Primo Pistoni was born in Cremona in 1957 and got his school leaving certificate at Cremona International Violinmaking School under master G.B. Morassi's guidance. He was awarded a golden medal in “Guido Marola prize”, as he was the student with the best average mark in school year 1974/75. In 1976 he started his professional activity and served his apprenticeship at his master's workshop until 1979. He took part in several violinmaking competitions, both national and international and got the first prize with a cello and the third prize with a viola at IV edition of Cremona Triennale in 1985. He was also awarded first prize with a viola at I national competition in Baveno in 1987 and first prize with a violin at VIII edition of Cremona Triennale. He has been a member of International Violinmaking and Bowmaking Association (E.I.L.A.) since 1995. Moreover, he was called for jury duty in the most prestigious international and national competitions (Paris 1999-2004, Cremona 2000, Mittenwald 2001, Pisogne 2009, Poznan 2011). In 2001 he was one of the 18 renowned contemporary violinmakers invited by the great violinist maestro Ruggero Ricci to provide a violin for a CD music recording. In 2009, during the G8 summit in L'Aquila, the exhibition “L' arte del saper far bene italiano” (“The art of good Made in Italy”) showed the Pistoni's violin awarded at VIII Cremona Triennale and owned by Stradivari Foundation, together with the historical violin Andrea Amati Charles IX owned by Cremona City Council. In his workshop he devotes himself mainly to the making and maintenance of classical stringed quartets; his instruments are appreciated by musicians in Europe, the U.S.A and Asia. Maestro Janssen enthusiastically set up the viola made by Pistoni in 2006. It was really amazing to be there and I particularly appreciated the collaboration between Wim and Primo: you could perceive reciprocal esteem and real team spirit, as they are both top-level professionals. On the other hand, I felt as if I were on my first schoolday! The instrument is of Stradivari inspiration, after one of Garimberti's models; the wood used for the two-piece back is maple from the Balkans with medium-width veining downward oriented. The two-piece front is in spruce wood from the Dolomites, with thick and regular veining; the ribs and the scroll are in the same maple wood as the back, while the yellow, amber-brown varnish is spirit-based, with the addition of essential oils. The soundbox is 420 mm long and the vibrating string 375 mm long. From the very first notes, the character of the viola emerged and Wim appreciated its easy use. The sound is flowing and responsive; the dynamics and power are excellent, while the timbre is able to convey the right “melancholy”. Janssen spent quite a long time to find the optimal balance beteween the strings and this delicate feature was carefully evaluated by the Dutch musician. At first, a different behaviour between D, A, C and G strings was perceived ; after replacing them without any remarkable results, Primo's intervention turned out to be decisive. Following Janssen's advice, Primo slightly moved the position of the bridge and shortened the vibrating string. The successful outcome of this set-up has given the instrument an excellent acoustic level. The short audio file is a partial demonstration of what has just been described. Till later!