Francesco Olivieri lived from 1895 to 1979 and began making instruments in his home town of Catania in Sicily in the 1920s before moving to France, where he opened his workshop in Paris in the early 1930s.
In Paris, he was one of the „guitar makers of Django Reinhard“. Today, around 20 gypsy jazz guitars by Oliveri are known.
Olivieri returned to Catania shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and began building guitars, mandolins and other stringed instruments to customer specifications.
Olivieri was at the forefront of pioneering guitar making in the 1930s, when the demand for louder guitars was at its peak and the skillful guitar skills of Django Reinhardt & The Hot Club de France reigned supreme.
Here are some of Francesco Olivieri's awards:
- 1923 Milan: Diploma with gold medal for his guitars and mandolins.
- 1923 Paris Esposition Internationale du Progres Moderne: Gold medal for guitars
- 1926 Exhibition of musical instruments at the III Tripoli Fair MCMXXIX-VII Government of Tripolitania (Libya) and at the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry Dell'Artigianato in Florence.
- 1954 Winner of the silver medal at the 2nd national competition for contemporary violin making in Rome, organized by the Accademia Nazionale Santa Cecilia, of which he was an honorary member.
- 1957 Exhibition at the national and international crafts fair in Florence.
- 1970 Naz. Liut. Art. Italian diploma awarded by the Association of Provincial Craftsmen in Catania.
This fantastic guitar has a rich sound, very textured and velvety, with great volume and clarity. The string action is set very comfortably and contributes to the fact that this guitar is very pleasant for both the player and the audience.
It has a spruce top and rosewood back and sides. The scale length is 653 mm and the nut width is 50 mm.
It is in good condition - apart from some minor repairs and restoration work that has been carried out on it over the years.
It comes with a matching guitar case.
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