Pietro Gallinotti (1885–1979) was an Italian guitar maker from Solero, near Alessandria in Piedmont, and one of the great pioneers of Italian guitar making. His 1952 cedar-top guitar, which won first prize at a guitar-making competition in Turin, predates the famous cedar tops of José Ramírez III by about a decade. His biographer is Italian luthier Mario Grimaldi, who documented the discovery in our blog post Secrets of Lutherie: The Cedar Soundboard, an Italian Invention.
At a Glance
- Born: 1885
- Died: 1979
- Workshop: Solero (Alessandria), Piedmont, Italy
- Label: "Gallinotti Pietro – Premiata Liuteria – Solero"
- Student and assistant: his son, Carlo Gallinotti
- Prize: First Prize, guitar-making competition, Turin, 1952 (cedar top)
- Influences: Julián Gómez Ramírez, Francisco Simplicio, Santos Hernández
- Biographers: Mario Grimaldi and Mario Dell'Ara
Pietro Gallinotti (1885–1979), Luthier of Solero
Pietro Gallinotti (1885–1979) is one of the great pioneers of Italian guitar making. He lived and worked in Solero, a small town near Alessandria in Piedmont, where he built guitars (as well as violins) under a label that proudly reads "Premiata Liuteria" – award-winning lutherie. His son Carlo was his only student and assistant. Although relatively unknown outside of Italy, Gallinotti is regarded there as a national treasure of the guitar world, and his instruments were owned and played by guitarists such as Carlo Ernesto Salio, Alberto Mautino and Bruno Giuffredi – and also played by Alirio Díaz.
The First Cedar Top? Turin, 1952
In 1952 Gallinotti won first prize at a guitar-making competition in Turin with a guitar whose four-piece soundboard was made of western red cedar (thuja plicata). That guitar predates by roughly ten years the famous cedar-top instruments from the José Ramírez III workshop in Madrid, which are traditionally credited as the first to use this wood for the top. The discovery was made by Italian luthier and Gallinotti biographer Mario Grimaldi, who examined the 1952 guitar for a 2007 exhibition in Solero and later found matching cedar billets among the materials from Gallinotti's workshop. Gallinotti experimented in other ways too, including a long-scale guitar in 1953, years before longer scales became common.
From Spanish Influences to His Own Model
In the 1940s and 1950s Gallinotti experimented with models by Julián Gómez Ramírez, Francisco Simplicio and Santos Hernández. In the 1960s he synthesized these influences into a model of his own – the period that Mario Grimaldi considers one of the happiest of Gallinotti's life.
Mario Grimaldi and the Gallinotti Legacy
Mario Grimaldi is arguably the largest champion of Gallinotti's work. After befriending Pietro's son Carlo, he obtained many of Pietro's molds, tools and materials, along with insight into his construction method. Together with Mario Dell'Ara, Mario wrote the catalogues for the Gallinotti exhibitions in Savigliano (2006) and Solero (2007) and the book "Pietro Gallinotti, Luthier of Solero".
Pietro Gallinotti on Film
Gallinotti's guitars rarely appear outside Italy, and they are a rare find at GSI. You'll find guitars currently in stock by clicking the "Guitars In Stock" button in the header of this page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Pietro Gallinotti?
An Italian guitar maker (1885–1979) from Solero, near Alessandria, regarded in Italy as one of the founding figures of Italian classical guitar making.
Did Pietro Gallinotti invent the cedar top?
His cedar-top guitar of 1952, which won first prize in Turin, is the earliest documented classical guitar with a western red cedar soundboard – about ten years before José Ramírez III began using cedar in Madrid.
Who wrote about Pietro Gallinotti?
Luthier Mario Grimaldi and Mario Dell'Ara wrote the exhibition catalogues and the book "Pietro Gallinotti, Luthier of Solero". Mario Grimaldi also owns many of the tools and materials from Gallinotti's workshop.
