Carmelo Catania - History
C armelo Catania was born in Catania in 1908, and following his propensity for violin making, young man enters the shop at the mandolinaio Finocchiaro. Learn early so that at age 17 he built his first guitar harp, at that time considered the culmination of his artistic maturity. Realizing that in Catania no one can help him improve his training, to 18 years for Naples and goes to work at the Laboratory of Calace , along with Marc epigone of the Neapolitan school.
At 20, she returned to Catania and begins to work on their own, even if the beginning for others, and builds a second and more elaborate guitar harp whose image will use as a trademark of his company.
In 1936 he registered his company with the Chamber of Commerce of Catania and began selling under its own name.
In 1937 meets the luthier Vachier Galileo, a study author, awarded by the Academy of Italy on the report of the jury chaired by Pietro Mascagni, who resumes his studies on acoustic resonance made in Mirecourt (France) by physicist Felix Savart and Luthier François Chanot, and with it began a collaboration that led him to improve further in the construction of violins.
In Rome he met with luthier Luigi Embergher, which already achieved by its reputation and knowledge of the high quality of its instruments, is surprised, he octogenarian, in being in front a thirty already at its most constructive ability. The Puglisi worked according to the Neapolitan school, Catania instead joined the Roman school of Embergher.
After the war, it reorganizes its activities more widely and continues to do business in Italy and abroad.
Its innovative technical and manufacturing solutions, adapted mainly on guitars, instruments allow him to produce on a large scale, although strictly all handmade, produces a wide range of models, and in order to spread as much as possible the love the music, in every series is concerned to present alongside professional models, high quality, cheaper models suitable for young people and beginners.
In 1957 he moved his laboratory in Mascalucia to larger premises and comfortable, and in the sixties reaches its peak production, coming to occupy up to 50 employees with an annual output of about 12,000 tools of which more than half is exported.
Sells in North, Central and South America, Europe, including Sweden, Norway, Iceland, around the Mediterranean, including Israel and Arab countries, Equatorial Africa, the Middle East (Kuwait, Iraq, Iran) and Far East (Thailand, Singapore , Sumatra, Ceylon, Japan, Tahiti and Fiji) in Australia and New Zealand.
The Italian Institute for Foreign Trade (ICE) repeatedly invited him to participate in exhibitions and fairs in which you promote the Made in Italy. His instruments are also present at the Universal Expo in Brussels in 1960 and in that of New York in 1964.
Besides the production of series, it continues to manufacture tools personally high violin making, participating with them in many events promoted by ANLAI which is a member. In a Craft Show organized by the Province of Catania in the 60 at the premises of the Chamber of Commerce, it presents a mandolin and won first prize with gold medal.
At the height of fame and commercial success, affected by incurable disease that will consume within a few months, it turns off the 'October 11, 1970 at just 62 years.
Carmelo Catania instruments?
Last year I bought a Carmelo Catania mandolin, model style Tipo 1K, Date of manufacture 1958 and the serial No.16063. It's basically a homage to Embergher with its distinctive sweeping elongated Roman bowl design and radius fingerboard, made in 1958. It plays beautifully and has a clear punchy sound, currently strung with light gauge nickel strings.
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