Cello by Baptiste Juguera, Montpellier 2024

Baptiste Juguera is a French luthier based in Montpellier, making violins, violas and cellos. His designs draw on the great Italian masters who set the standards of the craft, and his working method is deliberately traditional.

All of his work is done with sharp hand tools: planes, gouges, and knives and flat gouges he makes himself so they sit correctly in his hands. He prepares his own varnishes from oil and different resins in order to control colour, transparency, flexibility and hardness. He buys wood personally in Italy. Alongside Guarneri models he designs instruments of his own, translating what he has learned from studying old instruments into something new. He trained with several distinguished makers, among them Frederic Chaudiere, and has worked in his own workshop since 2012.

His instruments are on display and in use in Montpellier, Paris, Washington DC, Seattle, New York, London, South Korea and Japan.

Baptiste is consistently one of France's top young talents and we have never been anything but impressed. We sold his cellos for several years before taking a violin, and by the third cello it was clear he is growing into one of the most exciting cello makers of his generation, with a rich and complex voice, real depth and projection, and a responsiveness that makes the instrument a pleasure to play. The violins are finely crafted and balanced, with a warm sound, a G string of exceptional resonance, a stunning D, and a register that grows more soloistic the higher you go. At this price point they are hard to beat.