Born in Ferrara in 1891, Enrico Orselli entered as an apprentice into Ettore Soffritti's workshop at a young age and remained there until 1923, assisting him with both repairs and making; apparently Orselli came into conflict with the master, and Anselmo Gotti was finally preferred to him, while the former consequently moved to Pesaro, where he opened his own workshop. There he remained active for several decades (he died in 1955) giving birth to a conspicuous production of violins and violas, as well as numerous cellos and several double basses.
Soffritti's influence remains visible in Orselli's independent work, which is based on both the Guarneri pattern and his own version of Stradivari. The edge, however, is flatter than in his master and the purfling meets at the corners with a rather long joint; the sound-holes are elegant and well executed. The pegbox ends with a deep throat and the volute protrudes slightly forward, while the volute remains rather wide at its second turn. The varnish is of a soft texture and takes on a pleasant patina over time.
