School of Lutemaking

The School of lutemaking together with the Teatro Zeppilli Music Museum, bear witness to the deeply rooted musical and artisan traditions of the Centopievese, where shops violin makers are documented since 700. The area includes Pieve di Cento and Cento, just a few miles beyond the river Reno.

The purpose of the school is to provide the technical and artisanal knowledge to construct musical instruments, in particular the violin. The students are supervised by experienced teachers in the different steps required to obtain these extraordinary objects: from the selection of  most suitable woods to the study of forms, from the bending of the bands to work the handles until the painting, sanding, the frame of the strings etc.

The School is located at the fourteenth-century Porta Ferrara, whose battlements from the Bentivoglio period have been recently brought to light. Downstairs are the warehouse and the carpenter, the first floor is for the construction of guitars and mandolins, the second floor is devoted to the construction of stringed instruments with the teaching of master violin makers.

School courses are held in, both professional and amateur, and there many students coming from all over Italy and abroad.

It also offers the possibility of guided tours for schools and tourist groups in their own laboratories, prior phone or e-mail request.

The School of Arts and Crafts Centopievese is a non-profit organization, which aims to enhance and promote the traditional crafts. The registered office and the presidency are in Cento.