La Bella

In the 17th century, the small town of Salle in the Abruzzi region of Italy was considered one of the string centers in Europe. Local church records reveal that the most important string manufacturing families were Berti, Dorazio, Ruffini and MARI. Established in the 1640s in Salle, the Mari family became one of the suppliers of violin strings to both Amati and Stradivari in Cremona. In 1913, the two brothers, Emilio and Olinto Mari left the family business to seek new opportunities in America. They settled in New York City where they produced both gut and steel strings in their small apartment in lower Manhattan. As the word spread among musicians in the area, so did the popularity of their product. A local music store grew very fond of the high quality hand made strings the two brothers produced, and made them an offer to help expand. The first factory opened in the year 1914 on 170 Fifth Avenue. The American dream for the two young immigrants had arrived. The business expanded in 1922 with the opening of a second factory in Lanciano, Abruzzi. At the 1927 “First Exposition Trade Show” of Tripoli, North Africa, the Italian government awarded the “Gold Medal Diploma” to the company for their dedication and excellence as manufacturers. Since the 1920s the trade name ”La Bella” has remained to describe a superior product. La Bella Strings is the oldest continuously family-owned and operated string manufacturer in the world. La Bella makes and distributes fine strings for virtually every kind of stringed instrument. No other company has such international scope nor makes strings for such an incredible variety of orchestral and ethnic instruments. La Bella is one of the only companies in the world still making traditional, real gut strings for antique and Baroque instruments. Other materials used include different types of nylon, copper, brass, bronze, silver, aluminum, in addition to numerous types of steel. Each string is created using a combination of tradition and technology. Sophisticated, computer controlled and automated string-winding machinery is used where applicable, but hand-winding is used where it delivers the best results. Why We Do It La Bella Strings exists for musicians. We take great pride in creating the best products to maximize the performances of players, professional and recreational alike. La Bella has been guided for over 400 years by its commitment to high standards of quality and value. Our focus has been and always will be the musical artists of the world.