Philip Interdonati Mandolin

[kar365]

Hi Guys,
I'm New here.. I was just trying to find out some info on my mandolin. All I know about it is it was originally made for my great grandfather in the 1920's and given to me by my Grandfather. It has a scalloped neck. The label inside says Philip Interdonati constructor of Mandolins and Guitars New York.. it seems like the quality is very good.. is anyone here familiar Philip Interdonati..

Thanks

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[Givson]

That's a beautiful instrument. Here's a link to a thread on Interdonati on the UMGF (Martin guitar forum). http://theunofficialmartinguitarforum.yuku.com/topic/127042/Philip-Interdonati-000

[F-2 Dave]

Beautiful mandolin. Thanks for sharing your pictures.

[Jim Garber]

Fantastic. I came across a bowlback by him last spring. He is an interesting maker. Mine is pictured here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?2591-Bowlbacks-of-Note&p=904804&viewfull=1#post904804) and here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?1898-Post-a-Picture-of-Your-Bowlback-(or-any-others)&p=904904&viewfull=1#post904904) and currently undergoing restoration in Wisconsin.

I did get some photos of another bowlback similar to mine. The fretboard on mine was replaced and I was wondering if the mandolin ones were scalloped since one of his guitars was. Now I know.

[Jim Garber]

Fantastic. I came across a bowlback by him last spring. He is an interesting maker. Mine is pictured here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?2591-Bowlbacks-of-Note&p=904804&viewfull=1#post904804) and here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?1898-Post-a-Picture-of-Your-Bowlback-(or-any-others)&p=904904&viewfull=1#post904904) and currently undergoing restoration in Wisconsin.

I did get some old photos from Interdonati's portfolio book of another bowlback similar to mine. The fretboard on mine was replaced and I was wondering if the mandolin ones were scalloped since one of his guitars was. Now I know.

I just re-read your post and you said that this was made in the 1920s. Well, that may be possible but almost every other Interdonati instrument I know of was made in the 1930s and even the later end of that decade. Considering that it looks like PI copied the Martin 2-30 mandolin, it would be impossible that he made it back then -- unless he designed it and Martin copied him. Still it is a stunning instrument.

[kar365]

Thanks Jim,

I got most of this info from my mom.. so not really sure about the date it was made. There is no date marked as far as I can see.. I'm sure you know more about this mandolin than I do.. :)

[kar365]

That's a beautiful instrument. Here's a link to a thread on Interdonati on the UMGF (Martin guitar forum). http://theunofficialmartinguitarforum.yuku.com/topic/127042/Philip-Interdonati-000

Thanks for the info

[Jim Garber]

I am also very interested in our ancesters who played mandolin esp thos in New York (where mine came from and where I grew up. Did you know anything about your great grandad and what he played and who he played with?

[brunello97]

Awesome mandolin. Check out the carved neck/body joint.

These are the kinds of things that can turn a day around :)

+1 on all of Jim's questions. (And I'll add my request for more pictures.) I may be from Tejas but my folks (and padrini) are from NYC. I'm fascinated by that era of Italo-American luthiery.

Mick

[GaelicHunter]

The inlay work is just incredible. More photos would be fantastic if you have a few minutes!

[Paul Busman]

That's a really gorgeous piece of work. What does it sound like?

[Tavy]

Gosh! Fantastic workmanship on that one, great find!

[Marc Woodward]

Wow! Beautiful. Reminds me of one of the Martin models bodyshape wise....

Marc

[billhay4]

Whoa! What a lovely instrument. I'd like to hear a sound clip of that one.
Bill

[kar365]

Thanks everyone... I will try to take some better pictures and post them up

Keith

[FUCHSAUDIO]

So, to revive this old thread, I thought I would post a few pictures of my Interdonati guitar. It was built by Philip in the Bronx for my uncle Pat D'Amelio. Interdonati apparently was a gifted woodworker who made furniture as well as musical instruments. He was apparently a tool & die maker and made tools he sold to D'Angelico. It's also been told to me that D'Angelico bought Interdonati's shop in Little Italy when he passed away (told to me by relatives). He only made reputedly 50 instruments in his lifetime. I've not seen any others in person. This guitar was in my famiily for years, sold to Tony Marcus by a cousin of mine and then sold back to me recently.

I also attached a picture of a guitar like mine (not sure if it's actually mine as I do not recall the pick guard being that big), but it's clearly the same model. I also posted a picture of Philip. 141496 141497
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[brunello97]

Fantastic. I came across a bowlback by him last spring. He is an interesting maker. Mine is pictured here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?2591-Bowlbacks-of-Note&p=904804&viewfull=1#post904804) and here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?1898-Post-a-Picture-of-Your-Bowlback-(or-any-others)&p=904904&viewfull=1#post904904) and currently undergoing restoration in Wisconsin.



BTW, Jim, did you get your Interdonati back from repair? Forgive me if I missed you report on it. Would love to know more--particularly as this topic has been happily revived.

Mick

[Demetrius]

This looks really similar to me...

