Andrew Carruthers 15 1/2" Guadagnini model viola, Santa Rosa, CA, 2025 | Metzler Violins
smooth, bright, clear
About the Instrument
This viola has a warm clarity, smooth and a joy to play. This would be an excellent choice for someone searching for a smaller instrument with a big sound. The refined umber varnish is over a golden ground, bringing out the fiddleback figure of flames falling from the center joint of the two-piece maple back. Similar flames run along the ribs and scroll.
Interior label reads: “Andrew Carruthers / Santa Rosa, California 2025"
Length: 393 mm
Upper Bouts: 185 mm
Middle: 134 mm
Lower Bouts: 230 mm
About the Maker
Andrew Carruthers (1957- ) is a contemporary luthier who was born in Oxfordshire, England. Carruthers initially worked as a Research Associate at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory before pursuing instrument making, whereupon he returned to the United Kingdom to attend the now-defunct Welsh School of Violin Making and Repair. Carruthers then came stateside to Chicago, working under the cello specialist Russell Wagner in the notable Bein & Fushi atelier. Carruthers focused predominantly on repair and restoration at Bein & Fushi, but came in early each day to build his own instruments. In 1994, Carruthers moved to Tacoma, Washington and ran a shop out of his basement, before settling in Santa Rosa, California the next year. Once in Santa Rosa, Carruthers did restorations for dealers and crafted his own instruments in equal measure. In 2015, Carruthers began to focus entirely on stringed instrument making, and has made hundreds of instruments based on Guarneri del Gesù, Stradivarius, Montagana models, as well as building many “off-beat” violins and cellos that expand the aesthetic of his craft. He also employs woods often neglected by other luthiers, including poplar and willow. He has earned several accolades for his instruments, including Violin Society of America’s Silver Medal for Cello Tone, as well as Certificate of Merit for Violin Tone and Cello Tone.
Description
smooth, bright, clear
About the Instrument
This viola has a warm clarity, smooth and a joy to play. This would be an excellent choice for someone searching for a smaller instrument with a big sound. The refined umber varnish is over a golden ground, bringing out the fiddleback figure of flames falling from the center joint of the two-piece maple back. Similar flames run along the ribs and scroll.
Interior label reads: “Andrew Carruthers / Santa Rosa, California 2025"
Length: 393 mm
Upper Bouts: 185 mm
Middle: 134 mm
Lower Bouts: 230 mm
About the Maker
Andrew Carruthers (1957- ) is a contemporary luthier who was born in Oxfordshire, England. Carruthers initially worked as a Research Associate at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory before pursuing instrument making, whereupon he returned to the United Kingdom to attend the now-defunct Welsh School of Violin Making and Repair. Carruthers then came stateside to Chicago, working under the cello specialist Russell Wagner in the notable Bein & Fushi atelier. Carruthers focused predominantly on repair and restoration at Bein & Fushi, but came in early each day to build his own instruments. In 1994, Carruthers moved to Tacoma, Washington and ran a shop out of his basement, before settling in Santa Rosa, California the next year. Once in Santa Rosa, Carruthers did restorations for dealers and crafted his own instruments in equal measure. In 2015, Carruthers began to focus entirely on stringed instrument making, and has made hundreds of instruments based on Guarneri del Gesù, Stradivarius, Montagana models, as well as building many “off-beat” violins and cellos that expand the aesthetic of his craft. He also employs woods often neglected by other luthiers, including poplar and willow. He has earned several accolades for his instruments, including Violin Society of America’s Silver Medal for Cello Tone, as well as Certificate of Merit for Violin Tone and Cello Tone.
