Fine Violin Bow by Fernando Solar González Madrid, Spain circa 1970

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Fernando Solar González is considered to be one of the most important Spanish violin makers of the twentieth century. The large number of instruments and bows that he made are being played around the world by top professional musicians. He was born in 1921 in Asturias, Spain. He moved to Madrid in 1943 to apprentice with Santos Hernandez, a local guitar maker. Gonzalez began making many different strings instruments and bows. In 1948 he established his own workshop on Divino Pastor Street in Madrid. Fernando made many bows for violin, viola, and cello. This is a beautiful playing violin bow and the first stick from this maker I have ever had in the shop to examine, study, or even sell. Fernando Solar died in 2011. Now, in the third generation and more than half a century later, his son Fernando and daughter Mercedes continue this tradition, working in the style of the best Italian violin makers and French bow makers of former times. The Solar family continues to make violins and bow working in the tradition of their father.

The pernambuco bow is round in section and sterling silver mounted. The ebony frog is a Parisian eye model with the mount inlaid into a track on the stick. The inlaid track on a bow helps to keep the frog totally aligned. The end button is a solid silver cap with some beautiful ornate turns in the collar. Remember, bow work is a mixture of four crafts in one: wood working, hair dressing, jewelry work, and leather work. It is very rare to see a violin maker also excel in the area of bow making. Well done, Fernando! I really like your bow. The wood is orange/brown color and semi-firm in it’s make up. I replaced the fractured bone tip with a new tip facial of tip armor as well as the old winding with new tinsel winding. The tinsel winding is woven in sterling silver, still very light and then accented in green silk thread to help keep the weight down and secure a nice balance point.

Weight fully haired is 62.0 grams