Giuseppe Dall’aglio, like most of the Mantuan makers of the 18th century, took the work of Pietro Guarneri as his primary inspiration. Dall’aglio was not the most fastidious of workmen, and his instruments are often rough, but his best work is excellent both tonally and visually. The viola featured here, with its rather wild f-holes and characteristically deep-cut C-bouts, shows the individuality of his style and the quality of his varnish.