Violone

Violone [aug. of viola] (It.), in the 16th c. a syn. of viola da gamba, subsequently a double-bass viola da gamba, syn. of contrabasso in Italy. The word violone occurs in an Este inventory of 1520. In a 1543 Verona inventory “una cassa cum sette violoni” and another containing “5 violoni” are enumerated, together with “uno libro da insegnar la regula deli violoni”; the latter was undoubtedly Silvestro Ganassi's Regola Rubertina, the first volume of which appeared in 1542, the second in 1543…