After the success of the first performance by Wim Janssen who played Riccardo Bergonzi's viola, the second event of our music review took place in the parish church of Pieve San Giacomo. Thanks to Father Marco Genzini's kindness and Fausto Solci's extraordinary mastery, we heard the sound of a cello made by Daniele Tonarelli. This violinmaker got his school leaving certificate at Cremona violinmaking school in 1994, under the guidance of violinmaker master Giorgio Scolari. Then, he completed his apprenticeship and worked for three years in Marco Nolli's workshop until 1997, when he opened his own workshop at 8, via Beltrami. Tonarelli draws his inspiration from Cremonese classical violinmaking tradition and specializes in antiqued instruments. The cello which was played was built after Antonio Stradivari's ex Piatti mould in 2011. The bottom, the ribs and the neck are in maple wood from the Balkans, the front part is in Italian spruce wood and the varnish is dark orange on a slightly antiqued, amber background. The strings fitted are: average Larsen for A, strong Jargar for D, Thomastic Spirocore in tungsten for G and C, while the bridge is a French model. During the performance, we were pleased to hear the skills of Fausto Solci, a Cremonese cello player who attended Rocco Filippini's courses at Stauffer music school. Fausto has great experience, as he “tested” more than 200 cellos and is in constant touch with a lot of violinmakers. Before evaluating the sound features of the cello, it is necessary to consider the setting where it was played, namely the 3 aisle church in Pieve San Giacomo, particularly cool despite the hot evening. As a matter of fact, it is a very spacious church and, as a consequence, the sound spreads in a smooth and powerful way. Fausto Solci started by playing single notes on each string; after a while he asked Tonarelli to change position to the soundpost and then he played Bach's Third Suite. After 10 minutes, Fausto required another change in the position of the soundpost, finally finding the ideal set up of the cello. Using a Louis Bazin bow, he played Bach's First and Third Suite alternatively, as he claims that in these music pièces the instrument is under pressure; in fact the passages from the low area to the high one clearly emphasize its peculiarities. The cello is endowed with a powerful and reactive sound; this aspect can certainly be improved, if we consider that the instrument has been recently made. Moreover, the timbre is warm and the balance good. Fausto considers the G sound different from A, D, C and this aspect might change completely with a new set of strings. As a proof of what has just been written, you can not only play the instrument at Daniele's workshop in Cremona, via Beltrami 8 (please email to info@houseofviolin.com to make a reservation or phone No. 389-1898460), but also listen to a short performance by Fausto. In fact we recorderd it at a 3 metre distance with a digital in-wave stereo at 44.100 kb, without any manipulation whatsoever. The pictures of the instrument can be seen on the website. Enjoy your listening! Till the next one!