William Meredith Morris
He was born at Cheetwood, Manchester, on Nov. 8, 1835. He is a son of Mark Mayson, who was born at Keswick, and of Elizabeth, eldest daughter of the celebrated William Green, painter in oils and water-colours. His father was a landed proprietor in Keswick, and a descendant of an ancient Cumberland family. Green, the maker’s grandfather on his mother’s side, was contemporary and intimate with Coleridge, father and son ; Professor Wilson, who wrote a memoir of him in Blackwood’s Magazine at his death, and the poet Wordsworth, who composed the epitaph now over his grave, in Grasmere Churchyard, close to where the said Wordsworth lies. He was educated by Thomas Walley, at Cheetham Hill, Manchester. He was married when twenty-eight years of age, at Eccles old Church, to Catherine Mary, eldest daughter of John Ellwood, bandmaster, whom he lost in five months in premature childbirth. Later he married the widow of Frank King, of Manchester, by whom he has five children living, viz. : Sarah Elizabeth ; Walter Henry, professor of the violin and composer ; Stansfield, ditto ; Florence Gertrude ; and Leonora Beatrice. His second wife’s maiden name was Hutchinson, and her native place Leicester.
During his childhood Mayson manifested a strong natural bent for the use of fine edge tools. He made at an early period several articles of cabinet work, and also a number of Aeolian harps. He invented an ingenious contrivance for this primitive instrument whereby the usual volume of sound was more than quadrupled. He showed an early leaning also towards literature. He had scarcely attained his majority when he published a volume of dramatic poetry, which evinced a considerable wealth of thought and mastery of verse.
He received no training whatever in the art of violinmaking ; he is absolutely self-taught. His first fiddle was made at “The Polygon,” Lower Broughton, and begun on Oct. 16, 1873. A few more violins were made at the same house. He then removed to a workshop in Burton Arcade, Deansgate, Manchester, where he remained for some time and made many instruments.
At this period Mayson suffered a great deal of persecution from his brother artists (if any one can be called an artist whose soul is stained with prejudice). Certain of the fraternity sought to put his light under a bushel by dubbing his work as “amateurish,” ” unclassical,” &c. The inanity of these epithets soon became apparent when men of note began to recognise in Mayson a genius of the highest order.
He next removed to Croft House, Newby Bridge, at the foot of Windermere, where he remained for six years, and made many fine instruments. From there he went back to Manchester to open a shop at 62 Oxford Street, where he has carried on business for several years. In September 1899, he opened a workshop at 256 High Holborn, London, which he had to close shortly after through lack of patronage. It has ever been the fate of genius to be recognised by only the few during its life day. The blinding light of the sun forbids us to look at the source of day straight in the face.
Mr. Mayson has made up to the present 733 instruments, including violins, violas, and violoncellos. He makes on the classical lines, and also on an original model, but he is no copyist of any one. His wood is of the choicest maple and pine. In both the back and front tables of his high-class instruments it is not a whit inferior to that used by Stradivari in his finest examples. One specimen may be mentioned, viz., ” Cordelia,” in which the wood of the back is artistically finer than anything I have ever seen, classical or post-classical. His varnish is his own composition, of various colours, and of a very elastic oil, perfectly transparent and free from any thought of cracking. In the softer shades it is surpassingly beautiful, defying the power of description as it defies the possibility of imitation.
His original model is shown in the annexed plate. As to its merit there can be but one opinion: it is the conception of a lofty mind — the creation of genius. The sound-holes are the classical conception idealised, and the scroll the quintessence of gracefulness and strength. The entire work is the product of a master mind. Such specimens as ” Cordelia,” ” Eudocia,” ” Halle-Mayson,” “In Memoriam,” ” Isidor,” “Bianca d’Opia,” &c., are poems — poems that sing their own poetry in streams of velvet sounds.
The dimensions of his original model are : —
Length of body … 14 5/15ins,
Width across upper bouts … 6 7/8ins,
Width across middle bouts … 4 1/2ins,
Width across lower bouts … 8 1/2ins,
Depth of rib at lower bouts … 1 1/4ins,
Depth of rib at upper bouts … 1 1/8ins,
Length of sound-holes … 3ins,
Distance between sound-holes at upper turn … 1 5/8ins,
The arching is moderately pronounced — a trifle more than that of the flat Strads.
Mr. Mayson is now mostly engaged in carved-back instruments, choosing rocky landscapes, chiefly from the Lake district, flowers, &c., which are carved most beautifully in low relief.
The illustration facing this page will give some idea of this beautiful work. The relief is only one-fortieth of an inch, and the effect is marvellous in so slight a cutting. The following is a list of Mayson’s carved-back fiddles down to date : — ” Rosa Bonheur,” ” Moliere,” both in scroll work ; “Anemone,” carved in this flower with a girl dancing over a shell in the centre ; ” Portinscale,” a group of youths at the top engaged in plucking and eating grapes, and another group at the lower part holding a carouse on the fermented liquor of the same fruit ; ” I will arise,” Christ ascending among clouds ; ” Lord Cavendish ” and ” Thomas Haviland Burke,” both in scroll work; “Anemone” (No. 2), same as before; ” Old Windsor,” her Majesty Queen Victoria in centre of back, rich drooping flowers down the sides; “Convolvulus,” “Thirlmere,” “Blea Tarn,” “Wastdale” (viola)— scenes from the Lake district ; “Ivy,” and ” King Edward VII.”
The fame of Mayson two hundred years hence will be due more especially to his ordinary back, original model fiddles, however exalted as works of art the above may be. Many experts have expressed the opinion that fiddles of the ” Halle-Mayson ” class will worthily replace the chefs-d’oeuvre of Cremona, when the latter have become food for worms.
A grander fiddle than ” Cordelia,” e.g. has never been made, never can be made. Another remarkable specimen is “Elephanta,” which has only just been completed in London. This, in the opinion of two experts of eminence, is calculated to throw lustre even on Mayson’s fame, though it is difficult to imagine how it can surpass his previous accomplishments. The tone of these instruments is most remarkable. In saying this it is not assumed that it is now equal in mellowness to that of the perfect Strads and Josephs left us, but it is maintained that it runs theirs very closely in quality, and most certainly excels that of most of them in power and breadth. It needs but age and careful use to develop the tonal qualities of these instruments to put many of the all- but-deified Strads entirely out of court.
Mr. Mayson names each instrument as he makes it, and in doing so he has followed a wise plan, seeing that it makes fraud more difficult. There are, in addition, numerous private marks here and there in the instrument. A clue as to the maker’s method of inserting private marks may be found in his interesting book ” The Stolen Fiddle.”
The Mayson violins gained medals at Cork (1883), Inventions (1885), and Melbourne (1888). In the two former awards an originality in edging was specially mentioned as adding to the gracefulness of the work. This was a Grecian ogee between the purfling and the rims. His prices range from £10 to £60.
The label is a different one for each instrument.
Mr. Mayson is the author of ” Colazzi,” “The Heir of Dalton,” “ The Stolen Fiddle,” “Violin-Making,” and other works.
