Spirals of wood pepper the table. A miscellany of tools scatter the surface. In his dimly lit studio, Harry Vatiliotis fastidiously whittles a piece of maple. He analyses its depth – not quite right. Chiselling through the segment, he sends shavings floating through the air. Each stroke is performed with flawless precision, the kind that comes with decades of practice. Next Vatiliotis assembles the edges, adds the finishing touches, and lathers it in varnish. Pleased with the outcome, the silver-haired craftsman cradles the end product – a violin.
As a child, Vatiliotis preferred dusty workshops to clinical classrooms. “I love working with my hands,” he says. “That's all I ever liked doing.” At the age of 12, Vatiliotis packed away his books to become a blacksmith. But after emigrating from Cyprus to Australia with no school qualifications, his prospects weren’t promising. Nonetheless, his fervour remained. Picking up a few scraps of wood, Vatiliotis began carving. He soon landed an apprenticeship under the watchful eye of acclaimed luthier Arthur Edward Smith, where he learnt to make his first violin. Now in his 80s, Vatiliotis has single-handedly made 784 of the string instruments, joining a long line of masters. Yet there’s no secret to his success. The artisan simply puts it down to hard work and wells of patience. “It takes about 20 to 30 years of full-time making before you get there,” Vatiliotis says.
The exceptional quality of his violins and the speed with which he works has made him a respected name in the industry. Often selling the instruments to students for almost half their worth, Vatiliotis values hearing his creations played with care over earning a profit. But with his retirement approaching, he hopes to finish 800 violins and help a few more musicians fine-tune their sound before putting his tools down for good. “I want to keep going until 2023, and that’ll complete my 70 years in the trade,” Vatiliotis says. As he prepares to close the door on a lifetime of craft, he not only leaves behind a wealth of knowledge, but a lasting legacy as one of Australia’s most beloved and accomplished violin makers. “I feel gratitude,” Vatiliotis says. “I can’t imagine anything better.”
