Luciano Sderci

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Luciano Sderci (13 December 1924 – 22 June 1986) was an Italian violin maker from Florence. He began his career in 1945 while learning the craft from his father, Igino Sderci. He started as an errand boy, handling tasks like shipping and making wooden boxes, before building his first instrument in 1946. Luciano’s early work was influenced by his father, but he eventually developed his own freer style; his instruments are praised for their acoustics, though his varnish was less refined than Igino’s. Igino hoped Luciano would learn instrument restoration, but Luciano chose to work with his father most of his career. By the late 1950s they both made their own instruments, with Luciano's craftsmanship closely compared to his father’s, which spurred his growth. In 1949 he was the youngest participant at Cremona’s Stradivarius anniversary concours and later won first place in Rome’s National Competition for violins and violas in 1952. In the 1970s he created models that diverged from his father’s tradition, drawing inspiration from the 17th-century Florentine luthier Rocco Doni. Today, two of his instruments—a violin and a viola—are in the collection of the Public Music School of Florence, kept at the Galleria dell’Accademia. Some of his works are rare today and may have been labeled with his father’s name to fetch higher prices. His health declined in the mid-1960s due to circulatory problems, and he died in Florence in 1986, three years after his father; he had no children, so the family business ended. A world-record auction price for a Sderci instrument was $22,800 for a viola in November 2011.