A beautiful violin made for WM Moennig & Son in Philadelphia by Mirecourt French luthier Amedée Dieudonne in a classic straight varnish Guarneri model, #492 made in 1952.
This example features an open, powerful, robust, even timbre throughout the range, with an energetically smooth and radiantly cheerful tone.
About Dieudonné:
Amédée Dieudonné (1890-1960) learned violin making with Gustave Bazin, son of bow maker Charles Nicolas Bazin. He worked for the Darché firm in Brussels before settling in his hometown of Mirecourt around 1920. Over the next 40 years he was extremely productive, building violins for himself and for numerous firms, including Rudolph Wurlitzer, Moennig, Blanchard, Laberte, Mangenot, and Millant. Some of these bear Dieudonné's label, which he often signed, while others simply bear workshop labels. His work shows good craftsmanship and is largely on classical Cremonese models, often bearing a striking orange-red varnish. Dieudonné worked steadily through the 1950s.