The Makers
Auguste Désiré Louis Falisse
1883 - 1951
Auguste Désiré Louis Falisse was christened on 14 March, 1883 in Liège and died in 1951 in Brussels.
His father, Lambert Louis Auguste Falisse, was a violinist and his mother, Marie Elise Falisse (née Heynberg), was a pianist.
At the age of 18, in 1901, he was working for Emile Délunet in Mirecourt and living at 11 Rue des Remparts. Emile Délunet was the brother of Charles and Auguste (Léon) Délunet both of whom came to England to work for W.E. Hill & Sons.
He had brief spells with Silvestre and Maucotel in Paris and Mougenot in Brussels, before opening his own workshop in Ixelles, Brussels in 1905. He was assisted by his son from 1912. He made on Stradivari and Guarneri models.
At the prestigious Vainqueur du Concours International de Violon in Paris, 1912, he was awarded first prize for tone, ahead of not only many leading contemporary makers but also old masters, including Stradivari.