Venice Research is a collection of string instruments and a commercial point for the purchase and sale of fine italian classical and modern string instruments, mainly made in Venice. It is located in the beautiful city of Venice (see the map), Italy. We are devoted to the research of fine string instruments as also of informations concerning the musical life in Venice, the venetian makers of string instruments and their work, from 17th century till our times. Will be published essays and antique documents, technical and photographical files of important instruments as unedited informations on Venice makers of stringed instruments. We hope you will enjoy visiting our site and the city of Venice also, that has payed an important tribute to the arts and the musical life. Not all the instruments herein illustrated are for sale.

Prof. Stefano Pio – S. Croce 2165 – 30135 Venice – Italy
Expert in Italian and Venetian string instruments
Expert for the Court of Venice
Technical advicer for the Court of Venice
Member of Experts to The Chamber of Commerce, Venice, Italy
Member of La Fenice Opera Orchestra, Venice

fax 0039 041 52 36 545
tel 0039 339 56 09 637
stepio@tin.it

Stefano Pio (author, musical scholar, professional violist, and violin dealer) has associated with the musicians, musical instruments, and concert performances in Northern Italy for his entire life. Born into a musical family in Milan in 1958, Stefano returned to Venice in 1984. Here, he met his future wife, Rossella, violinist and daughter of  Aleardo Savelli, formerly the principal violist of the La Fenice Opera Orchestra and other well-known Italian ensembles, including the Virtuosi di Roma. Upon completing their musical studies, both Stefano and Rossella obtained appointments with the La Fenice Opera Orchestra as violist and violinist, respectively, where they both continue to perform today. Over the past 20 years as a resident of Venice, Pio developed a deep interest in the city's extensive musical culture of the past centuries. In addition, his constant associations with Italian musical families brought him in contact with many fine Italian stringed instruments from the Classical era (after the Plague of 1630) to the present time. Eventually, this led to his becoming active in dealing in instruments of the violin family as a business called Venice Research. In 2001 he re-established Venice Research in a violin shop in a historic building near the Rialto bridge area where the most famous violin makers of Venice (Goffriller, Montagnana, Serafin, Sellas, etc.) once had their shops.
For the last 10 years he has been active as researcher in the Venetian state and church archives and those of other cities of the Veneto region. It was quite by accident that this writer became acquainted with Stefano Pio. In 1999 my wife and I (both violinists) made a pilgrimage to Venice to visit the former home of Luigi Fabris, the maker of two splendid violins (of 1854 and 1885) that we use in our concert performances. I sent a message via email to Venice Research inquiring if they could supply any information about Luigi Fabris and his instruments. In his reply, Stefano Pio told us that he lives only 50 meters from the former Fabris home in the Campo delle Stroppe. We were pleased when he volunteered to extend his current research activities to include records that might pertain to Luigi Fabris. Thankfully, his research was very productive since he discovered many interesting aspects about this almost forgotten master who had lived (1809 to 1889) and worked in Venice for most of the nineteenth century. . The first fruits of Pio's years of research were included in his excellent book, Liuteri e Sonadori Venezia 1750-1870 (Violin Makers and Musicians of Venice 1750-1870), published in 2002. In this book it is evident to any reader that Stefano Pio, a proud citizen of Venice, has unique insight and passion for violins, their makers, musicians, and the musical life of his home city. It is very gratifying to this friend in America that he has continued his research on the violin makers of the so-called Classical Period of violin making in Venice that includes some of the greatest of the Italian violin makers. As a testament to their lives as skilled and inspired artisans and their legacy of masterworks, Stefano has authored the monumental book, Violin and Lute Makers of Venice 1630-1760, I was pleased to be the editor.

Brian Newnam
Los Alamos, New Mexico
June 2004

Stefano Pio, nasce nel 1958 a Milano, città in cui ha compiuto i suoi studi musicali e classici. Studente di giurisprudenza presso l’Università Cattolica di Milano, opta per la professione musicale ed inizia a svolgere un’intensa attività concertistica, cameristica e didattica presso i principali teatri ed enti musicali della città. Vincitore di innumerevoli concorsi nazionali, è dal 1985  professore d’orchestra presso il Teatro La Fenice di Venezia, città in cui risiede da circa un ventennio. Collateralmente alla sua attività musicale ha sviluppato nel corso degli anni specifiche competenze in campo liutario, diventando ricercatore ed esperto della materia, conosciuto ed apprezzato in ambito internazionale.

È autore di due monumentali testi sulla storia della liuteria veneziana dai suoi esordi fino al XIX° secolo che sono universalmente riconosciuti come manuali tecnici e storiografici fra i più importanti e completi mai scritti in ambito liutario.

Le sue specifiche esperienze in materia liutaria, unitamente alle sue conoscenze artistiche e popolarità in campo musicale (figlio d’arte del noto violinista e compositore Giusto Pio http://digilander.libero.it/giustopio/  )  lo hanno fatto divenire punto di riferimento per musicisti professionisti e collezionisti che necessitano di consulenze, stime, perizie per i propri strumenti.

Le ricerche svolte presso gli archivi di stato italiani gli hanno permesso di raccogliere un corpus documentale inerente la liuteria italiana del XVIII° secolo che è quantitativamente il più vasto esistente a livello mondiale.

I documenti sono custoditi, unitamente ad un archivio di circa 30.000 fotografie, presso il proprio studio liutario situato nelle vicinanze di Rialto, denominato Venice Research ( S. Croce 2165), centro di riflessione sulla materia (vi è conservata un’importante collezione di strumenti nonchè una raccolta museale di manufatti ed attrezzi degli antichi liutai) ed è anche punto commerciale ove si effettuano restauri e compravendite di strumenti ad arco.

Nello studio rivive la tradizione liutaria che fece rivaleggiare Venezia nel XVIII° secolo con la città di Cremona ed i suoi famosi liutai ( Stradivari, Amati, Guarneri).

I suoi studi  e competenze lo hanno portato a mantenere relazioni con i principali musei di strumenti nel mondo quali il Metropolitan Museum di NewYork, il Musée des Instrumentes di Bruxelles, il Musée de la Musique di Parigi, il Kunsthistorisches Museum di Vienna etc. e le principali case d’aste fra cui la Sotheby’s.

Collabora con le più importanti riviste internazionali del settore quali lo Strad Magazine e Double Bassist.

E’ Perito e Consulente Tecnico del Tribunale di Venezia nonché Perito della Camera di Commercio di Venezia. Ha collaborato con la Sovraintendenza alle Belle Arti di Venezia.

Information and purpose of Venice Research	Location, address and contact	Articles, books, researches on Venetian luthiers and instruments	Reviews	Italian Version