Maker Background
Stefano Gibertoni and Valerio Nalin collaborate together in the making of violins, violas and cellos in their workshop in Milan. The combination of a long and solid experience in construction, making
and set up, together with a young mind, with a free and enthusiastic spirit, has proven to be a collaboration that is extremely stimulating for both of them.
Stefano Gibertoni, Italian, 54 years old, 30 years of experience. Valerio Nalin, Italian, 28 years old, 7 years of experience. After graduating in 1991 at Civica Scuola di Liuteria di Milano under the guidance of Maestro Luca Primon, Stefano moved to the UK to work as a maker/restorer for some UK shops. He then settled and opened his own business in Sheffield in 1994, where he worked as a maker for the UK and the international market. In his professional development, he found most valuable the Oberlin violin making workshop, Ohio-USA, attended since 2001, where he learned from some among the best makers worldwide, the physics of tone production and the art of antiquing. Very fondly remembered is also a work experience at Frederick Oster Fine Violins in Philadelphia, where he developed some valuable restoration and setup skills. In 2012, Stefano moved back to Milan and returned to the Civica Scuola di liuteria, this time as a teacher of new making and varnishing. Here he met Valerio, one of the most talented students, and after his graduation, they continued to collaborate together up to the present day. They developed their own interpretations, inspired by Cremonese and Milanese 17th and 18th-century makers. In the partnership, they combine very traditional methods but also rely on technology and science. A beautiful, powerful, and even tone is a consistent aspect of their production that has been recognized by clients and in international competitions alike; this, coupled with a detailed and realistic antiqued look, has proven a winning combination.