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[Jim Garber]

I also attached a picture of a guitar like mine (not sure if it's actually mine as I do not recall the pick guard being that big), but it's clearly the same model. I also posted a picture of Philip.
I am a bit confused. Maybe the same body shape but obviously one has a f-holes and the other round hole. Unless, of course, yours originally had f-holes and was retopped.

I am also curious whether your guitar originally had a scalloped fingerboard. I believe that my bowl back mandolin had one and Silber's guitar and a few other of the existing Interdonati instruments.

[Jim Garber]

This looks really similar to me...

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Do you own that mandolin? More details please. It does resemble the OP's.

[Demetrius]

Good morning Jim,
Indeed that is my mandolin and I've been trying to find information on this thing for years. It seems really well made, nowhere near as ornate as the one originally posted about but I have a feeling the same builder made this one.
Is the one listed above tone bars or is it x braced?

[Bill Snyder]

Jim, look at the last photo in his posting. Round sound hole like his.

[Jim Garber]

Jim, look at the last photo in his posting. Round sound hole like his.

Bill:I saw that picture but what confused me was his comment about the pickguard, since there is no pickguard on the oval hole picture.

I also attached a picture of a guitar like mine (not sure if it's actually mine as I do not recall the pick guard being that big)

BTW it is most likely his guitar since it was owned by Tony Marcus and it has the metal plate on the headstock.

[Jim Garber]

Here are some more photos of the guitar I had in my files.

[FUCHSAUDIO]

I am a bit confused. Maybe the same body shape but obviously one has a f-holes and the other round hole. Unless, of course, yours originally had f-holes and was retopped.

I am also curious whether your guitar originally had a scalloped fingerboard. I believe that my bowl back mandolin had one and Silber's guitar and a few other of the existing Interdonati instruments.

Sorry for the confusion, mine is totally original except possibly a refinish, not totally sure about that. It was in my family for years. If it was a replacement fingerboard (which I doubt) it was done so well it shows no sign of it. I played and studied on that guitar since I was about 10 or 12 years old and I'm 58. I remember the details pretty vividly. The pictures Jim Garber posted are of my guitar, as I see my Uncle's name (Pat D'Amelio) penciled-in on the label. Not sure if he did that or Interdonati did.

Mine is a round hole, it HAD a pickguard, but quite smaller than the one pictured on the F-hole guitar. It also had a pickup (D'Armond) which is also MIA. When my uncle passed, another cousin cleaned out his house, took all his musical equipment, went to Florida, and doesn't respond to e-mails or phone messages. I found it on Tony's website one night doing a random web search. It's never had a fingerboard changed to my knowledge. It's ebony, a pretty flat radius, and may have been refretted at some point (according to Rick McCurdy's examination). I bought it from Tony Marcus a few years back.

I offered pictures and information to Silber, but (and Tony Marcus and Todd Cambio agreed), he's not a terribly communicative guy. He's supposedly working on a book about Interdonati. I called him one day to discuss it, and he rushed me off the phone as he was going to a photo shoot for the book. Subsequent e-mails were not responded to. The family said he reached out to them but was "pretty abrupt".

[Steve pass]

Great to see some new posts on this thread.I recently acquired a guitar built by Interdonati
It is a round hole arch top similar to yours.When I got it it had a tailpiece and steel strings.I brought it to Mandolin brothers and it was determined that the guitar was designed for nylon or gut strings.It has a fixed bridge which is not very common on arch tops.I would be very interested in any more information on this builder that you have.

[FUCHSAUDIO]

Wow Steve: Very impressive guitar !! It's pretty amazing to see an archtop with a bridge like that ! Yes, I would agree with Mandolin Brothers that it appears to be a nylon string instrument for sure. It appears it was also made in the Bronx as that is the same sticker on my guitar with the White Plains Road address. Do you know the year ?

Whatever I know about Interdonati were things I learned from his family members and/or Todd Cambio at Fraulini guitars. I'd love to see it in person and play it some time. My guitar impresses all who have played it. Remarkably light weight, but a powerhouse in sound. Interdonati apparently was a tool and die maker who made furniture and about 50 musical instruments as well as having sold tools to D'Angelico. He started in the Bronx, moved to little Italy and eventually retired to Staten Island. When he passed (his grandson tells me) D'Angelico bought his shop "lock stock and barrel". The family owns a Violin he made and I referred them to David Petillo in Ocean NJ for restoration work. It appears there are other instruments (10-15) still out there. Nice to see another !!

[Steve pass]

Thanks for the reply and information,very hard to find much on Interdonati.My guitar was built in 1938.

[FUCHSAUDIO]

So was mine, when he was in the Bronx. Yes, the family knows very little and there isn't much out on the web either...

[Jim Garber]

These is an old article on Marc Silber's giant Interdonati guitar in a coffee table book. I don't have the book in front of me but i can dig it out. In any case, check out the pdf at the link below. I also have pics of my mandolin here (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?1898-Post-a-Picture-of-Your-Bowlback-(or-any-others)&p=904904&viewfull=1#post904904) (in case you may have missed it earlier in this thread).

A few of the other instruments not shown on this thread that I have found reference to were plain classical guitars.

[Steve pass]

Thanks jim great article