Bernardel. Nevertheless, the connection between the two family members seems to be significant as a strong stylistic connection is seen between both of their work, and from the outset Claude Thomassin appears to have had a strong desire to follow the Voirin model as he would have learned from his cousin. When the Bernardel company was taken over by Caressa & Français in 1901 Thomassin started his own business at 37 Rue Paradis. Although Thomassin bows develop a number of characteristics, for example a curved face to the ferrule, they are technically and stylistically true to the Voirin method, perhaps as a result of a conscious interest in perpetuating Voirin’s legacy into a further generation, and as distinct from Eugéne Sartory’s work that emerged simultaneously out of a parallel Parisian tradition.

It is a marvellous playing bow, with the characteristic lightness to the head that comes out of the Voirin school, with tremendous capacity for power, and an even unbroken tone across its length.

Certificate: Available upon request.

Condition notes: The bow is in excellent condition with very little signs of being played.